Dr. Kristi Harter on Menstruation and Menopause in the Workplace

We are so excited to have Dr. Kristi Harter as our special guest on this month’s WIT podcast.  Dr. Kristi is a naturopathic doctor focusing on women’s health in Santa Barbara. 

Before we dive in on the topic, here’s a bit about Dr. Harter:
Dr. Kristi Wrightson-Harter graduated with a B.S. in Business Administration from the College of Charleston in Charleston, South Carolina, with a concentration in Restaurant Management.  While her classmates were learning about managing the business of restaurants, Dr. Wrightson-Harter was diving into the management of the body—fascinated with the importance of food intake as it relates to optimal health.  After several years, Dr. Wrightson-Harter went back to school for therapeutic massage, where she explored the deep connection between the mind and the body.  Through this process, Dr. Wrightson-Harter found naturopathic medicine and enrolled in Bastyr University, the world’s leading naturopathic university.
During her schooling at Bastyr, Dr. Wrightson-Harter worked with physicians from Northside Hospital in Atlanta as well as several integrated health clinics in Seattle.  This training exposed her to perspectives from both conventional and holistic medicine, creating a more complete protocol of care that employs characteristics from both forms of healing.  While getting her Naturopathic Doctorate, Dr. Wrightson realized the importance of educating her patients on health issues related to food and proceeded to get her Master’s in Nutrition.  She utilizes this exceptional background in treating her patients: using each person’s unique internal blueprint as the guide for working within the basic principles of health.
While she continues to have an integrated primary care practice, today, Dr. Wrightson-Harter focuses on women’s health, hormonal balancing and anti-aging therapies using an integrative approach.
Dr. Wrightson-Harter is a member of the California Association of Naturopathic Physicians as well as a supporting member of the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians, the only nationally recognized association for licensed ND’s.

Dr. Kristi sat down with me to talk about the importance of understanding female hormones and their impact on our workplaces.  Hear all her insights in the interview below:

Resources:
Here are a few interesting articles that discuss “period policies” in the workplace to think about:

The Conversation: Three Reasons Employers Need to Recognize Menopause
The Guardian: Menstrual Leave
BBC: Can Period Leave Ever Work? 

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