Happier’s Mindful Menopause Guide
Welcome! This guide is yours to explore however feels right for you. Each session includes a note from me, a meditation, and a reflection prompt—designed to help you feel more grounded and confident through every step of this journey.
Welcome! This guide is yours to explore however feels right for you. Each session includes a note from me, a meditation, and a reflection prompt—designed to help you feel more grounded and confident through every step of this journey.
Sessions
Keep your cool with hot flashes
SESSION 01
Deep Dive
Hot flashes are the most iconic symbol of menopause and they feel terrible. In one moment, you’re burning up and sweating, and in the next you’re freezing cold as you scramble to put your clothes back on. And they come at the most inopportune times. I remember teaching a class and having to take my sweater off and put it back on, and then take it back off, and then put it back on again, and I kept thinking, do my students think I’m nuts? My hot flashes were accompanied by a feeling of anxiety: heart racing, chest constricted. If I wasn’t careful, I would get more anxious, and then the hot flashes would intensify and lengthen. Can you relate?
We can get really interested in the sensations happening in our body, rather than getting caught in any worries about the future.
Well, here’s the good news: while we can’t control our hot flashes, we can control how we relate to them. We can recognize that they are a normal, universal part of menopause. And we can use some basic mindfulness practices to not only better tolerate them but also to calm ourselves so we don’t make them worse.
This meditation practice teaches us what to do when we have that panicky feeling as a hot flash rears its head. We can stay grounded, notice our feet on the floor, take some breaths to calm us down, and mindfully notice the wave of heat as it comes in. We can get really interested in the sensations happening in our body, rather than getting caught in any worries about the future. After all, it’s just a hot FLASH. It comes and goes. Try the meditation as practice ahead of time, or in the moment when you’re having a hot flash, and see what happens.
Hot Flashes Disclaimer & Additional Resources
Pause & Breathe
Diana Winston
For a Moment of Panic
Soothe and reduce panic with this grounding meditation that will help you soften anxiety and find safety in your body.
https://tph-meditations.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/M_06_Panicking_SOS_DW_10min.mp3
Your Turn
Exercise
Next hot flash
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In the moment you feel it coming on, take a breath, feel your feet on the ground, and see if you can get curious about the sensations as they are happening: heat, tightness, sweating, discomfort.
Take as many slow, deep breaths as you need to stay grounded, and see if noticing the sensations in a direct way helps weather it with ease.
More Meditations for Keeping Your Cool with Hot Flashes on the Happier App
Your Next Session
Clear the Brain Fog
SESSION 02
Deep Dive
Confession: It’s an almost-daily occurrence that I walk into a room and completely forget what I walked in there for. For those of us who have prided ourselves on being on top of our game, it can be so frustrating to find ourselves dropping balls when we get hit with brain fog in perimenopause and menopause. Whether you find yourself forgetting things, or you’re simply not able to focus the way you used to, it only makes matters worse that this reduced capacity is often accompanied by a strong sense that something is wrong with you. If you find yourself exasperated, thinking, “What is happening to my brain???,” you are not alone.
I know I can get really self-judgmental when my mind doesn’t feel sharp. Mindfulness reminds me to soften my inner critic and bring kindness to myself.
Mindfulness can help with brain fog in a number of different ways. First of all, science shows it builds our attentional capacity, specifically what’s called “conflict attention”—the ability to stay focused on one thing when other things are vying for our attention (like all day long, every day). Mindfulness is attentional training. As we practice it, our attention can improve over time, even with brain fog!
There’s also a component of mindfulness that’s about not judging ourselves. I know I can get really self-judgmental when my mind doesn’t feel sharp. Mindfulness reminds me to soften my inner critic and bring a bit of kindness to myself in the moment.
By the way, menopause research shows that once you are through the crucial menopause years, brains go back to normal functioning!
Pause & Breathe
Diana Winston
Trying Various Focal Points
Explore using different meditation objects to get comfortable focusing and settling your mind with receptivity and acceptance.
https://tph-meditations.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/_M_05_DifferentObjectsOfFocus_DW_10min.mp3
Your Turn
Exercise
Practice stop
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Here’s my favorite practice for when you need a moment of mindfulness. Practice the acronym STOP: S- Slow down, T-Take a Breath, O-Observe what’s happening in this present moment (I’ve lost track of something, I’m anxious, my heart is racing) and then P-Proceed, with more mindfulness.
