After eight steps and twelve weeks, The Menopause Makeover Challenge is complete! If you have been following along and taking the challenge, congratulations on your hard work! If you are still waiting to take the plunge hopefully this series of articles inspires you to get started. We wrap up this exciting look at The Menopause Makeover Challenge in this final article.

Firstly, a very warm and heartfelt thank you to the women behind this book. Staness Jonekos and Dr. Wendy Klein combined their talents to create a woman’s guide to all things menopausal. Their solid medical information, delivered in a readable style, makes The Menopause Makeover a helpful tool to deal with everything from symptoms to lifestyle changes. Their gift to women is a much appreciated instruction manual that lets you survive and thrive during menopause.

The Menopause Makeover Challenge
Every woman will have a different menopausal experience. The Menopause Makeover is meant to help each reader customize her own makeover plan. In the past most women were given the same treatment solutions. Now women and their healthcare professionals can work to create the right treatment or combination of treatment options suited to each individual. The tools and exercises in The Menopause Makeover allow every reader to learn about menopause, how it is affecting her, and to discover what types of treatments are available.

The Menopause Makeover Challenge and the easy parts
The Menopause Makeover is designed to make is easy to find the information you want and the help you need. Written in an upbeat style that is free from medical jargon, you learn about menopause in clear language without the confusion. Jonekos and Dr. Klein ensured that after reading this book readers will be empowered through knowledge and be able to make the right decisions for a healthier lifestyle.

The Menopause Makeover Challenge is work but it is also fun! The many charts, exercises, planning guides and recipes offer easy to follow practical advice. Along the way are great tips and reminders to keep you on track and keep you encouraged. Writing down your goals and charting your progress not only shows how your makeover is coming along but gives you incentive to keep going because you can see the improvements.

Taking The Menopause Makeover Challenge means that while some things are due to menopause, there are other health issues that are related to choices you made in the past. This is not about blame. It is to help you know that once you acknowledge where you can make changes, it is easier to make those changes. Not every aspect of menopause can be controlled (hormones anyone?) but there are lifestyle changes you can make that will in turn help you deal with menopause. The healthier you are the better your chances of coming out of menopause stronger and ready for just about anything!

The Menopause Makeover Challenges and the challenges
Anything worthwhile has its set of difficulties and The Menopause Makeover Challenge is no exception. You may find some of the exercises and steps fairly easy but have trouble with the other steps. Probably the most difficult part is being honest when doing the exercise and questionnaires. The Menopause Makeover book is for you and is the place to put the real facts down on paper.

It is not easy to admit to making poor choices in the past or neglecting to take care of yourself. But once you face this information you are in a much better position to make those necessary changes.

Sometimes no matter how hard we work at something we slip up or make a small mistake. The Menopause Makeover Challenge is all about being patient and gentle with yourself and the challenge. If you make a mistake, simply carry on without shame or guilt. It takes a few tries to break old habits and start new ones. The Menopause Makeover encourages you to keep up your commitment and to never give up! Menopause will keep testing you but you will be that much stronger to deal with the ups and downs.

I finished The Menopause Makeover Challenge, now what?
This is the best part; you get to start all over again! Yes, you begin the process again only this time you are that much further ahead. Think of the progress you made during the last few weeks and what you have accomplished. Now you can reassess where you may still need to meet some of your original goals or create some new exciting goals. By staying with The Menopause Makeover you are continuing the health habits you created and working towards even better health and happiness.

The Menopause Makeover Challenge is what Jonekos refers to as our wakeup call. Menopause is a time of many changes and those changes can be positive with the right type of effort and attitude. No one said menopause would be easy. But thanks to the Menopause Makeover Challenge you no longer have to feel helpless. You can take back some of the control over your life and that is the best gift Jonekos and Dr. Klein could give you.

**Harlequin Enterprises Ltd. provided this review copy of The Menopause Makeover to me completely free of charge.**

The Menopause Makeover, Staness Jonekos with Wendy Klein, M.D., Harlequin Enterprises Ltd., New York, 2010, 302 pp.

Please visit www.menopausemakeover.com