Turn Your MenoPause into MenoGo
Learn how to get menopause relief. You can turn your menopause into menoGoMenopause. Interesting word. The dictionary defines it as “the ceasing of menstruation”. Pretty straightforward; nothing dire or life-threatening. But if you type it in to a word search on web, you come up with medical definitions that involve the words “disease”, “condition”, and “symptom”. I think one of the ways that our conventional medical system has failed us is that it has turned the natural processes of the body into things that needs to be fretted over and maybe even feared to feel menopause relief.
I went through menopause a long time ago. I am now 61-years ‘young’ and have absolutely no ill effects and a whole lot of benefits from this stage of life. Believe me, I do not miss the monthly hassles that went along with being in the baby-making mode. Neither do I have any of the “symptoms” of being menopausal except that I weigh ten pounds more than I did when I was a teenager. (There is a very good reason for weighing slightly more than you did in your teens when you go through menopause…I will get to this in later posts on this topic) I do see many clients however, who are miserable in their journey through their middle and later years and who exhibit many of the signs of an unhealthy menopause or peri-menopause.
There are many reasons for this state of affairs, but the most logical and obvious one is that our lifestyles have evolved to impede the natural process of “ceasing to menstruate”, which has negative affects on every metabolic and hormonal system in the body. I am going to give you Five Secrets to getting your middle-years back on track:
- Eat real food at the right times
- Promote healthy and quality sleep
- Become resilient to stress (it is almost impossible to get rid of daily stressors, but you can make them less impactful to your health)
- Move naturally every day (reduce sitting)
- Create a healthy and well-functioning digestive system
Whoa… this list is a lot easier said than done, right? These are large, over-riding principles that guide how you live your life, not just quick steps to feeling like your old self again. So for this post, let me give you one quick and easy “action step” for each of the Five Secrets to help you get started (well, maybe not easy…no change is easy):
Eat real food at the right times – Cook at least half of your meals at home. Michael Pollan says that anything made and eaten at home is better than eating the same food in a restaurant…even French fries. He has a great two-minute video about this idea. I completely agree with him and I try to make a full meal for myself at least five nights per week with enough for leftovers the next day.
Promote healthy and quality sleep – Make sure your room is as dark as possible when you sleep. Any light, even the small amount from an alarm clock, can reduce your melatonin production and interfere with your sleep quality.
Become resilient to stress – Find time for an activity that you love to do, everyday…even for 5 minutes. When you occupy your time with an enjoyable activity, you turn on the “rest and digest” part of your nervous system and turn off the “flight and flight” processes that promote the ill effects of chronic stress
Move naturally every day (reduce sitting) – Get up from your chair every 45 minutes. I set a timer when I am working at my desk or even reading a book on the couch. When the timer goes off, I go to the bathroom or wash a dish or chat with my office mate for a few minutes. I am actually more productive and this interrupts some of the damaging effects of having a sedentary job. Check out this great info-graphic from the Washington Post on the problems of sitting too much.
Create a healthy and well-functioning digestive system – Dechlorinate your drinking water. One of the most damaging things that you can do to the beneficial bacteria in your digestive tract is to expose them to the chlorination in water. If you don’t have a filter, you can set a pitcher of water on the counter for six or more hours and the chlorine will evaporate. Here are a few more ideas to improve your water quality.
Making small changes lead to bigger ones and can make a pronounced change in how you feel. In future posts, I will give you many ways that you can turn your MenoPause into MenoGo just as I have done. See you soon!