MENOPAUSE, transitioning from the Mother into the Crone

Welcome to my first ever Blog, on my Brand New Website, this is a huge step up for me from my face-book page. So I hope you like taking a tour of my website and find it useful and informative for all of your Holistic needs. Should you have any questions I can be contacted through variety of methods from phone, to email all of which you will be able to find on my contacts page. Thank you for taking the time to view my page. Sharon

 To start of the Blog page I would like to address the subject of MENOPAUSE, something I’m currently going through like millions of other women are today. It is a mind field of Emotions, Mental battles and Physical ailments for many of us and I would like to contribute to information that may well help combat some or most of the many issues felt for many women through out these bodily changes we will all experience at some point in our lives.

What is happening to us?

MENOPAUSE, transitioning from the Mother into the Crone part of our lives, a time of arrival into our full wisdom and power. This tends to begin between the ages of 45 and 55 years of age. It usually lasts about 7 years but can be as long as 14 years. It is our natural stage that takes place after our final menstrual cycle has passed, signalling the end of our body’s ability to reproduce. There are 3 stages to menopause

1. Perimenopause – the lead up to menopause

2. Menopause – when you have stopped producing the hormones that cause your period. And have gone without a period for 12 months in a row.

3. Post menopause – the time after you have been without a period for 12 months.

Through out this time our body’s tend to throw all sorts of ailments at us from, anxiety, depression, brain-fog, tiredness, insomnia, irritability, loss of sex drive, hot flushes, night-sweats, vaginal dryness, hair loss, concentration difficulties, memory loss, dizziness, bloating, incontinence, allergies, brittle nails, body odour changes, irregular heartbeats breast pain, headaches, joint pain, burning mouth syndrome, electric shock sensations, digestive issues, gum problems, muscle tension, itchy skin, tingling in the limbs. To name many.. phew!!

Its safe to say our next phase in life is not always going to be an easy ride.

But for warned is forearmed as the saying goes, and in this age of information there is a vast array of knowledge out here we can all tap into to create a healthy balanced way of living throughout our Crone Stage.

Menopause can be a time of freedom, growth and empowerment or it can be a period of hot flushes, mood-swings, or broken dreams, if we continue to direct our time and energy into trying to preserve our lost youth, we miss the opportunity of understanding and developing our inner beauty and wisdom of these later years. So let’s celebrate this time rather than mourn it. we have this inner wisdom ladies, let’s use it to empower each other and create a better road map for the future generations of women.

CYCLIC LIVING

This is a way of aligning your life to your natural menstrual cycle, the moon cycle to understand our high & low points within our cycle, there are days where we have more energy than others and days when to start a new project which will flow better than the days we should be resting and looking inward. The cycle is based upon the moon cycle and tuning into our own cycles we can create a map on a monthly basis which will work better for us in our lives.

Day 1-5 – this is your Moon Time, the time for rest, quiet, slow, emotional, sensitive time. It is the winter and the New Moon, it is the time to be looking inward.

Day 6-16 – Pre- Ovulation, this is where you become more focused, creative, social, driven, playful, it is Spring and Waxing Crescent - first quarter.

Day 17- 22 – Ovulation, this is the nurturing stage, adventure, sensuality, playful, flirting, summer, full energy. the waxing gibbous - full moon.

Day 23 – 29 – pre -moon phase, great for ideas, learning, starting to go inward, bringing stillness, it is Autumn, waning Crescent – New Moon once more.

What has this got to do with the menopause? Well by understanding our cycles we can begin to understand how we can still use the cyclic living during menopause, to get us back into a better body rhythm that we can have more control over.

Because we are not bleeding anymore, we can use the Moon Cycles to work out exactly where we are in that cycle. It takes a bit of time as menopause tends to completely mess our natural bodily Rhythms up for a while, until we settle back into something new. So this is where a diary comes in handy, to write down when we are most tired, anxious, happy, full of energy, or low in energy, when we have a flood of ideas and when we are enthusiastic about our futures etc. documenting these helps to build a pattern we can compare to the moon cycles. It isn’t for everyone I know, but it is a way of learning what our bodies need from us in this new phase we find ourselves in.

Why not give it a go and see how it helps you.

The next things I wish to high light are a selection of herbs/spices that I find useful in helping me maintain my balance.

SAGE

The wonders of sage cannot be underestimated in my opinion, this lovely smelling herb has really helped reduce the intense Night sweats and Hot Flushes. I use this herb every day, as a tea or as a tablet form of Sage leaf. It is thought Sage compounds have oestrogen like properties, allowing them to bind to receptors in the brain to help improve memory and treat Hot flushes and excess sweating. Which is very helpful for menopause. There is a lot of content on the internet about Sage for if you wish to try it. Sage should always be taken at the correct dosage.

MORINGA

This herb comes from India, it has quite a lot of uses and can be consumed as the leaf in tea or capsules, It is on my list because of its properties for helping Night sweats and hot flushes, it has a multitude of vitamins and is rich in antioxidants and minerals which helps balance hormones. It can also help break down fats and reduce fat accumulation, so it can be useful for weight loss. I personally have found it of great benefit for myself.

RED CLOVER

Red clover is a rich source of Phytoestrogens which are weak agonists of estrogens and provide stronger estrogenic effects when the level of estrogens in the body is low. Thus, you may be able to expect these substances to have greater estrogenic properties in menopausal women. Helping to reduce the effects of night sweats and hot flashes because of their estrogen like effects.

TURMERIC

Turmeric is a wonderful Indian spice widely used in a lot of curry’s but also as an aid for many an ailment because of its high content of Curcumin it is ideal for being an anti-inflammatory, helping with joint pains ( a common complaint in menopause), it is phytoestrogen, like Red Clover being a plant source of estrogen, because of a decrease in our hormone levels specifically testosterone and estrogen in menopause the antioxidant properties of curcumin help the liver metabolise estrogen which helps decrease the severity of many a symptom and help balance the hormones.

ESSENTIAL OILS

I create a blended oil which is ideal for Menopause it has quite a few essential oils with in it but the 2 oils I would like to highlight here are Fennel and Ylang Ylang, both Fennel oil and Ylang Ylang have phytoestrogen properties with in them they both help with hormonal balance whilst inducing feelings of relaxation and combating low libido.

Always use a base oil with these oils, they can be massaged on your stomach to bring about relaxation.

REIKI & CRYSTAL THERAPY

As a combination it is possible to help reduce the variety of ailments associated with Menopause, by creating a crystal layout for clients specific to their menopausal needs and by working with the Reiki light symptoms can and do reduce providing you with a more over all balance within. It is definitely a treatment well worth pursuing.

ACCUPUNCTURE

This is a treatment I have and I can recommend it has been of great help in lowering the hot flushes and night sweats, insomnia and tiredness, and to some degree the aches and pains you get in menopause. Acupuncture is also useful for many more ailments, all of which can be discussed with the practitioner.

These are just a few alternatives to look into for menopause as an alternative to HRT. I personally would rather go along the more natural route to find a way of finding a new balance for my body, and I have found the above to be very helpful along this journey. Always consult your doctor before trying the herbs/spices and always check for the right dosages for yourself. Everyone is different so go with the flow of your own body.

Good luck and I hope this Blog was useful