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Perimenopause and Aging Ovaries

perimenopause

Do you hear the tick tock of your biological clock? I had my last son just before my 30th birthday eight years after my second son. I had two boys and really wanted a daughter. My second son was a cesarean birth and very traumatic at that. It scared me because I had had a very easy vaginal birth with my first son. I didn’t even know I was in labor and by the time I reached the hospital I was already dilated to seven! Five hours later and a couple of pushes and he arrived. Then the second baby didn’t do what he was supposed to do and was breach. I was not prepared for the cesarean. Then my biological clock was ticking..ticking Another boy who was healthy and beautiful and no more! I did get granddaughters though!

All that to say that around age 35 most women begin to have anovulatory cycles, which means no ripe egg is released from the ovaries during the menstrual cycle. Your levels of estradiol, the main form of estrogen produced from about age 12 until the end of perimenopause, start to fluctuate wildly while progesterone levels drop. The control center, the hypothalamus and pituitary in the brain, are screaming louder and louder for the ovaries to get the progesterone levels higher. But those aging ovaries just can’t make enough. This means the hormonal couple can’t figure out who is leading who and the confusion starts.

Temporarily left unchecked by low progesterone, estrogen continues to stimulate, which results in increased endometrial thickness, heavy bleeding, clotting, and did I say lots of breast tenderness. Fluctuations can lead to migraines, irritability off the charts (like you don’t even like yourself but you can’t get away from you), and in some cases such as mine, anger or rage. I can remember getting anger at the way my husband breathed! It was not pretty. Your periods may come early or be heavy or both. You may have a light period one month then a heavy period the next. I developed breast cysts during this period which I found during my monthly self breast exam. No more under wire bras. All this to say, there is no exact time for perimenopause. Pay attention to your body, talk to your mom about when she started and look at the family history. It’s a journey we all have to take. I choose to do the natural protocol which worked best for me. I can help you through this process. Visit my website for more information on me at www.livinglifeholistic.com or via email susano@livinglifeholistic.com

Is There an Upside to Stress?

Adrenal Fatigue

This is a tricky question because the answer is yes and no.  We need the powerful fight or flight hormones our bodies produce to help us with danger or situations that are unexpected.  Or say a deadline for school, work, or when the taxi cab driver almost runs you over in the crosswalk.  I was in Washington, D.C. yesterday and I felt this happen when a tour bus almost hit a kid who crossed without looking!  Our brains perceive physical or psychological stress, it then starts pumping cortisol, epinephrine (adrenaline) and norepinephrine into the body.  Your heart beats faster, your blood pressure increases, your senses sharpen, and a rise in your blood glucose invigorates you.  You can feel all this happening and fast!  So this is a good thing.  It’s a small short term stress.  Here’s the key- balance.

The long term effect of too much stress is a break down in the body and you actually become sick.  Your immune system is taxed and now you find yourself dragging, lethargic, and you may be overeating or under eating.  Pay attention to your body’s stress meter and keep it from going to the underwhelmed or the overwhelmed.  Here are some signs to look for especially in menopause ~ mental fogginess, frequent colds, joints that ache, back pain, psoriasis, inflammation, weight gain or weight loss and over all lack of life.

I personally use many essential oils for stress and menopausal systems.  They can be life savers.  Remember that we all have stress in our lives.  The key is to find balance because stress is both good and bad all at the same time!  If you want to learn more about how I coach my clients with essential oils please check out my website at www.livinglifeholistic.com or email me at susano@livinglifeholistic.com

 

 

 

 

Healthy tips for Adrenal Fatigue

Adrenal Fatigue

This recipe is called the Adrenal Recovery Soup. The following vegetable soup recipe has proved helpful in adrenal support. This high-energy soup, called “Taz,” comes from Dolores S. Downey’s “Balancing body chemistry with nutrition” seminars. This is not a cure for adrenal support but just a suggestion on a recipe that might help. Put everything is a pot and cook on slow for one hour or more.

Adrenal Recovery Soup
• 16 oz. green beans
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 zucchini, sliced
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 cup tomato juice
• 1 cup spring water
• 2 tbsp. raw honey
• 1 tsp. paprika
• 1 cup chicken broth

The absolute best way to help adrenal fatigue is to change your diet and eliminate grains, legumes, and starchy vegetables. Grains contribute to adrenal fatigue, especially gluten grains. Avoid grains/gluten altogether, along with other high-glycemic foods. This helps alleviate the strain on the adrenal glands, which will also help lower cortisol levels since stressed adrenal glands release more cortisol. Eating lean meats and getting your Omega-6 to Omega-3 fats in balance should help reverse the fatty liver. As will eliminating sugars, especially fructose (high fructose corn syrup is very prevalent in processed foods and is one of the worst things you can consume), alcohol, and vegetable oils. I have eliminated wheat, gluten, dairy, soy, eggs, corn, sugar and artificial sweeteners in the past year. I have lost 27 pounds and I continue to lose weight but the best part is how great I feel. Here’s the challenge~are you ready to make the change?

I can be reached at www.livinglifeholistic.com for help with holistic health coaching with essential oils and more! Please comment and share this with those you know who maybe suffering from adrenal fatigue.

 

Hormones, Anger and Irritability

menopause

In this day and age, unfortunately, the first step to the approach of perimenopausal symptoms such as mood swings, anger, and irritability is to prescribe something to soothe us and make us feel better. I would love to hear from my doctor, “What is out of balance that needs to be changed?’ Tell me more about what is going on in your life, how is your stress, are you sleeping at night, how many times do you exercise each week? You know, the questions that would take longer than the 7-15 minutes allotted. Because even if the doctor prescribes the HRT for relief without addressing the underlying issues, then even appropriate does of hormones may not help much and have side effects that could make things worse!

Emotional turmoil, stress, weight gain, mood swings, uncontrollable anger can be the trigger to another issue during the hormonal perimenopause. It’s called full blown depression. Women who are going through this new season in life and having emotional issues in their lives that are not attended to such as midlife losses, children going to college, empty nest, marital changes, which left not fully grieved and released can turn to anger turned inward. Depression, in turn, is very well documented for risk factors in women for heart disease, cancer, and osteoporosis. Emotional turmoil affects the brain and all its functions. Unbalance virtually guarantees that a women’s hormones will stay unbalanced.

There is hope. I know from my own personal experience that there is hope and I can help you find that path. Visit my website for more information and to work with me at www.livinglifeholistic.com or via email susano@livinglifeholistic.com