Category Archives: menopause

Do You Suffer from Lack of Sleep!

menopause, perimenopause

We all know that lack of sleep makes you cranky and irritable.  It can also make you fat.  I am a person who likes her sleep.  I sleep 7-8 hours every night. There are many studies out there on sleep and perimenopause and menopause.  Here are some of the other less-well-known reasons you need to sleep 7-8 hours:

  1. Lack of sleep gives you brain fog. Sleep plays a critical role in thinking and learning. Lack of sleep interrupts these processes. First, it impairs attention, alertness, concentration, reasoning, and problem solving. This makes it more difficult to learn efficiently.  We have various sleep cycles and lack of sleep can cause memory loss, and learning disorders.
  2. Your sex drive decreases. Sleep-deprived men and women report lower libidos and less interest in sex. Depleted energy, sleepiness, and amped-up crankiness may be largely to blame.  This can be a killer in a marriage!
  3. It’s depressing. Over time, lack of sleep and sleep disorders can contribute to the symptoms of depression. In one survey, people who were diagnosed with depression or anxiety were more likely to sleep less than six hours at night.  Hot flashes and night sweats lead to sleep disruption.  This can lead to those unwanted prescriptions for sleeping aids.  It’s a viscous cycle, don’t get on the wheel.
  4. It makes you look old seriously. Most people have experienced eye bags after a few nights of missed sleep. But, chronic sleep loss can lead to dull skin, fine lines, and dark circles under the eyes. This can also be from allergies.
  5. It can kill you before your time. British researchers looked at how sleep patterns affected the mortality of more than 10,000 British civil servants over two decades. The results, published in 2007, showed that those who had cut their sleep from seven to five hours or fewer a night nearly doubled their risk of death from all causes.  Cardiovascular disease is the #1 killer of post-menopausal women.  I don’t know about you but I want to live a long life.  You only get one temple so take of it!

Your judgment suffers due to lack of sleep, which can affect our interpretation of events.   Sleep-deprived people seem to be especially prone to poor judgment.  Our society keeps giving mixed messages about too little sleep.  We are not super human and we cannot function on too little sleep.  Have you ever drove home and when you pulled in the driveway can’t remember how you got there?  Now, that’s not only scary but sleep deprivation.

When I’m working with clients I do an overall assessment of the whole health picture and sleep is usually an area that I focus on the most.  Making a change in this area alone can affect the rest of your health wellness, both physical and mental.  I am a holistic health coach specializing in essential oils and menopause.  You can find more information about me and my coaching on my website at www.livinglifeholistic.com and be sure to sign up for my free smoothie recipes, tips and recipes!

 

Living Debt Free and Healthy

debt Free, Featured, Financial, Health, menopause, Migraines, perimenopause, Weight Loss

I can remember to this day the phone call I received at work.  I answered the phone, “This is Susan, how may I help you?” The person identified themselves as the emergency room of the hospital, “Is this Susan? Is your husband Michael?”.  I answered “yes” and then the next words rocked my world, “your presence is required at the emergency room”, and I sat down quickly.  What, what did you just say to me?  They would not disclose what had happened, or whether my husband was dead or alive, just that my presence was required.  When I arrived at the emergency room, they quickly brought me back without telling me anything.  When they opened the door I saw my husband, bloody, dirty and hooked up to a ton of monitors.  He was not dead, thank God, but they didn’t know if he had broken his back, neck or both.  After a CAT scan it was a  C-4 neck fracture.  A halo and one year to heal, followed by 3 years of disability and retraining.  That year was 1986. Doctors said he was either dead or paralyzed when they saw his file, but we serve a great big awesome God and he was neither!

All this to preface that we were young, with two small boys, living paycheck to paycheck.  We had bought our first home, had some credit card debt, and some school loans.  You learn what a priority is quickly when you have a major trauma in your life.  We learned how to live on much less very quickly.  Later we went to a class called Financial Peace University (Dave Ramsey) and War on Debt (Dani Johnson).  We learned to become debt free and never turned back.  I can tell you that our health was fully altered due to the debilitating migraines my husband suffered that could not be stopped by medications but only with natural medicine, proper exercise, low glycemic eating, sleep, and essential oils.  He now has one occasionally, a far cry from daily.  This is why I became a holistic health coach to help others get where we are today.  Do you want financial freedom?  Time freedom? Do you want true health?  You can find me at www.livinglifeholistic.com

I would love to connect with you for a free 15 minute consultation to see how I can help you!  To your health!

