This article is part ofHealth Divide: Menopause and Black Women, a destination in our Health Divide series.
Julie Gordon White is the founder and CEO ofBossa Bars Menopause Energy Barsand an advocate for women in all stages of menopause.
I’m an entrepreneur, a mom, a wife, and a woman who has always empowered women in business for over 30 years—and not all in that order. I believe that each stage of our lives propels different areas where we place our energy, time, and commitment the most. In this season of my life, my experience has propelled me to pour myself intoBossa Bars, the third company I’ve founded.
Bossa Bars are energy bars specifically designed to support women’s changing cravings and symptoms through the most challenging stages ofmenopause. Before spending my time growing Bossa Bars, I’d dedicated my time and energy to helping other women grow multimillion-dollar companies and also growing and selling my own.
The secret sauce to each chapter of my career is rooted in the same premise: understanding how to listen and act on my intuition.
How Much Do You Really Know About Menopause Symptoms?
How My Product Came to Life
I was 55 years old when I started experiencing perimenopausal andmenopausal symptoms.
I faced sugar cravings, weight gain, and feeling out of control in my own body. I lacked confidence, and it felt so out of character. I have spent most of my adult life and career helping others build their confidence, but there I was, feeling so out of place on my own.
Like many other people who were trying to get back to themselves during the COVID-19 pandemic, I started in the kitchen. I would bake brownies and cookies for my two young adult sons, and in one of those baking sessions, I had my eureka moment.
Julie Gordon WhiteIf I wanted to start feeling good in my body again and regain my confidence, I knew that I had to start speaking to my symptoms.
Julie Gordon White
If I wanted to start feeling good in my body again and regain my confidence, I knew that I had to start speaking to my symptoms.
I spent a lot of time researching, and I landed on the powerful benefits of a plant-based diet and ingredients like maca.
Today Bossa Bars include ingredients like organic maca (to balance hormones, anxiety, and energy levels), spinach and kale (which can easehot flashes,night sweats, and drastic weight gain), and cacao nibs (known to reduce inflammation).
And in those first few days, before Bossa Bars were available to the public, I combined ingredients in my own kitchen and shared them with friends who also needed support through their menopausal symptoms.
I didn’t think that I was starting a company at first. I simply knew that I was taking my symptoms into my own hands and trying to support myself through this journey in the best ways I could.
How to Cope With Menopause Symptoms
Change for the Better
As I started sharing my homemade bars with loved ones, I also realized a common trend: the bars were conversation starters.
I saw a lot of the loneliness and otherness that I had experienced when my menopause symptoms first kicked in. I also saw how talking about our menopause journeys helped that loneliness dissipate. They weren’t alone. I wasn’t alone. I was so far from alone that my friends started encouraging me to take these bars to market so that other women could feel as supported as we did.
And when I did and the circles of conversations started getting larger and larger, I realized that we were onto something. Women didn’t want to just listen to a conversation around menopause; they wanted to be a part of it. They wanted to bring other women along so that they could also feel supported and empowered.
Julie Gordon WhiteWomen didn’t want to just listen to a conversation around menopause; they wanted to be a part of it.
Women didn’t want to just listen to a conversation around menopause; they wanted to be a part of it.
Growing Bossa has allowed me to continue building community and empowering women, as I’ve been doing throughout my entire career. It’s encouraging me personally and encouraging Bossa’s ethos now too.
Menopause is indeed a life-changing time. It took building an entire company for me to realize that the changes aren’t for the worse, they can be for the better.
Don’t Dread Menopause, Prepare for It Instead
2 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.De Feo M, Paladini A, Ferri C, et al.Anti-inflammatory and anti-nociceptive effects of cocoa: a review on future perspectives in treatment of pain.Pain Ther. 2020;9(1):231-240. doi:10.1007/s40122-020-00165-5Gonzales GF.Ethnobiology and ethnopharmacology ofLepidium meyenii(maca), a plant from the Peruvian highlands.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2012;2012:193496. doi:10.1155/2012/193496
2 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.De Feo M, Paladini A, Ferri C, et al.Anti-inflammatory and anti-nociceptive effects of cocoa: a review on future perspectives in treatment of pain.Pain Ther. 2020;9(1):231-240. doi:10.1007/s40122-020-00165-5Gonzales GF.Ethnobiology and ethnopharmacology ofLepidium meyenii(maca), a plant from the Peruvian highlands.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2012;2012:193496. doi:10.1155/2012/193496
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
De Feo M, Paladini A, Ferri C, et al.Anti-inflammatory and anti-nociceptive effects of cocoa: a review on future perspectives in treatment of pain.Pain Ther. 2020;9(1):231-240. doi:10.1007/s40122-020-00165-5Gonzales GF.Ethnobiology and ethnopharmacology ofLepidium meyenii(maca), a plant from the Peruvian highlands.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2012;2012:193496. doi:10.1155/2012/193496
De Feo M, Paladini A, Ferri C, et al.Anti-inflammatory and anti-nociceptive effects of cocoa: a review on future perspectives in treatment of pain.Pain Ther. 2020;9(1):231-240. doi:10.1007/s40122-020-00165-5
Gonzales GF.Ethnobiology and ethnopharmacology ofLepidium meyenii(maca), a plant from the Peruvian highlands.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2012;2012:193496. doi:10.1155/2012/193496
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