Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Psychiatrist Dr Sue Varma joins Dr Louise Newson to unpack why hormones are so often left out of mental health care and what gets missed as a result, from puberty to postpartum to perimenopause.
Dr Varma is a board-certified psychiatrist and was the first medical director of the World Trade Center Mental Health Program, treating 9/11 survivors and first responders.
Sue and Louise discuss why psychiatric training leaves out hormones' role in the brain - memory, mood, dementia risk - and why a proper medical work-up (thyroid, B12, vitamin D, hormones) should come before a psychiatric label. They talk about the stigma around seeking help, the risk of over-medicalising ordinary emotions and Sue's practical tools for difficult periods such as the "four M's" of mental health, the worry diary and her four-step framework - name it, tame it, claim it, reframe it.
Sue closes with three take-home tips for anyone having a difficult time right now.
Let’s connect
👉 Track your mood symptoms with the Balance app: bit.ly/4yZty5A
👉 More from Dr Louise Newson: https://linkin.bio/drlouisenewson
👉 Link to Dr Sue Varma's book : Practical Optimism https://a.co/d/ekTvcfq
Psychiatrist Dr Sue Varma joins Dr Louise Newson to unpack why hormones are so often left out of mental health care and what gets missed as a result, from puberty to postpartum to perimenopause.
Dr Varma is a board-certified psychiatrist and was the first medical director of the World Trade Center Mental Health Program, treating 9/11 survivors and first responders.
Sue and Louise discuss why psychiatric training leaves out hormones' role in the brain - memory, mood, dementia risk - and why a proper medical work-up (thyroid, B12, vitamin D, hormones) should come before a psychiatric label. They talk about the stigma around seeking help, the risk of over-medicalising ordinary emotions and Sue's practical tools for difficult periods such as the "four M's" of mental health, the worry diary and her four-step framework - name it, tame it, claim it, reframe it.
Sue closes with three take-home tips for anyone having a difficult time right now.
Let’s connect
👉 Track your mood symptoms with the Balance app: bit.ly/4yZty5A
👉 More from Dr Louise Newson: https://linkin.bio/drlouisenewson
👉 Link to Dr Sue Varma's book : Practical Optimism https://a.co/d/ekTvcfq
