Perimenopause … It's something many people face, but it can’t be diagnosed with a simple blood test, many things can mimic its symptoms and, contrary to popular belief, it’s not all about our hormones. 

Time is vitally important when it comes to seeing your GP – and the current funding model for Medicare does not allow for this time.Because of this, it can take a lot longer to get to the heart of an issue and create a sustainable, long-term plan to resolve it. 

So what sorts of issues need more time? Probably everything, I’d argue. To show you why, I’m exploring some of the most common presentations that have possibly complex issues.

My recent locum as a GP in Victoria (where I was seeing new people for very short, back-to-back appointments) reminded me about the problems with the traditional GP system – created by the way Medicare is funded. This system means it is much harder to facilitate the things that are vitality important – time, depth and understanding.

Desire, libido, sex drive. Nothing is more sticky for intimate relationships than when this becomes an issue. 

You might want more sex than they do. Or they might want more sex than you do. 

Sex in relationships is a big component of intimacy so when desire is mismatched it can lead to difficult thoughts and feeling

“What do I want?” “Who do I want to be?”” How do I want to live my life?”

These questions are fundamental to our way of moving through the world. But the answers are not always easy to find. They are not set in stone. They change as our lives do.

Sex, sensuality and intimate communication can be one of the most important aspects of our lives and relationships. It can impact how we feel about ourselves. How we relate to our partners. And how we experience our world physically/with our senses.

Considering it’s such a crucial part of life, you’d think we’d be more broadly taught how to do it.

How often do you hear about self-help, self-healing and self-love?In our individualist society, and our individualistic health system, we have an incessant focus on developing self-connection.

“You’ve gotta love yourself before you can love anyone else.”
“No one can tell you who you are.”
“You already have all the answers you need.”

These are nice ideas that support our independence and individualism. The problem is that relational issues – the way we relate to ourselves, others and the world around us – need relationships to heal fully and completely. 

Imagine you are back in time, living in a way that is more integrated with the natural environment.  You are sitting in the wilderness, sharing a meal with your tribe, family and friends. As you look into the distance, you see a shift in the movement of the grass. 

Instantly, before your brain can catch up, your body experiences a surge of chemicals. Your eyes widen, your heart races, your breathing increases. You feel a surge of energy moving towards your limbs. Your body is ready to run.

I used to pride myself on being tough. Tenacious. Determined. I was willing to be uncomfortable to get things done. I could stick it out even when it hurt. As a doctor, that often meant ignoring my body’s demands for food, sleep or even the bathroom, because people needed help.

Now, I am at a point where I want to do what my body needs. And my recent expedition to hike the 220km Larapinta Trail truly put that to the test.

Burnout. It’s not a ‘you’ problem. And yet – It does require a ‘you’ solution. 

Burnout is a word that is becoming common in our daily language. It is a well known phenomenon in high-performance careers, and especially in the healthcare space. 

Healthcare clinicians are burning out at very high rates – and it’s not just a personal health issue, it’s a public health issue.

Tiredness. Exhaustion. Weakness. Fogginess. No energy or vitality. These are all ways to describe fatigue – that feeling of constant tiredness that doesn’t get better even after you rest. 

It’s one of the most common reasons people see a GP in Australia. But just because fatigue is common, it does not mean you have to live with it. It does not mean “that’s just how it is”. It does not mean that it can’t get better.

Do you ever feel like wherever you turn, modern beauty and body culture has a megaphone to your ear telling you how you should look? Telling you what to think and feel about your body? Telling you that you should be toned – no, thin – no, curvy – but not too curvy!?

Sometimes it seems like we are the audience for a never-ending fear campaign about bodies that don’t fit this month’s ideal. It’s no wonder we start to believe it.

Low libido. Low sexual desire. Low sexual interest.  It’s one of the most common reasons that people seek sex therapy.

And if you’re struggling with it, I want you to know this – there is nothing wrong with you. You are not broken. You can have more.

Pleasure.  It’s something we know we want, but we can’t always say how it actually feels or identify how it shows up in our lives. 

When we think of pleasure, we tend to think of sex or sensuality – and whilst being in touch with our pleasure can enhance sexual experiences – it is so much bigger than that.