October is National Menopause month and what a wonderful way to support and share in sisterhood.
Menopause happens when your periods stop due to lower hormone levels and you are classed as being in Menopause after twelve months of no periods. Everything before this is known as Peri-Menopause. The symptoms are similar and many women experience anxiety, mood swings, brain fog, headaches, hot flushes, sleepless nights and irregular periods.
Thankfully, there is a lot of support and information out there for women so we can choose to support this change with a holistic lifestyle coupled with hormone replacement therapy and move through it knowing that we are doing everything we can to support ourselves.
Yoga and meditation are great practices to incorporate alongside traditional methods to make the transition smoother. Yoga teaches us to be more aware of what we think and how we live our life giving us the power to make healthy decisions that will alleviate the symptoms of peri-menopause.
In yoga, we learn that living within the circadian rhythm helps to improve sleep quality and simply going to bed and waking up at the same time will ensure we get a healthy 7-8hrs sleep per night. This in term reduces stress hormones such as cortisol in the body, stabilises mood and reduces anxiety.
Practising yoga postures regularly in a way that suits your body, at a pace that is comfortable to you will ensure you learn to treat yourself with kindness and compassion.
It will also strengthen and tone muscles, whilst building bone density and enhancing your metabolism.
Post-menopause women are more likely to develop Osteoporosis (brittle bones) and Sarcopenia (muscle loss) along with cardiovascular disease and having a regular yoga practice improves overall health both physically and mentally.
It can be daunting going through peri-menopause and someone who has experienced depression and anxiety in the past might feel like they are slipping back. The chances are if you are around the age of 40-50yrs old and experiencing these symptoms you may be going into the peri-menopause.
If you would like support in finding a regular yoga practice to incorporate alongside a holistic approach to peri-menopause please get in touch.
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