When you need a moment of focus, practice box breathing:
- Inhale through your nose for four counts. Try to take a full breath.
- Hold for four counts without inhaling or exhaling.
- Exhale through your mouth for four counts, emptying your lungs
- Hold with empty lungs for four counts. Repeat until you feel calmer.
More Meditations for Clearing Brain Fog on the Happier App
Your Next Session
Rekindle Your Spark
SESSION 03
Deep Dive
One of the strangest things about menopause, perimenopause, and aging in general, is that we change physically in all sorts of ways, yet inside we kind of feel like we always did. I’ve had the experience countless times of looking in the mirror and being surprised by who looks back at me—almost like I expect to see my 30- or even40-year-old face and body. It can elicit a sense of alienation or even grief for who I used to be, because my body is changing in ways I didn’t ask for.
The more I can accept my changing body for what it is, the more it becomes a vehicle for my strength and power to emerge.
My body doesn’t have the same resiliency it used to. What it does have is more creakiness, sagginess, weight changes, and aches. Many of us also struggle with libido loss, pain during sex, and acne! In a youth-oriented culture where ageism is rampant, we can be really hard on ourselves as our body ages.
But growing into the next stage of life, and all the bodily changes it entails, are one-hundred-percent normal—and of course, we’d prefer it over the alternative. The meditation for this session will take you into the sensations and emotions around aging. You’ll explore how you’re feeling about your changing body. With mindfulness, you can allow those feelings to be there, as well as reflect on what is positive in aging. I know I’m wiser, less hard on myself, and actually way happier than I was when I was younger. The more I can accept my changing body for what it is, the more it becomes a vehicle for my strength and power to emerge.
Pause & Breathe
Sebene Selassie
The Fear and Freedom of Aging
Sure, aging brings challenges, but it also brings more wisdom. Explore what getting older offers you.
https://tph-meditations.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/M_02_Fear-Worry-About-Aging_SSE_10min.mp3
Your Turn
Exercise
Positive self talk
When you notice you’re having negative judgments about your body, pause, take a breath, and recognize that your inner critic is at the helm. Try saying something kinder to yourself like, “I’m ok as I am,” or “Look how cool I am now.”
You could put your hand on your heart, if you wish. You could also take one minute to reflect on something positive about aging—for example, “I’m a much happier person now.”
More Meditations for Rekindling Your Spark on the Happier App
Your Next Session
Sleepless but Not Hopeless
SESSION 04
Deep Dive
Sleeplessness during peri- and menopause was probably the worst symptom for me. I had always been a good sleeper, and since I didn’t even realize I was in perimenopause, I had no idea why I was waking up in the middle of the night and often not able to fall back to sleep. Once the night sweats started it was pretty obvious what was happening; I knew for sure I was in menopause.
Sleeplessness is rotten but it helps to be kind to ourselves!
For me, waking up with the night sweats were accompanied by the feeling of anxiety I got with hot flashes. Because my mind was exhausted in the middle of the night, I would get overwhelmed by worried thoughts, including the worry that I wouldn’t be able to function the next day without sleep…which made me not able to sleep! Not helpful!
Mindfulness was a life saver for me during those sleepless years. When I woke up sweating and couldn’t go back to sleep, I would meditate with the discomfort. When I woke up anxious, I would use mindfulness to work with my anxious feelings. It wasn’t always perfect, and sometimes anxiety still got the better of me, but on the whole, it was an invaluable tool. There were so many nights when I was able to offer myself comfort and companionship during these otherwise stressful moments.
These days, I always tell my students: Don’t believe anything you think in the middle of the night! It’s always distorted! The meditation here should give you several different tools to use when you wake up in the night. First, you’ll learn a soothing meditation to relax your body and help you fall back asleep. Second, you’ll learn what to do with any difficult emotions that might come up. Finally, you’ll be guided through offering helpful words and thoughts to bring some kindness to yourself in the middle of the night. Sleeplessness is rotten but it helps to be kind to ourselves!