Hot Flashes and Night Sweats

menopause

When I was younger I can remember my Mom trying to put her make-up on and she was sweating so bad that she would stand in front of the fan nearly in tears.  I didn’t understand the true meaning of a hot flash until I had my own!  It’s different for everyone, but mine feel like my body is going to explode in the combustion and light on fire.  They only last for about two minutes, which seem like forever, and then the cold consumes me.

Here are some tips to help during the hot flash and night sweats:

  • Use fans and air conditioning to keep your surroundings cool.
  • Wear lightweight cotton clothing and dress in layers, so that you can remove them as needed.  I can go from nothing to flannel and socks even in the summertime.
  • Some women find acupuncture, meditation, and other forms of complementary therapy to be helpful.  I am certified in Aromatouch Technique which is very helpful for hormonal imbalance.
  • Take out or reduce the use of caffeine, sugar, sugar substitutes, soy (GMO), wheat, gluten, peanuts, corn (GMO) and increase the water.  Hydration is so important and if you feel thirsty then you are already dehydrated.  Add some lemon or lime to the water.
  • What the food intake.  It’s better to eat smaller meals more frequent than large ones three times a day.  No food for at least three hours before you go to sleep.
  • Create a regular sleep schedule that includes going to bed and getting up at the same time each day, even on weekends.  This helps the circadian rhythms.
  • Keep your bedroom dark, cool, and quiet when going to sleep.
  • Avoid doing vigorous exercise for 3 hours before bedtime. However, stretching just before bedtime may be helpful.  Also, journaling can be relaxing as well.
  • Avoid caffeine after 2:00 pm (including chocolate).  Avoid drinking anything for 2 hours before bed so you do not have to use the bathroom in the middle of the night.
  • Use your bed and bedroom only for sleep or sexual activity.
  • If you are unable to fall asleep after 15 minutes, get out of bed and do something relaxing.  Use some essential oils like lavender to help shut down the brain

I have been able to reduce my hot flashes substantially.  I would love to give you my free 12 green smoothie recipes and help you with your hot flashes or night sweats.  Please go to www.livinglifeholistic.com and sign up today!

Are You Gaining Weight with Menopause?

menopause

Many women may also notice that their clothes suddenly fit a little more snugly. Although the amount of weight gain varies based on the individual and her activity level, it is not uncommon for a menopausal woman to see an increase of 2 to 10 pounds over a two-year period.  I personally gained 50 pounds in what seemed overnight in a year during my perimenopausal period.  That might be unusual as I am in the 5% of early onset menopause.   And those extra pounds aren’t just annoying — recent research suggests that weight gain may increase a woman’s risk of breast cancer post-menopause. Get proactive!  You have to do some research and find out what’s going on with your body.  You may have to eliminate some foods.  You only get one body!

So, you ask, “what can I do?”  Here are some tips that I have incorporated in my fight against the bulge:

  • Be proactive. Don’t wait for the weight to add up before switching to a healthier lifestyle such as a low glycemic food plan, more fruits and veggies. Stay hydrated with water. Sleep 7-8 hours per night.
  • Increase your physical activity. Walking by far is the easiest activity to do.  So try to power walk as much as you can.  The burst exercise is now recommended for best results.  I like Pilates, Holy Yoga, walking, biking, swimming and burst training.  Key word here is get physical!
  • Do strength training. Exercises such as weight lifting can boost your metabolism, as well as increase muscle mass and strengthen bones. Building muscle mass is also more likely to protect against future weight gain.  Brings me back to walking and I love Kettle Bells.
  • Go with a Food Plan that Works for You. Women need about 200 fewer calories a day to maintain their weight as they enter their mid- to late 40s, according to the Mayo Clinic. One word of caution though: Because menopausal women are at increased risk of bone density loss, it’s especially important to keep up with daily calcium requirements if you’re simultaneously trying to lose weight.  Look at low glycemic food plans, gluten free, Paleo, and get a food journal and write it down!
  • Rule out a thyroid problem. Hypothyroidism, which often develops in women at midlife, can also contribute to weight gain, so have a thorough checkup if you are rapidly gaining weight.  To my surprise this was not my problem.

I am passionate about teaching women how to walk through this season of life.  I would love to give you my free 12 green smoothie recipes to help you get started!  Go to my website at www.livinglifeholistic.com and sign up!  Contact me to get started today!