Is testosterone really making women “ragey”… or is it just giving us fewer f*$ks to give? Or is it all down to age and experience?

In Episode 4 of On the ’Mones, pharmacist Kate Thomas dives into one of the most misunderstood hormones in women’s health: testosterone. Along the way, she unpacks a petty (and infuriating) pharmacy encounter that sparks a much bigger conversation about boundaries, ageing, assertiveness, and how much bad behaviour women in healthcare are expected to tolerate.

This episode covers:

• What testosterone actually does in women (hint: it’s not a “male hormone”)
• Why women naturally produce testosterone — and what happens as levels decline in perimenopause and menopause
• The evidence-based role of testosterone in HRT
• Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder (HSDD): what it is, how common it is, and why it’s so under-treated
• Why HSDD is a clinical diagnosis, not a blood test result
• How testosterone therapy compares to how easily erectile dysfunction is treated in men
• Safety, side effects, and monitoring of transdermal testosterone (including AndroFeme)
• Why testosterone doesn’t cause “rage” — but can reduce people-pleasing and tolerance for bullshit
• The difference between assertiveness and aggression in midlife women

Woo of the Week:
Kate takes aim at “natural testosterone boosters,” DHEA supplements, and adrenal support blends — breaking down why these products are often less safe, less predictable, and less evidence-based than properly prescribed testosterone therapy.

You’ll also hear:

• Why supplements that “boost testosterone naturally” are basically hormone roulette
• The difference between oral DHEA, vaginal DHEA, and prescription testosterone
• Why control and precision — not “natural” — are what actually make treatments safer

If you’re navigating perimenopause, menopause, libido changes, or feeling like you tolerate far less nonsense than you used to — this episode will give you language, clarity, and evidence to back yourself.

Key takeaway:
Testosterone isn’t a personality transplant.
It’s not a cure-all.
And it doesn’t fix context.

But for the right woman, with the right diagnosis, at the right dose — it deserves a seat at the grown-up medical table.

🎧 Listen now to Episode 4 of On the ’Mones — where hormones, healthcare, and real life collide.

In this episode of On the ’Mones, we unpack three things many women quietly worry about — progesterone, memory changes, and the wellness advice that sounds scientific but absolutely isn’t.

First, we deep-dive into progesterone — why it’s not always a gentle background hormone, how it acts in the brain, and why some women feel calmer while others feel anxious, flat, or completely unhinged when they start it. We explain the real science behind "progesterone intolerance", PMDD, GABA receptors, and why “just push through it” is terrible advice.

Then, I get personal about brain fog — the kind that messes with your confidence and identity. We talk estrogen, cognition, working memory, task overload, and why perimenopause doesn’t steal intelligence — it steals your buffer.

Finally, it’s Woo of the Week, and we’re taking on collagen powders and protein marketing. What actually happens when you eat protein? Does collagen really know where your sore knee is? (Spoiler: no.) We separate legitimate nutrition from seductive nonsense and explain what the evidence actually says.

This episode isn’t about doing more — it’s about understanding better.

If you’ve ever thought:

• “Progesterone made me feel worse — what’s wrong with me?”
• “Why does my brain feel different lately?”
• “Is this supplement actually doing anything?”

You’re in the right place.

In Episode 2 of On the ’Mones, Kate starts with a moment many midlife women will recognise: a close friend, a few glasses of wine, a forgotten word — and the immediate dismissal of perimenopause as something “everyone else is doing.”

That moment opens the door to a much bigger conversation.

This episode explores why many women resist menopause care — even informed, health-literate women — and why perimenopause is often misunderstood as a “trend” rather than what it really is: a long-overdue correction to decades of silence, stigma, and medical neglect.

Kate unpacks:

• Why perimenopause is being talked about more — and why that doesn’t mean it’s overdiagnosed
• How menopause mirrors the cultural unmasking we’ve already seen with ADHD in women
• Why HRT is no longer just about hot flushes, but long-term brain, bone, and heart health
• The three types of estrogen (E1, E2, E3) and how oral, transdermal, and vaginal forms differ
• How to think about estrogen as a toolkit, not a one-size-fits-all prescription
• And why resistance to “what everyone else is getting” is often about fear, identity, and agency — not medicine

The episode also features a deep dive into Wellness Woo of the Week, tackling wild yam cream: what it claims to do, why it doesn’t work biochemically, and why women are so often targeted by hormone misinformation in the first place.

This is an episode about hormones — but it’s also about psychology, culture, gender bias, and what happens when women finally have language for what they’ve been experiencing all along.

Smart, evidence-based, occasionally sweary, and deeply validating — this one is for anyone who’s ever wondered whether midlife medicine is a fad… or long-overdue progress.