Pause & Breathe
Diana Winston
Gentle Tools for Sleep
Soothe yourself with a gentle body scan, ease anxious thoughts by focusing on what’s good, and finally drift off to the balm of self-kindness.
https://tph-meditations.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/M_02_Sleep+Meditation_DW_30min.mp3
Your Turn
Exercise
Falling asleep
If you are trying to fall asleep, or if you wake up in the middle of the night, try a short body scan. Gently scan your attention through your body at a slow pace, starting at the top of your head, noticing all the sensations you encounter: tingling, warmth, heaviness, discomfort, comfort, etc.
When you feel some tension or tightness, see if you can soften and breathe into that part. Imagine that part of your body melting into the bed. Scan your awareness through your whole body, ending at your feet. If you’re still awake, start again!
More Meditations for Sleeplessness on the Happier App
Your Next Session
Finding Balance with Mood Swings
SESSION 05
Deep Dive
For me and so many of my friends, menopause put us on a merry-go-round of emotions. In one moment I’d be completely reasonable, and in the next, I’d find myself raging at my kid without just cause. (Fun fact: My daughter was going through puberty at the same time I was going through menopause. Our household was super fun!) I’d go from relaxed, to anxious, to depressed over the simplest things in a heartbeat.
You can develop equanimity, so we can not be at mercy of our moods, but the master of them.
At times, I felt like I barely recognized myself—like, who is this person? This can be extra confusing for those of us who start having mood swings in perimenopause, before we even know what is happening.
Strong changing emotions—including really difficult ones like worry, sadness, and anger—are part of the territory of menopause. Hormones affect mood, and we are at the mercy of them, or so it feels. The first thing to remember is there is nothing wrong with you if you are acting like a door-slamming 15-year-old. It’s totally normal during menopause. And mindfulness offers us an incredible tool for working with difficult emotions. You can learn to be present in the midst of those big irritating feelings. You can develop equanimity: a quality of having a balanced mind and being non-reactive, no matter what the circumstances. There are specific practices you can do to deliberately cultivate equanimity—like the one below. It’s something we all need in menopause, so we can not be at mercy of our moods, but the master of them.
Pause & Breathe
Diana Winston
Respond with Equanimity
Life will push your buttons, but you can learn to respond more and react less. Build your capacity for balanced wisdom.
https://tph-meditations.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/M_05_Cultivating+Equanimity+Meditation_DW_15min.mp3
Your Turn
Exercise
Equanimity phrases
We can use equanimity phrases on the spot whenever we need them. Having an anxious moment? “Things are as they are,” or, “This too shall pass.” Ready to murder your spouse? “May I be okay with them as they are.” What other words can you use in the moment to invite in equanimity?
More Meditations for Finding Balance with Mood Swings on the Happier App
Your Next Session
Own the Journey
SESSION 06
Deep Dive
Millions of people enter menopause every year. So why do we feel so alone? It’s only in the last few years that I’ve started to see menopause emerging into public discourse. But for most of our modern era, doctors have not been trained to care for patients going through menopause. In our youth-centric and misogynist culture, older women are basically invisible. The narrative is all screwed up—it’s like we’re considered to be no longer valuable since we can’t reproduce. No wonder we feel so isolated and alone as we go through menopause.
With menopause comes power, wisdom, and a genuine ability to kick ass. Many of us are overjoyed to discover that we no longer give a f&%k about what people think of us.
But guess what? I can tell you from experience, menopause is actually the opposite of the dreaded stereotypes. With menopause comes power, wisdom, and a genuine ability to kick ass. Many of us are overjoyed to discover that we no longer give a f&%k about what people think of us. With menopause comes a new phase of life, where you can center yourself after having focused on everyone else for so long. Menopause makes us goddesses! It’s a fact that I am happier and more in my power than I’ve ever been my whole life.
All that said, the loneliness and feelings of unworthiness connected to menopause are real. If you find it getting the best of you, or you just want to feel more supported and strong, the meditation here will offer you a beautiful practice where you can offer kindness to yourself and then radiate it through the world like the powerhouse you truly are.
Pause & Breathe
Leslie Booker
The Protection of Loving-Kindness
This loving-kindness meditation can serve as a protection from fear, guard against anxiety, & help you tap into support from your community.
https://tph-meditations.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/M_08_ANXIETY_CALLING-ON-SUPPORT_LB_10min.mp3
Your Turn
Exercise
I’m not alone
Next time you feel lonely or unworthy, take a moment to pause and reflect on the countless people around the world who are experiencing the same thing due to menopause. See if you can imagine others who feel lonely, inadequate, invisible, and send out a little compassion, saying something like, “You’re not alone.” Or reflect for yourself, “I’m not alone.”
