Halfway through a quarterly strategy presentation - something I'd done for decades - my mind went blank.

Not nervous. Not unprepared. I knew this material cold.

The words just vanished.

My junior analyst had to take over while I ran to the bathroom, where I sat on the closed toilet seat, shaking.

That night, I started writing my resignation letter.

"You Sound Like You're Losing Your Mind"

My sister called from Phoenix.

"You sound awful," she said.

"I think I'm losing it, Sarah. Like actually losing my mind."

"Wait - how old are you?"

"Forty-five, you know that."

"Are your periods weird?"

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"Just answer me."

"Sometimes twice a month, sometimes nothing for two months."

She laughed. Actually laughed. "You're not losing it. You're in perimenopause. Same thing happened to me at 43."

The 7-10 Years Before Menopause That Destroy Your Energy

She sent me a video from a functional medicine doctor.

The doctor explained what no one had told me:

Perimenopause isn't just "before menopause." It's 7-10 years of hormones going haywire.

Your cells have tiny power plants called mitochondria. They make energy for everything - thinking, moving, even sleeping.

During perimenopause, these power plants start failing.

Your brain uses the most energy of any organ.

When energy production crashes:

Can't think clearly (brain fog)
Can't remember names (memory lapses)
Can't find words (blank moments)
Can't stay awake (crushing, debilitating fatigue)

"Most doctors get only 3 hours of menopause training in medical school," she said. "They see exhaustion and mood changes, they prescribe antidepressants."

You Can't Antidepressant Your Way Out of Cellular Energy Failure

She explained the truth:

"Estrogen and progesterone don't just control reproduction. They control how your cells make energy. When those hormones go crazy, your energy production becomes like a flickering lightbulb."

I paused the video. Replayed it.

This wasn't depression. It was my cells literally failing to make energy.

Three Generations of Women Told They Were "Just Depressed"

I thought about my mother.

She quit her teaching job at 48. Said she was "too tired to keep up."

My grandmother spent two years in bed, diagnosed with "female hysteria."

Three generations of women, all hitting the same wall, all being told it was in our heads.

Everything Crashes At Once

The doctor explained that perimenopause destroys four systems at once:

Cellular energy (crushing, debilitating fatigue and brain fog)
Hormone balance (mood swings, weight gain)
Structural health (hair falling out, skin aging)
Digestive function (bloating, gut problems)

Everything was connected:

The exhaustion made exercise impossible
No exercise meant weight gain
Weight gain increased inflammation
Inflammation made brain fog worse
Brain fog made me anxious
Anxiety disrupted my sleep
Bad sleep made everything worse

The cycle kept spinning while my doctor kept increasing my antidepressant dose.

The Research That Saved My Career

I spent weeks on PubMed at 2 AM.

Not wellness blogs. Actual studies.

I found research showing specific nutrients could restore each failing system:

Creatine monohydrate - helps brain cells produce and store energy again. Like jumpstarting a dead battery.

Inositols - improve insulin sensitivity that perimenopause destroys, stopping the energy crashes after meals.

Collagen and biotin - for the hair clogging my shower drain and skin that suddenly looked 10 years older.

Digestive enzymes - because the bloating wasn't "just stress."

I found a formula with ALL these ingredients together.

From "Dementia" to Sharp in 8 Weeks

Week 2: Woke up at 6 AM actually rested. Not dragging myself up - rested.

Week 3: Remembered my neighbor's name. Small win, huge relief.

Week 4: Presented to our board. No notes. No stumbling.

My assistant texted: "You're finally back."

Week 8: Deleted my resignation letter.

My Boss Almost Lost Her Best Executive

My performance review last month said "sharp as ever."

My boss has no idea how close she came to losing me.

Not to another company - to a misdiagnosis that almost convinced me I was broken.

I think about that night often. How close I came to giving up a career I'd built for 20 years.

How I nearly accepted this was "just aging" or "just depression."

You're Not Going Crazy

I'm sharing this because you're up at 3 AM googling symptoms.

You're terrified you're failing at work.

You've been told you're depressed, anxious, or "just getting older."

You're not crazy.
You're not incompetent.
You're not depressed.

You have crushing, debilitating fatigue because your cells can't make energy.

80% of doctors don't know this. They'll prescribe antidepressants that won't help.

Your Career Doesn't Have to End

The formula I found contains:

Creatine for brain energy
Inositols for hormone balance
Collagen and biotin for hair and skin
Digestive support for gut health

This saved my career. My sanity. My identity as a sharp, capable professional.

Your clarity isn't gone. Your competence isn't lost.

They're just waiting for you to feed your starving cells.

Don't quit your job.
Don't accept the misdiagnosis.
Don't let anyone convince you this is "just aging."

You can get yourself back.

I promise.

Because I did.

"I was falling asleep at red lights. Had to pull over twice on my way to work because I couldn't keep my eyes open. My daughter started refusing to let me drive her to school. Doctor said my bloodwork was perfect and maybe I needed therapy. Started taking Lyva after my sister told me about it. Now I drive my daughter to school every morning and we actually talk instead of her watching me struggle to stay awake. Last month I drove 8 hours to visit my parents. Could never have done that before. My daughter trusts me again. That's everything." - Karen, 44

"Missed my son's basketball championship because I passed out on the couch at 5 PM. He scored the winning shot. I'll never forgive myself for that. Started Lyva because I was desperate and nothing else worked. Now I'm at every game, every practice, cheering louder than anyone. Even became team mom this season. My son doesn't talk about the championship I missed anymore. We just focus on all the games I'm there for now." - Lisa, 46

"My husband found me asleep in my car in the garage three times. I'd get home from work and couldn't make it into the house. He thought I was depressed. I thought I was dying. Spent hundreds on vitamins that did nothing. My friend recommended Lyva and honestly I didn't think it would work either. But now I come home and cook dinner. We eat at the table together. I stay up and watch TV with him instead of passing out at 7. He stopped sleeping in the guest room. We're us again." - Donna, 47

Click the link above to see if Lyva is still offering a 40% discount and free shipping