While acknowledging the challenges of menopause, Agnes Montz — a board-certified OB/GYN — views it as “a new beginning” for women. “There are both physical and emotional repercussions that accompany this season of a woman’s life,” she says. “My job is to strike a balance between lifestyle modification and medication that will bring the greatest degree of relief.”
From treating mood swings, hot flashes, and loss of libido to more complex health concerns, Montz says her mission is helping women feel their best at every age.
Montz earned her medical degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Cleveland, Ohio. Now on staff at Eisenhower Medical Center and Desert Regional Medical Center, she oversees a private practice in Rancho Mirage, where she devotes a quarter of her time to obstetrics and the rest to gynecological issues. She appreciates the evolution of her field over her 25 years in practice, including the makeup of her colleagues.
“When I was in medical school, there were very few women pursuing gynecology as a specialty. Thankfully, that is no longer the case,” she says. “I was doing general surgery training at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, and many of my female patients encouraged me to become an OB/GYN. I’m so glad I did, because I find it immensely rewarding and continually fascinating.”
Montz thinks the biggest misconception about menopause is that symptoms simply must be endured. This solution-minded physician insists there is treatment to abate those symptoms.
“This is not a cookie-cutter approach to care,” she says. “You really have to individualize your treatment plan for each woman. But the medical advancements we have today, coupled with what we know about lifestyle influences on hormones, allow us to dramatically improve the way a woman feels before, during, and post-menopause.”
A Cleveland native, Montz fell in love with the desert after visiting friends who lived in the area. Like many East Coast residents, she made plans to someday retire near Palm Springs; but when an opportunity to purchase a practice in Rancho Mirage presented itself in 1998, that “someday” arrived sooner than expected.
“I thought, ‘Why wait?’ It was a great move for me,” she says. “I absolutely love it here.”
She enjoys the laid-back Coachella Valley lifestyle, and days off usually find her entertaining friends at home or out for walks with her 4-year-old pug, Lexi. But it’s her thriving practice that really ignites her passion — meeting new patients and striving to offer cutting-edge healthcare options for women entering the last quarter of their lives.
“A common complaint I hear from women involves the loss of libido that comes with menopause,” she says. “Within the next year, I plan to extend my practice to include a comprehensive sexual enhancement program. Just because you are getting older doesn’t mean you can’t continue to feel vibrant and alive. One of the things I enjoy most is helping women feel like themselves again.”