📷
If you’re like me, you’re wondering why you’re still having hot flashes. You may have experienced them in perimenopause as your estrogen production dropped during the transition towards menopause. Then they stopped and you thought you were home free, but darn, they came back.
Have you noticed they seem to be worse when you’re tired or stressed? That’s because the adrenals, the glands that help you respond to stress, and liver are meant to naturally take over as our estrogen production decreases. If your adrenals are worn out and weak from prolonged stress they cannot help balance your estrogen levels. If your liver is inefficient due to toxic overload, then you are more likely to have one or more of the unnatural, yet common, menopause symptoms. Yes, hot flashes are unnatural! You were not meant to suffer.
WHAT IS MENOPAUSE?
Menopause is not an illness and it is normal for hormone levels to fall in middle age. When menopause happens naturally there is no need for estrogen replacement, but rather hormone balancing.
There are simple steps you can take to balance your hormones naturally and minimize or eliminate any discomfort you are having in perimenopause or menopause. Whether your body is experiencing menopause naturally or from hysterectomy, your levels of estrogen will decrease.
Consider this the time to make self-care a priority. By upgrading your stress management skills, diet, and physical activity you can help your body find a new balance. Help your body rebuild its ability to take care of you so you can enjoy your best, balanced life. Some symptoms of estrogen decrease include hot flashes, insomnia, headaches, nervousness, depression, and fatigue. Hot flashes are one of the major signs you are suffering from adrenal fatigue.
SELF-CARE – NATURAL REMEDIES
If you’ve spend most of your time taking care of everyone else now is the time to make yourself the priority.
Diet
What you eat and drink has a huge impact on your hormones. Here are a few dietary changes you can make to help balance your hormones and feel better:
Eliminate all artificial sweeteners.Include vitamins D, B, and CoQ10 in your daily supplements.Avoid foods that stress your adrenals such as alcohol and caffeine.
Reduce Stress
Breathe.
Breathe in to the count of four, hold the breath to the count of four, exhale slowly to the count of four.
Say this affirmation from Louise Hay:I am balanced and peaceful in all changes of cycles, and I bless my body with love.
Take a walk in nature. Our natural environment is very calming. If you live in a hot climate walk early in the morning or later in the afternoon when it is cool. Breathe in the fresh air, look around and see the beauty of nature, hear the sounds, smell the flowers, and think of at least three things in your life you are grateful for.
Make your own spa treatment of essentials oils to spritz over your hot spots—neck, face, tummy, and lower back—when you need a refreshing cool down. Store your spray in the fridge for even more cooling.
"I don’t have hot flashes, I have power surges!"
COOL-POWER SPRAY
2 oz. spray bottle 1 oz. spring water 1 oz. organic Aloe Vera juice 3 drops Sweet Basil (Ocimum basilicum ct linalool) 3 drops Cape Chamomile (Eriocephalus punctulatus) or Clary Sage (Salvia sclarea) 3 drop Grapefruit (Citrus paradise) if steam distilled is not photo-toxic 3 drops Cornmint (Mentha arvensis) or Peppermint (Mentha x piperita) 3 drops Rose Geranium (Pelargonium graveolens var. roseum)
Remember to laugh.
Humor from Erma Bombeck
I'm trying very hard to understand this generation. They have adjusted the timetable for childbearing so that menopause and teaching a sixteen-year-old how to drive a car will occur in the same week.
“NIGHT SWEATS” from Florence King
Let's not forget the menopausal blessings of thrift. My heating bill has gone down by more than half over the last few years. So much, in fact, that a compassionate soul from the utility company called me last winter to see if I was in dire economic straits. "If you've had financial difficulties we can enroll you in our special payment plan," she said. "I haven't had financial difficulties, I've had the Change. My hot flashes keep me warm now. I've turned into my own furnace."
Remember, it is time to take care of yourself. Let’s become the Menopause Goddesses we were meant to be!
A good reference is The Wisdom of Menopause, by Christiane Northrup, M.D.
QUALITY
Always buy the best quality essential oils. There are many sources now. Not all are pure, not all are handled with love. Do not use oils if the company will not provide Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry(GC/MS) reports showing they were tested for chemical content and purity.
SAFETY
NEVER take essential oils internally. Essential oils can cause ulceration of your internal tissues. Always dilute your essential oils with a carrier oil for external use. The essential oils are “carried” by the fat molecules in the carrier oil into your cells to absorb the essential oil safely. Carrier oils can include jojoba, olive, almond oils, aloe vera gel or juice, or natural lotion. Please use organic carrier oils whenever possible. Read the ingredient labels, know what you are putting on your skin. Everything you put on your skin is absorbed into your body. Remember essential oils are highly concentrated one drop of peppermint is equivalent to 25 cups of peppermint tea. It takes 30 pounds of lavender flowers to make 300 drops of lavender essential oil.