This week I was walking my dog Riley along the riverbank, watching the water surge past in full flood. And it hit me: my life often feels exactly like that right now.

🌊 There's so much water rushing down the river all at once. The currents are strong. Sometimes it feels like I'm just trying to keep my head above water and go with the flow.

Does your life ever feel like that?

Something I read this week really stopped me in my tracks: "Remember that the most important goal is to be able to continue playing the infinite game and to continue enjoying it."

I printed it out. It's now sitting under my laptop as a daily reminder.

🎮 It made me think about those old "choose your own adventure" books from when I was a kid. You'd read to the end of a chapter, make a choice, and flip to a different page to see where your story went. Life feels like that—full of infinite possibilities and directions I could explore.

But here's the problem: choosing one path means turning down another. And for someone who loves learning and discovering new things, that's hard.

I've realized I cannot play all the infinite possibilities at once. I have to choose my focus and make peace with the paths not taken.

Here's what I know about myself: when I'm deep into something exciting at work, I want to keep going and going and going. Maybe it's the dopamine hit of checking things off my list.

That drive served me really well in medical school and throughout my career.

But personally? It's led me straight into cycles of burnout.

😮‍💨 As women, many of us find it easier to do things for others—our families, colleagues, clients—than to do things for ourselves. We put everyone else's needs first.

But here's what I tell my patients (and what I have to keep reminding myself): We cannot look after other people unless we're looking after ourselves first.

Here's a reframe that's been helping me lately: I'm not getting older and more decrepit. I'm leveling up, like in a video game.

🎯 Being post-menopause, having wisdom, having years behind me—these are advantages. Each stage of life is the next level, bringing new skills, new perspectives, new power.

It's not decline. It's evolution.

I've learned a few things about what helps me when life feels like it's flooding:

🚶‍♀️ Walking in nature. My brain churns as I start, but as I notice my surroundings, I gradually calm down. The excess mental energy burns off as I’m physically active in a steady, repetitive way. Gardening does the same.

📝 Getting thoughts out of my head. When my mind is spiraling, I dump everything onto paper. Often, I burn it afterward. It's not profound; it's just necessary.

🧘‍♀️ Coming back to the present moment. Meditation and yoga nidra grounds me. It brings me back into my body instead of living in my head.

My biggest ongoing struggle? Pacing myself.

Whether it's work projects, learning new things, or even gardening—I want to finish everything NOW. The garden's never finished. The housework is never all done. My work projects are never complete.

⏰ The strategy that's helping most? Time limits.

Instead of saying "I'll work until it's done," I set boundaries: "I'll work on this for two hours today." Then I stop. Even when it's unfinished.

Learning to live with unfinished business has been one of the hardest lessons of this year. But it's also been one of the most important.

Because the alternative—burning out in pursuit of completion—means I can't keep playing the game at all.

The river will keep flowing. The current will stay strong. But we don't have to let it sweep us away.

🌟 We can choose to pace ourselves, enjoy the journey, and remember: the goal is to continue playing the infinite game—and to continue enjoying it.

What's one small boundary you could set this week to protect your energy?

💡 Tip: Setting time limits and practicing self-care aren't just about preventing burnout—they actually help reduce stress hormones, which can ease the severity of menopause symptoms. Plus, it just feels better to have balance in life.

Stay happy and healthy,

Erika 🩷

If you want help and support with managing menopause and finding your balance, connect with me at www.liferenomedic.com or email me on [email protected].