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Jul 2021
28m 23s

WOMEN’S HEALTH: How to Get the Right Car...

Dave Asprey
About this episode

Welcome to Your Upgraded Summer!

This new series revisits the Top 10 Bulletproof Radio episodes of all time. The topics cover essentials like nutrition, energy, hormones, sleep and autophagy, as well as gut, brain, autoimmune and women's health.

You'll get the main points in a shortened version so you can get the good stuff and get on with your summer plans. And if you want to listen to more, tune in to the original episode.

Dr. Jolene Brighten takes the No. 9 spot with: On Women’s Health, Post-Birth Control Syndrome, and Brain Injuries – Dr. Jolene Brighten – #415

In this episode of Bulletproof Radio, Dr. Jolene Brighten, a functional medicine naturopathic doctor, talks about the birth control pill, states of giving birth and recovery, and even traumatic brain injuries.

Specializing in women’s health, Dr. Brighten focuses on how gender bias in medicine often undermines women’s ability to work through health difficulties. The conversation covers the experiences women often have after giving birth, such as hypothyroidism, brain fog, and larger mental health issues due to major hormonal changes. 

She takes a strong stance on the birth control pill. She shares the ways it causes leaky gut, disrupts thyroid hormones, increases risk of depression, and more. By being off the pill, she says, you can be more aligned with your body. She advocates for fertility awareness, a process in which (with the help of technology) you can track your cycle and the way your hormones manifest themselves in your life, month-to-month. 

Dr. Brighten first works on healing the body, then the mind, and then on a bigger level, like healing family lineage. 

In an interesting aside, we also veer in discussion about traumatic brain injuries (we’ve both had one!)  and our immediate and long-term approaches for healing. 

Our discussion is highly informed and even more encouraging. I think you’ll find it really helpful! Here’s what Dr. Brighten has to say:

  • On The Pill: “Unfortunately, what we’re seeing of the 100 million women worldwide, who have taken the pill, about 60 percent of them are only taking it for symptoms, which is a huge red flag to me. If only 40 percent are taking the pill to prevent pregnancy, then what’s up with this other 60 percent? And why are we not practicing root-cause resolution, which we could absolutely do, and just giving women a pill?”


  • On Birth: “For some reason, somewhere along the line, we got it in our head that women should be able to pop out a baby and then just go along their merry way. And at six weeks, everything's recovered and fine. Reality is, is it takes a whole year to really rebuild the nutrients and recover your body.”


  • On Orgasm: “It’s a big thing that gets dismissed in women’s medicine. Having an orgasm is this mythical unicorn and women aren’t that interested in sex. But when you look at the research, there are so many benefits.”


Enjoy! And get more resources at Dave.Asprey/podcasts.

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