This blog post has been authored by Stand Out Online Member Angela Gala Gonzalez, MD, MS, PhD, MTCM, Dr. Gala Health Coaching LLC
Hi ladies! I bet you’re thinking, “why is this woman writing a post about menopause?” Well, it’s because I’m not just any woman. I am your sister in the journey of life, and we should pause and talk now and then.
This article will share some tips that helped me naturally out beat some of the most annoying perimenopause symptoms.
What is Menopause?
Maybe I need to be more clearer in the title of this post. Menopause is when women stop menstruating, which can happen in their 40s and 50s (or earlier). It’s not just about getting older; it has its own symptoms like hot flashes, night sweats, mood swings, and sexual dysfunction. It’s also not something we should talk about with our friends but instead get educated on so you understand what to expect from menopause before it happens to you.
“Jane can’t believe she is 47, and all these hot flashes are killing her. Even the simplest tasks seem like a chore. She’s starting to feel lost; what does it mean to be in your midlife? What about her life now that She has three kids who all pretty much leave home? It seems like everything is changing for Jane, but not necessarily for the better. She knows one thing for sure: this isn’t how she thought things would turn out. ”
Jane’s menopausal experiences and symptoms may sound familiar to you too. During our transition to menopause, women may have different outward signs, but it affects every female on earth. Symptoms range from hot flashes, insomnia, irregular periods (or complete lack of them), night sweats or cold spells during sleep; vaginal dryness – even no longer being able to enjoy sex with your partner due to pain; mood swings you never experienced before – feeling depressed about things that don’t usually make us sad such as getting older and not fitting into some jeans anymore because they’re too tight.
Here is a video with more information about perimenopause and menopause.
What can I do to get better?
Although menopause is a life stage and not an illness that medicine can cure, the symptoms of this period definitely affect our quality of life. Natural treatment options exist to help alleviate these symptoms, which will vary between each person.
I recommend reading about all-natural remedies before choosing one because they are pretty varied as there isn’t really such thing as “one size fits all.” Some people seek medical attention, while others prefer holistic methods for alleviating their discomfort from hot flashes or insomnia during this time in their lives.
Bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT)
A treatment known as bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT) uses hormones identical to those naturally produced by your body. This type of HRT is also called natural hormone therapy and can help with various symptoms, including low libido or vaginal dryness after menopause.
I recommend you to learn more about bioidentical hormone therapy from this article – Medically Reviewed by Dan Brennan, MD on May 15, 2021.
Changes in lifestyle
The decisions you make have an impact on the way you feel. For example, smokers have lower estrogen levels than non-smokers and are more likely to experience hot flashes more often than non-smokers. And smoking dramatically increases the risk of bone loss and fractures.
If you currently smoke, get the help you need to QUIT!
If you notice certain foods or drinks trigger episodes, try to avoid them. Caffeine tolerance can vary from woman to woman, so if you know, you’re sensitive or cannot detoxify caffeine efficiently, consider cutting it out of your diet. It’s something worth considering. Hot and spicy foods may also mimic hot flashes by raising core body temperature; in some cases, they make people sweat as well! Suppose this happens for a few days each month at least. In that case, these foods could lead to swings; thus, increasing perimenopause/menopause symptoms like night sweats and menopausal mood changes.
Instead of thinking about our bodies as fixed entities, we should look at them like machines that we must constantly maintain. Eating habits, exercise, and other health routines are all methods that help us keep this healthy living machine.
Exercise
Working out can also help ease menopause symptoms. Strength training has been shown reduced headaches and hot flashes by 50%. Multiple studies agree on this finding, suggesting exercise’s mental and physical benefits in relieving other common health problems associated with menopause.
Exercise boost self-esteem while making you feel less stressed about life changes during what we call ‘the change.’
Supplements
Vitamin D
The sun is our natural way to get vitamin D, but it becomes less efficient as we age. Therefore, dietary supplements help us maintain healthy bones and reduce the risk of several health issues like osteoporosis, high blood pressure, heart attacks, asthma, diabetes mellitus type 2, and strokes.
Magnesium
Magnesium- another “must-have” for healthy bones. Magnesium is one of the 13 minerals that bones need to stay strong and functional every day. But do you know the surprising link between magnesium and menopause?
Magnesium supplements can reduce the frequency of hot flashes. And with that, all the other symptoms that hot flashes can trigger, like fatigue, sweating, and distress.
Calcium
Calcium is the most “common” mineral folks mention when it comes to bone health. And it’s even more critical when we’re talking about menopause.
Due to the decrease in estrogen, we also experience a reduction in our ability to absorb, use efficiently, and retain calcium during menopause. Loss of estrogen decreases the body’s ability to absorb calcium from our diet. That’s why calcium supplementation (preferably plant-based) is always advised as we age to ensure optimal amounts of calcium.
And in addition to being a catalyst for strong, healthy bones, calcium can also positively affect other unrelated conditions, such as high blood pressure, colorectal cancer, obesity, and kidney stone formation.
Conclusion
This article has given you some of the most common perimenopause symptoms and how to manage them. We hope this information helps you find relief from your menopausal symptoms, but if they are too much for one person to handle, Dr. Gala Fabulous ©WoMen’s program offers a holistic approach that can help with all of these issues plus more! If you want even more insight into what it’s like living through the changes in hormones during menopause, book an appointment today or call us at (281) 675-5477.
Dr. Angela Gala Gonzalez is a physician with over 30 years of experience in the healthcare industry, specializing in holistic health and coaching. Dr. Gala earned her medical doctor from Leningrad’s State Institute for Medical Sciences (1991) as well as an MSc degree from Erasmus University in The Netherlands (1998) and a Ph.D. in medical sciences from the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Havana, Cuba (2014).
Dr. Gala shifted to the coaching industry through the Institute of Health Coaching. She became certified as a Master Transformational Coach and Positive Psychology Practitioner by completing their 12-month program designed to transform coaches into experts at creating positive change for themselves and others.
She founded Dr. Gala Health Coaching LLC, a Houston-based coaching business specializing in helping individuals maintain healthy lifestyle choices, recover from chronic conditions and disease, and support clients to develop the skills needed to achieve their vision of vibrant health.
Dr. Gala is passionate about helping women feeling lost in a midlife crisis find their way back into their bodies, regain control of how they think and feel about themselves, and have the time of their lives doing it!