Don’t Let Perimenopause Pause You

The moment women hit their late 30s, their symptoms are termed as perimenopausal. As we progress in age, this turns into menopausal. Brain fog, weight gain around the belly area and love handles, weaker bones, brittle hair, pigmentation, dry eyes, vaginal dryness and skin dryness are just some of the symptoms that progress to hot flashes and night sweats. With these symptoms comes an increased risk of hormonal cancers. 

When you make simple lifestyle modifications, you will reduce these symptoms, and by the time you achieve menopause, you will sail through. There is no reason that menopause should mean you put a pause to your quality of life. Follow the below and seize that elixir of forever energy!

1. DO THE BRIDGE POSE WITH CONTRACTIONS. Most women in late 30s experience vaginal dryness and decreased sex drive. Doing the Bridge pose and holding it and contracting the vagina area helps lubricate the entire area.
   1. Lie down on the bed or the yoga mat, prop yourself up in bridge pose.
   2. Contract and releasing your vaginal muscles. Contract and hold for 10 seconds, release. Repeat 10 times. Within three days, your vaginal dryness will start reducing and your sex drive will improve.

      

2. TAKE PRIMROSE OIL. Every woman from puberty onwards needs a minimum of 1000 MG primrose oil. There are many brands available in the market, begin your supplementation immediately to ensure that your hormones are stable. Stability of hormones brings reduced risk of constipation, headaches, brittle hair and memory issues.
3. EAT OIL. Yes you read that right. To dissolve bad fat, we need to make the good fat fight it. Extra-virgin olive oil is the best way to do this. Other oils that fight bad fat are fish oil and flaxseed oil. Dosages:
   1. Extra-virgin olive oil: 4 tablespoons a day. 2 tablespoons at lunch and 2 at dinner
   2. Oily fish: Herring, trout, tuna, salmon/rawas, anchovies, sardines or mackerel three times a week. If you are a vegetarian, you can take 1000 MG fish oil which has EPA & DHA (read label).
   3. 500 MG flaxseed oil. You can put this on your salad or you can pop the capsule.
4. MODERATE, NOT OVER EXERCISE. No exercise and over exercise both cause damage to hormones. The ideal combination is walking three days a week for 40 minutes and doing yoga for 2–3 days a week. Walking improves mood, reduces anxiety, increases balance and helps you stay lean. Yoga strengthens joints and bones, releases stress and brain fog.
5. EAT SMALL. Three small meals, two snacks as fruits are ideal. This will keep your BMR revved up. BMR drops drastically for women in their late 30s onwards. Not eating or skipping meals makes your body go into fat storage. The only way to avoid this and to have lean but higher energy is to eat smaller meals and keep yourself nourished through the day.
6. DON’T SKIP THE PROTEIN. Fatigue can never be overcome without protein. Healthy weight loss cannot be achieved without adding a small portion of protein because protein increases our ability to burn calories (thermogenic effect) and gives us our muscles energy to reduce fatigue. Good proteins include tofu, nuts and seeds, protein rich carbohydrates like quinoa, amaranth and brown rice, whole organic eggs and oily fish. Make sure that your plate has a small portion of protein and a large portion of vegetables to balance energy and micro nutrients.
7. INDULGE IN SEX. There is no better way to balance hormones and sail through menopause than to have frequent sex. Once you do the above 6, your vaginal dryness will reduce and your sex drive will increase. Intercourse and orgasm at least once a week decreases night sweats, anxiety, depression, mood swings, constipation associated with hormonal fluctuations and perimenopausal or menopausal symptoms.
8. GO FOR MUSIC. I have successfully treated severe anxiety, depression, constipation, hot flashes, weak bones with addition of music therapy for many of my patients suffering from perimenopausal and menopausal symptoms. Music has been clinically shown to reduce anxiety and repair us at DNA level. A few steps for music:
   1. Create several playlists so you don’t get bored. There are so many apps available, go for it.
   2. Commit to time for yourself to listen to music. Mid-morning for 30 minutes and before sleeping for 30 minutes. Listening to music drastically reduces insomnia.
9. SHOW UP FOR YOURSELF. All of us need time for self-nurturing. If you have a house full, go for a walk and after your walk, sit on a bench and just listen to some music and do some deep breathing. Make this your daily ritual. This self-nurturing habit will create a sense of calmness and help you embrace this new phase of your life. And without anxiety, your skin will start glowing.

So to get the elixir of youth, follow the above and do comment if you have any more tips to help other women struggling with symptoms!