Bernadette Andersen

What two studies told me about pain, and what I wish someone had told me at 50 I posted a line in the Bern's Bench group last week that got more comments than anything I've written this year. "I'm not a badass. I can be a badass." Most of the replies were the same sentence in different words. Bad back. Bad thyroid. Bad hormones. This is just how I'm built now. I asked what sentence you say about your body, and you told me. So this is the follow-up I promised, and it comes with homework at the...

Companion post to Bern's Bench, Season 2: The Body Doesn't Lie — Episode 2, "Same Weight, Different Body." There's a pair of jeans in your closet that fit you a year and a half ago. They don't fit now. Not the hips — the hips are fine. It's the middle. You can get them buttoned if you're willing to commit to it, and then you sit down at dinner and regret the whole decision. So you got on the scale, because that's what we've all been trained to do when something changes. And the scale said the...

Burnout in women 40+ stems from energy leaks, not discipline issues. Restoring vitality requires addressing hormone balance, gut health, and setting boundaries through personalized wellness plans.