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progesterone, Alternative Medicine, holistic remedies, diet therapy, nutritional therapy, homeopathic remedies, mind-body therapies

Could This Be Menopause?

Ask two different women what menopause is like, and you'll get two different answers.  Some women experience few, if any, symptoms.  But others must learn to navigate around hot flashes, moodiness, and other problems.  

Menopause arrives at the end of a woman's last menstrual period, which typically happens between ages 45 and 55.  But you may start experiencing hot flashes and other symptoms two to eight years before your last period.

Has Your Period Changes?

Menstrual changes are often the first sign of approaching menopause.  In the years before menopause, a woman's ovaries naturally begin to produce less estrogen.  As a result, you may skip periods or have heavier or lighter periods than usual.

Declining estrogen levels may also cause the following:

--Hot flashes, which cause hot, flushed skin and sweating.

--Difficulty falling or staying asleep

--Vaginal dryness and/or urinary tract infections

--Moodiness

Self-Care and Hormones

Simple lifestyle changes may help relieve menopausal symptoms.  These include the following:

--For hot flashes and night sweats:  Avoid common triggers, such as spicy foods, caffeine, and alcohol.  Dress in removable layers.  Keep your bedroom cool, and keep cold water on hand.

--For vaginal dryness:  Try a water based lubricant.

--For urinary incontinence: Practice pelvic-floor exercises.  Tighten and release your bladder muscles as if trying not to urinate.

--For moodiness:  Take time for exercise and relaxation.

Alternative and Integrative Medicine for Hormonal Balance

Acupressure and Acupuncture: Acupuncture can alleviate many menopausal symptoms by rebalancing the hormonal system, especially headaches and migraines, hot flushing, heavy flooding periods, back pain and sagging skin tone. Heavy and erratic menstrual bleeding in perimenopausal women can be relieved by this technique. Also relieves the pain and headache associated with menstruation. Acupuncture also has positive effects on insomnia and stress. Treatment can also improve the mobilization of chi to the nervous system to aid poor memory and concentration.
Aromatherapy: Pharmacologically, the essential oils enter the bloodstream, where they interact with the body's chemistry. On a physiological level, essential oils affect the body's systems, producing a stimulating or sedating effect, for example. Psychologically, we react to the scents of the essential oils. 
Color therapy: The color of the sky and many other things influences our moods and behavior. Therapists believe that color has an effect upon each of us. Therapists use this approach to restore cells to an even level of balance and to stimulate the healing processes. Because colors can have both a positive and negative effect, specific colors and accurate amounts of color are critical in healing. Colorpuncture combines the concept of color and acupuncture as a way to clear blockages and restore healthy energy. Kirlian photographs can track improvements. Another "sensory" healing technique is that of Light Therapy which attempts to restore well-being and has been successful in treating the depression known as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). Take a free color test Luscher's Color Test. Is the test reliable? We leave that to your opinion. We can only say that there are a number of corporations and colleges that use the Lűscher test as part of their hiring/ admissions processes. It can be a useful tool for doctors and psychologists as well and is used to get a quick overview of potential issues patients may have in their lives.
Exercise: Without doubt, exercise is the most important alternative therapy available to the menopausal woman. Exercise allows you to control your body and emotions by using your internal resources. Each time you exercise, your adrenal glands are stimulated to convert the male hormone androstenedione into estrogen. A minimum of four 30-minute exercise sessions a week will be enough to keep you "topped off' with estrogen. As you grow older, your cardio-respiratory fitness, your strength, and your flexibility begin to decline, but for people who remain active, they decrease at a lower rate (an average of five percent per decade after the age of 20, as opposed to nine percent per decade).
Food/Diet: Certain foods or nutrient deficiencies are known to trigger or exacerbate symptoms of menopause. Food also may boost the body's tolerance for fluctuating hormone levels. The root of a wild Mexican yam has been used as a progesterone source for the birth control pill. 
Herbal Remedies: The idea that certain herbs might reduce hot flashes and treat other menopausal symptoms and conditions hardly seems far-fetched when you consider how much of our modern Pharmacopoeia is based on botanical compounds. For example, the root of a wild Mexican yam has been used as a progesterone source for the birth control pill. Soybean is the main active ingredient in Provera, the top-selling HRT progestin. Herbs most commonly used for hot flashes and night sweats are:

• Damiana
• Dong Quai
• Chasteberry
• Black Cohosh

Homeopathy: Homeopaths treat the menopausal symptoms by constitutional treatment. This is the process by which a homeopathic physician selects and administers a woman's own constitutional remedy based on the totality of her symptoms and her physical, mental and emotional state. This strengthen the body's vital defenses and restore a healthy balance and sense of well-being. Most of the major homeopathic remedies may be used for the symptoms of menopause. Homeopaths generally avoid giving multiple remedies simultaneously. A second dose is not to be used until the first has ceased to act. Once the body begins to heal, no more remedies are given or should be taken. Consult a homeopathic physician to determine appropriate remedy for you as each case is different.
Hypnotherapy/Self Hypnosis: According Karen Olness, M.D., of Case Western Reserve University, "hypnosis is a form of self-induced, focused attention that can make it easier for you to relax or learn to control your body's functions." This experience of extraordinary focus of attention brought in by hypnosis can be harnessed to influence your bodily states. The person can use imagery, relaxation, or autogenic suggestions in a richer and more powerful way without being distracted during the hypnotic state.
Mind Body Medicine: Relaxation – Reframing – Stress Management:
One of the reasons for the success of relaxation response might be because of its effect on stress. Stress is known to make hot flashes worse. In one study, twenty-one postmenopausal women who reported frequent hot flashes were closely monitored in the laboratory. The women experienced significantly more hot flashes during lab sessions when they were subjected to psychological stress than in a non-stress session. Rest, relaxation, and a variety of leisure activities will help you keep active and mentally alert. You also need self-affirming thoughts to maintain your self confidence and prevent self-criticism. Never allow yourself to think that you are unattractive, lackluster, or out of touch. The strong interaction between your mind and your body means that you can make your menopause more difficult with negative thoughts. In other words, if you believe you're sick, you can start to behave like a sick person.
Nutritional therapy: Paying attention to a healthy diet is very important to menopausal women. Some vitamins and phytochemicals seem to be especially helpful. Phytochemicals are health-giving substances found in foods. They are not vitamins or minerals. They are a large and diverse group of substances with a variety of duties in the body. Given below are some of the nutrients and phytochemicals that may be recommended to help a woman deal with the symptoms of menopause.
Reflexology: Reflexology involves the manual stimulation of reflex points on the ears, hands, and feet. It is similar to shiatsu and acupressure. Thumb pressure is applied to specific points that correspond somatopically to specific areas or organs of the body.
Shiatsu: Shiatsu is based on a full oriental medical system, which explains the human body in terms of a network of meridians through which energy (chi) flows. The person falls ill when the flow of energy is disrupted or become sluggish. Shiatsu practitioners correct this energy imbalance by applying pressure at specific points corresponding to the meridian.
Tissue Salts: Eases the emotional flux, hot flashes, aches, heavy periods and discharge of menopause.

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