Everything Wants Your Attention. Choose What Deserves It.

Happy New Year friends! 🎉

Welcome to a new year and the January 6th edition of Menopaussible—bringing you the news you can use and the ⚡ energy ⚡ you need to support your menopause journey.

I’m Maria Caracci Ciccolella—health + life coach and menopause advocate. (Connect with me ​IG​ or ​​LinkedIn​​!)

While we are only six days deep into 2026, it may feel like you picked up right where you left off in 2025: in the middle of a million different demands for your attention. Any reflection or clarity achieved over a holiday break is now running into some stiff interference—another reason resolutions die a fairly quick death (unless of course your resolution is not to make a resolution 😉).

So in this issue, I’m here to offer you a different approach to kicking off your new year and new leg of your menopause journey. Together, we’re going to get really clear on your priorities and in the process, provide a “north star”—a filter of sorts—to guide you through the attention clutter, so in the end, you invite what you WANT into your life, and, in the process, create the change you need.

Getting Really Clear on Your Priorities

What are your top 5 priorities?
​
​We’ve all answered this question at some point or other in our lives, and pulling from my own history, I can attest to what the answers might look like:

Family. Health. Career. Money. Friends.

Single word answers, familiar themes—and frankly good priorities to have! But how do we make it so that these priorities provide some real guidance—particularly when it comes down to the everyday onslaught of choices we face? We have to go a step further, because it’s not these nouns that anchor us, but WHY they are important that help orient us.

Digging Deeper and Getting Honest About Your Priorities

Reflecting on that question above, you may have some version of five nouns at the front of your mind. Write them down—because now we are going to build on them.

As you review your list, however, consider completing one of these sentences for each one:

“This matters to me because…”
“When this is honored, I feel…”
“When it’s out of balance, I notice…”

If you listed Family or Friends, for example, you might write that this matters to you because you want your time to reflect those with whom you feel love and connection. Moving from words to statements is your goal.

Making Your Priorities More Action-Oriented

Now that you’ve put some reason and context to your priorities, let’s rewrite them one final time, as the completion of this sentence:

“I want my choices to move me toward…”

So picking up on the above, “I want my choices to move me toward more time with friends, because I want my time to reflect those with whom I feel love and connection.”

As someone who is a big “scheduler,” this type of statement brings a whole new intention to the way I would approach my calendar—including scheduling time for friendly reach-outs!

Letting Your Priorities Become Your Decision Filter

Once you have completed this exercise for each originally stated noun, take a moment to review your collective five statements and ask one last question:

Does this bring me closer to or further away from the individual I want to be?

If the answer is yes, then keep these statements in a handy visible place. What makes them powerful is allowing them to be your reference point—a filter through which you can evaluate even the most mundane of decisions—everything from “Do I go to the gym?” to “Do I meet up with a friend on a rainy, windy day?” Based on my priorities, the answer often reveals itself—sometimes as a clear yes.

Sometimes the Answer is No.

Getting clear on your priorities isn’t always about making decisions in the affirmative. Often it also gives us permission to put aside that which isn’t really serving us anymore. So as an extra powerful step to the above exercise, consider also finishing this statement for each priority:

“To protect this priority, I may need to say no to…”

Just to follow the “Friends” example to the end, that might entail dialing back on time spent on other activities—for me, that might mean, ironically, saying no to spending time on social media. Less time in the feed = more time for real talk.

Small Choices Add Up

Remember, “big change” is actually the result of a series of small decisions made over time. So if you are starting the year off not clear on “what” to do, start with what matters to you and let your priorities be your guide.

Big News in Menopause and Sexual Health

As it turns out, menopause is another place where paying attention—to desire, comfort, and care—can change what’s possible.

FDA Expands Approval of Addyi for Postmenopausal Women

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has expanded its approval of the libido-boosting pill Addyi (flibanserin) to include postmenopausal women up to age 65, after previously limiting its use to premenopausal women. This marks a significant step in recognizing sexual desire concerns across the menopause transition and may broaden treatment options and insurance coverage for women experiencing hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD) later in life. (The Vagenda)

​
Study: Masturbation Eases Menopause Symptoms for Many Women

Recent research shows that masturbation may help relieve menopause symptoms for a notable portion of women in perimenopause and postmenopause. In a survey of women aged 40–65, about 20% reported that masturbation improved at least one symptom, including mood disturbances, sleep problems, and diminished libido—yet few clinicians currently discuss it as a symptom-management strategy. The findings highlight self-pleasure as a cost-effective, underused tool that could complement traditional menopause care if destigmatized and better integrated into conversations between patients and providers. (managedhealthcareexecutive.com)