Then think of an older woman you know or have heard of who is powerful. Someone like feminist Gloria Steinem, or writer Toni Morrison, or actress Helen Mirren, or astronaut Sunita Williams, or someone historical like activist Rosa Parks, or maybe it’s your great grandmother. Imagine they are here with you. How do you feel in their presence? Can you imagine their power? What might their power feel like in your body? Imagine, just for a moment, that you, too, are a powerful, amazing, kick ass older woman! They are here with you, cheering you on! Join their ranks!
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More Meditations for Owning the Journey on the Happier App
Menopause is better with a plus one.
Send this guide to a friend—because hot flashes and brain fog are better with
Meet Diana
Director of UCLA Mindful, the mindfulness education center of UCLA Health. Mindfulness expert, author, and guide through life’s transitions.
- Leading voice in making mindfulness practical, accessible, and science-backed
- Author of The Little Book of Being and co-author of Fully Present
- Has personally navigated menopause and brings lived experience to her teaching
FEATURED IN:
Partners
Questions? We’ve got answers.
What is Happier and how did it get started?
Happier is an award winning app created to help you be a stronger, happier you — day in and day out, in good times and during the rough times. We have a library of resources in the app and elsewhere that have been curated to help you explore questions like:
- What the heck does it mean to be mindful?
- How do I meditate?
- What will meditation do for me? Can’t I just, “be mindful?”
- Will you help me practice meditation in a way that fits with my life and still helps me feel better?
- This is really interesting and helpful for me, how do I go deeper and find out more?
We got started in the general wellness business back in 2014, then started to collaborate with Dan Harris who wrote the book, 10% Happier. Now we have an app full of curated meditations, lessons, and content that continues to evolve based on our community’s needs, a weekly newsletter, and a website that’s chock full of resources.
Can meditation treat or cure symptoms like hot flashes or night sweats?
No—meditation is not a treatment or cure for vasomotor symptoms like hot flashes or night sweats. These symptoms are physical and often related to hormonal changes, and it's important to talk with a healthcare provider about medical options.
That said, mindfulness can be a powerful support tool for managing the mental and emotional impact of menopause—things like stress, sleep disruptions, irritability, or anxiety. Our goal with this guide is to complement—not replace—evidence-based care.
If you're looking for trusted medical guidance, we recommend checking out expert-backed resources like Alloy Women's Health.
A Note on Medical Advice
Happier’s Mindful Menopause Guide is not intended to treat, cure, or diagnose medical conditions—including vasomotor symptoms like hot flashes and night sweats. While mindfulness can support emotional well-being during this transition, it is not a substitute for medical care.
We encourage anyone experiencing physical symptoms to talk with a qualified healthcare provider. Mindfulness is a complementary tool—one part of a broader care plan that might include lifestyle changes, medication, or hormone therapy.
If you're looking for trusted medical support, we recommend exploring evidence-based platforms like Alloy Women's Health.
How is Happier priced?
Happier has two levels of access, free and subscribed.
- An app subscription gives you access to everything in the app! Our subscription is available at $99.99USD/year.
- The app is free to download and with a free account you get three courses: Unlearn to Meditate, The Basics, and The Dalai Lama's Guide to Happiness, plus over 50 guided meditations.
What types of meditation and mindfulness practices does Happier offer?
This is a great question and there are two parts to the answer.
Meditation
The main type of meditation taught in the app is based in a practice called Vipassana which, it’s believed, is the kind of meditation taught by the Buddha. So we want to acknowledge the roots of what we’re doing and our gratitude to all the teachers who came before and kept this knowledge vibrant and evolving.
Several modern teachers, including Sharon Salzberg and Joseph Goldstein, went and studied with teachers in Asia and and returned to start a tradition here that’s called Insight Meditation.
No matter what we name it, this kind of meditation involves paying close attention to an anchor or focus point. It’s often the breath but it can be all kinds of sensations and the app includes variations like:
- Breathing
- Sound Meditation
- Open Awareness Meditation
- Body Scan
- Walking Meditation
Meditation can also help us train our minds to have new patterns like:
- Loving-Kindness
- Concentration
Mindfulness
We practice meditation, paying attention, so we can be more mindful because being mindful can help us build internal strength to deal with life. If you’re wondering what the difference is between meditation and mindfulness, check out this article, Mindfulness vs Meditation.
