A Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner’s Tips for surviving.
As women approach their 40s and 50s, they may notice some changes that may start subtly and progressively become worse. 😓 I’m talking about the slow decline of your estrogen, progesterone, and possible testosterone. This is known as perimenopause. You don’t enter menopause until you have not had a menstrual cycle for 12 months and as such, is diagnosed retrospectively. This decline in hormones can be so subtle in the beginning that you don’t even realize what is happening. In addition, symptoms that you may not attribute to perimenopause are in fact, symptoms of perimenopause. You may be asking yourself, “why am I so tired all the time?” or “why am I waking up in the middle of the night?”. Other frequent questions I hear, “why am I gaining weight now when I still work out and eat healthy?” and “why am I anxious/moody/irritable when I never used to be?”. The fact is ladies, you aren’t going crazy, it’s your hormones. 👩⚕️🧘♀️
What causes this decline in hormones as we age? 🤔
- Your ovaries start to produce less estrogen
- Your ovulated egg quality decreases leading to decrease progesterone production
- You may be producing less testosterone
- Your cortisol levels increase as you age
- Your Gut health is not on point
- Your thyroid is not functioning optimally
- Poor quality sleep leading to less Growth Hormone secretion
What a decline in hormone levels looks like: 😔
- Insomnia or waking in the middle of the night 😴
- Weight gain especially in your belly/abdomen 🤰
- Cellulite
- Muscle loss
- Fat gain
- Irregular periods
- Heavier or lighter periods
- Anxiety/Moodiness/Irritability/Tearfulness 😡
- Dry eyes 👀
- Dry skin, fine lines, wrinkles, vertical wrinkles around lips
- Thinning hair, hair loss, dry brittle hair, greasy hair 💇
- Brain fog, headaches, migraines
- Achy joints, stiffness, recovering from workouts is slower
How do I manage these symptoms: 🤗
- Lowering your stress levels 🧘
- Eating 30–40 grams of fiber a day 🥗
- Drinking plenty of water every day 💧
- Abstaining from alcohol 🍸
- Avoiding food that makes you feel poorly 🍔
- Getting 8+ hours of sleep every night 😴
- Weight training 🏋️♀️
- Nurturing your relationship with yourself 💕
- Practice Meditation and Mindfulness 🧘♀️🧘♂️
- BioIdentical Hormone Replacement Therapy to replace declining hormone levels 🩹
These are some Functional Medicine principles that I have developed in my class the Hormone Balancing Method for natural hormone balancing. Simple lifestyle tweaks and daily choices have a tremendous impact on hormonal balance. I hope you feel empowered to be able to take charge of how you are feeling. 💪
While managing your symptoms is important, replacing estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone that is declining can prove to be life-changing…for the better!! Perimenopause and menopause not only affects women, but has an effect on her spouse/partner, her children, her co-workers/employees, and everyone around her. When a woman is working on a level that is her “best self,” everyone around her benefits. She is able to give her best to herself, be present in every situation, and continue to give of herself. After all, you cannot pour water out of an empty bottle.
If you’re interested in learning more about natural hormone balancing or discussing your own symptoms and concerns, schedule a call with me HERE. Let’s work together to achieve optimal hormonal balance and overall wellness.
