09/28/2026
When I went through surgery for an ovarian cyst, one of the possibilities we had to discuss was losing an o***y. At this stage of my life, my first thought wasn’t fertility. It was hormones. Menopause. What this might mean for my body in the years ahead.
That conversation hit differently because, like so many of the women I treat, I’ve watched my own body change through different seasons of life. Children, hormones, stress, responsibilities, less time for yourself — all of it adds up. Sometimes you can exercise, eat well, take care of everyone around you and still look in the mirror and think, “When did my body start feeling so different?”
I get it because I’m not only the doctor on the other side of the consultation room.
I’m a woman going through many of the same changes.
I’ve also chosen elective procedures for myself — including treatments and procedures I offer my own patients. I know what it feels like to wonder if you’re being vain. I know what it’s like to worry about recovery, whether something is “worth it,” or whether you should just learn to live with the changes you see.
And I also know how powerful it can be to finally do something for yourself.
One thing I learned through this experience is that losing an o***y can affect ovarian reserve and, for some women, may mean reaching menopause earlier than they otherwise would have. It was something I hadn’t spent much time thinking about until I was the patient having that conversation.
That vulnerability has made me even more aware of what my patients are feeling when they sit across from me.
You don’t need a doctor who expects you to pretend these changes don’t bother you.
You deserve one who understands why they do.
At Exert BodySculpt in Fort Myers, my goal is to give women a place where they can talk openly about their bodies, their goals and the changes they weren’t expecting — without judgment.
Because I’m not asking my patients to consider anything I wouldn’t be willing to consider for myself.
And sometimes the person who understands your body best is the woman who has been navigating changes in her own, too.