When we talk about mindfulness at Happier we mean being aware of what’s going on in and around us right now — and trying not to judge it. Once you get used to paying close attention while you’re formally meditating, it gets easier to pay close attention to things throughout your day.
The app will help you incorporate mindfulness into lots of spots in your day! From putting on your pants to drinking your coffee, from talking to a friend or co-worker, driving, eating or falling sleep, the app has guided meditations and content to support you. Then you get to play with it and see where else you can be mindful!
Who are the teachers and experts behind Happier?
In addition to the long line of teachers who’ve brought mindfulness meditation through the 2,000+ years from the Buddha to today, Thank You!, Happier is indebted to folks like Sharon Salzberg, Joseph Goldstein and Jon Kabat-Zinn who were some of the champions of Insight Meditation in the west. We mostly teach this kind of meditation at Happier although there are other influences that compliment Insight Meditation and are also included in the app.
On staff we have a group of highly trained meditation teachers and practitioners who really walk the walk! This team manages our pedagogy and finds other trained and experienced meditation teachers, mostly with 10 years of teaching experience or more, to record content for you.
Among the teachers who record meditations for you to use in the app, you’ll find diverse voices and perspectives — because mindful meditation is available to everyone.
Can beginners use Happier?
Definitely! Beginning meditators are welcomed at Happier. We’ve created courses and meditations to meet you wherever you are in your journey with mindfulness meditation — from never ever to long time meditators.
If you’re just getting started, try courses like Unlearn to Meditate, Common Questions and Essential Advice. You can also explore single guided meditations that help you bring mindfulness into your daily routine like On The Way To Work.
As soon as you start, you’re a meditator! And when you’re ready to go deeper, there’s plenty to practice. The app’s build to help you along your journey and you can email support@meditatehappier.com any time with questions.
What kind of resources does Happier have for dealing with stress, anxiety, and other challenges?
When you practice mindfulness meditation, you practice getting to know your own mind and its habits so you can approach all of life’s emotions with strength — even the messy and the imperfect! There are lots of resources in the app that help you specifically practice handling stress, anxiety plus lots of other life challenges, from difficult people to pain, from anger to aging.
In a quick search of the app for stress or anxiety you’ll find 3 courses, over 80 guided meditations and more. Here’s just a small sample:
Courses
- Taming Anxiety This course will increase your ability to cope with challenging situations. You’ll learn tools for examining and overcoming your own particular anxiety feedback loop, while building the skills of mindfulness, compassion, and bravery along the way.
- Phrases for Stress Sometimes just remembering a few meaningful words can help you set yourself up for success. In this course, you’ll learn simple phrases that will help you cut through unhelpful mental chatter and reduce stress.
- Stress Better You can’t change the fact that life is stressful, but you can change how you respond to it. We’ve brought together some of the world’s top stress-reduction experts to offer you practical tools to bounce back from stress with more clarity, perspective, and energy to move you toward your goals.
Guided Meditations
- Self-Kindness for Stress Being kind to ourselves in hard times bolsters our resilience, so we can learn from setbacks rather than getting stuck in rumination.
- Stress in the Body Explore the places where you hold stress in the body, and use guided techniques to cultivate more ease and relaxation.
- Stepping Back from Stress Taking a bigger perspective and staying grounded in the body helps us experience life’s inevitable stress without being taken over by it.
- Reduce Anxiety, Build Resilience Build your capacity to prevent overwhelm by feeling the anxious sensations in your body while staying anchored in what feels ok right now
- Soothe Stressful Thoughts Relieve your anxiety by exploring the relationship between stress and thinking while learning to break unhealthy habit loops.
How can I download the Happier app? Download the Happier App.
You can use the Happier app on iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Apple Watch and Android mobile devices.
Download the free Happier app from the Apple App Store or the Google Play store.
Happier isn’t available through a web browser or on desktop computers. Please check out our Help Center article Using Happier Meditation on a Computer for more information on the content you can access through the web.
How can I download the Happier meditation app?
If you don't yet have the app on your iPhone, iPad or Android device yet, download it for free from Apple's App Store or the Google Play store and create a free account. We don't have this available for computers so if that's what you want to work on, check out our Help Center article Happier on a Computer.
