Around the first period
“What should I tell you about my periods, sleep, activity or emotional well-being, and is there anything we should follow up?”
Your next conversation
Every Chapter. One Heart Story.
Bring your history.
Leave with a plan.
Your life changes. Your history comes with you. Choose what you want to discuss, then ask your care team to help make the next step clear.
This page does not collect health details. Topic selections are not saved or sent. Use paper or your care team’s approved channel for personal notes.
01 · Choose what matters to you
What would you like to bring up?
Select any topics, or simply use these as prompts. You do not need to know every diagnosis or remember every date. Mark uncertainty and ask for help finding the information.
02 · Make the question yours
A question for this stage of life.
Choose any prompt that fits. Life stages are not determined by age alone, and not everyone experiences every transition or pregnancy.
During the cycling years
“Do my cycle patterns, pregnancy plans or past pregnancy complications change what we should review for my heart health?”
Through the menopause transition
“How should we review my heart health alongside changes in periods, sleep or symptoms and my earlier pregnancy history?”
In the years after menopause
“Does my pregnancy or menopause history change the prevention or follow-up plan we should discuss now?”
During or after pregnancy
“Which pregnancy findings need follow-up for me, who will review them, and how will this history reach my ongoing care team?”
03 · Complete with your care team
Leave with an agreed next step.
The clinician decides what is indicated. Ask for a copy of the plan through the practice’s usual process. If no action is needed now, ask when to revisit it.
The action or question to follow up
Why it matters for me
The clinician or team responsible
When it is due or should be reviewed
How I will receive the result or plan
Whom to contact if I cannot complete it
How we will confirm it was completed and reviewed
Bring the plan to your next visit. If a referral or result is still unresolved, contact the responsible practice. The campaign does not send referrals, monitor symptoms or confirm clinical review.
Symptoms need their own attention.
Use this guide for a planned conversation. New chest pain, severe trouble breathing, fainting or stroke signs need urgent evaluation; call 911 for an emergency. Do not assume a new physical symptom is caused by stress or menopause.
Evidence: HEART RESERVE conversation prompts informed by the October 26, 2026 AHA / AAP / ACOG / SMFM consensus guidance on female life stages, reproductive history and coordinated care. This original guide is educational, not a diagnostic questionnaire or a clinical risk score. No endorsement is implied.
HEART RESERVE · Lisa Zahakos, RPA-C · campaign.heartreserve.blog/visit-guide