Veterinary surgeon Debbie Tacium, 55, wanted to flip the script of my menopause. After suffering pain, loss of coordination, weakness, and changes in body composition during perimenopause, she went back to the sport she loved most in life–gymnastics. She wanted to use it to bring herself back to herself and remember what it was like to be a child who could fly. This week she shares her journey, what it’s brought her, and what we can all learn from challenging our beliefs about what’s possible during this season of life.

Debbie (Debra) Tacium, DMV, works as a veterinary surgeon and is an adult gymnast, former competitive child and pre-teen gymnast, and all around self described “gymnastics nerd.” She came up through the sport in a time when you were schooled to push through pain and do what it took to be as small and light as possible. Acute and chronic injuries took her out of the sport until perimenopause when she returned to the sport determined to reclaim her body and open her mind to what was possible in your 50s. Now, she’s experiencing joy instead of heartbreak and excited about where she can go next.

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