Empowering Women through Menopause: The M Factor Screening and Discussion

ABOUT THE M FACTOR

2.1 million* American women will enter menopause this year.

film explores the hidden impact of menopause on women's lives. Menopause has ramifications beyond just an individual woman’s well-being. The far-ranging results of women enduring untreated menopause include billions of dollars in lost wages, upended careers, family disruptions, and emotional chaos.

With evidence-based information, the film empowers women to make informed health decisions and aims to remove the stigma surrounding menopause and aging.

This feature-length documentary film centers on the lived experiences of women across the U.S. Cameras follow women into their doctors’ offices, at work, and in their homes to expose the challenges they face — including racial biases, gender-ignorant care, inequitable structures and systems, and barriers due to the lack of basic midlife healthcare research. The women featured here open up about their experiences and share their stories of enduring debilitating symptoms while being ignored, ridiculed and/or shamed — and left untreated.

Now there’s a movement to fix the broken system, change the culture and transform our future. “The (M) Factor” turns the spotlight on the progress being made. With input from emboldened physicians, healthcare advocates and leaders in the menopause movement, the film focuses on what is being done to address this public health crisis and offers solutions that can be replicated in medical communities and workplaces across the country. More on The (M) Factor website.

ABOUT THE PANELISTS

Leslie Craig, MD received her Doctor of Medicine degree from the Georgetown University School of Medicine in 1988. She completed her post-graduate training in Psychiatry at Letterman Army Medical Center in San Francisco and served an additional four years as an Army Psychiatrist stationed in Virginia. She then completed a Psychopharmacology and Psychobiology Fellowship at the University of California, San Diego, concentrating in mental health issues that are specific to women. Dr. Craig is a diplomate of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology.

Dr. Craig was inspired to focus her career on the care of women while serving in the U.S. Army, during a time when women were first entering mainstream units. There, she developed a close working relationship with the OB/GYN providers and learned first-hand what the needs of women were in a healthcare system designed for male soldiers. Dr. Craig opened her private practice of Psychiatry in 1998, specializing in Reproductive Psychiatry. Dr. Craig is also a founding member and a past president of the San Diego Postpartum Health Alliance.

Alyssa Yee, MD is a board-certified Urologic Surgeon and Sexual Medicine Physician who completed a clinical fellowship at San Diego Sexual Medicine in 2022 under the mentorship of Dr. Irwin Goldstein. She is a recipient of the 2021 Sexual Medicine Society of North American Foundation Research Grant for her work on Immunohistochemical Analysis in Neuroproliferative Vestibulodynia.

Her professional and research interests include sexual pain disorders, sexual dysfunction, hormones disorders and menopause treatment, reconstructive urology, and prosthetic surgery. Dr. Yee proudly draws on her background as a patient advocate for the Crime Victims Treatment Center of NY as the inspiration for pursuing a medical career and for providing compassionate care. She completed a urological surgery residency at Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn. She is involved in several health-related non-profit organizations and sits on the medical advisory board for Tight Lipped Organization.

Jandra Mueller, DPT (pronounced like "Sandra" with a "J") is a pelvic floor physical therapist, specializing in the management of complex pelvic pain conditions for all genders. With a doctorate in physical therapy and a master’s degree in ntegrative health and nutrition, Jandra applies a comprehensive, holistic approach to treating pelvic health conditions.

She is the Director of the Encinitas clinic at the Pelvic Health and Rehabilitation Center and the Director of Education, Jandra plays a pivotal role in shaping educational initiatives. She has been invited to speak at international conferences, educating healthcare professionals on the critical importance of pelvic health. Her passion for pelvic health has expanded into her hobbies, most recently in crocheting pelvic health medical models.

Erin Sandoval, DACM, LAc, FABORM, MS is a California Licensed Acupuncturist and Herbalist committed to the study and practice of Traditional Eastern Medicine and Integrative Western Medicine. She uses acupuncture, herbal medicine, nutrition therapy, and modalities such as cupping, moxa, and gua sha to restore balance and health for her patients.

With a passion for integrative health, Dr. Erin practices meridian therapy acupuncture and specializes in women’s health, fertility and pregnancy, emotional disorders, pain management, sleep issues, and gastrointestinal disorders.

Erin strives to provide the best possible care for her community and believes the tools to achieve health and well-being are within all of us. She strives to empower others to rediscover balance and cultivate health from the inside out. Her specialties include fertility, PCOS, and general reproductive health and wellness.

Hosted by Ana Arteaga-Biggs, PsyD, Rachel Rabinor, LCSW and Postpartum Health Alliance.

Host or Publisher Postpartum Health Alliance