If you find yourself asking this question a lot….

This could be the first sign that you are heading into peri-menopause or menopause.
HOT FLUSHES are a common part of the journey for many women into MENOPAUSE.

But it doesn’t need to be the case.

We are led to believe that as women go into menopause, the hormones oestrogen and progesterone start to decline and this is primarily the cause hot flushes. Standard HRT supplies the body with a synthetic form of oestrogen. There has been conflicting evidence around the safety of this approach for many years now.

From a Natural Medicine perspective, we look at the body holistically. We appreciate that menopause is a natural process in every woman’s life. Just as starting menstruation, pregnancy, breast feeding are all natural phases in women’s lives – we do not consider any of these other phases as a “disease state” – so nor is menopause.

Menopause is not something to be dreaded. As a Naturopath my moto is “Support the body when the body needs support”. So if you are experiencing symptoms of menopause it just means your body is in need of a little support.

So what causes hot flushes?
Yes the oestrogen and progesterone levels do start to decline which sets the wheels in motion for the menstrual cycle to stop. Then there is a very clever “back-up” plan. The body starts to utilise other hormones to help your body to stay in balance. These are the adrenal hormones. The adrenal glands sit on the kidneys and are known for the hormones “adrenaline and cortisol”- the stress hormones.

However the adrenal glands also produce other hormones such as DHEA and Pregnenolone. So as the oestrogen and progesterone start to decline, the natural process is for these other adrenal hormones (DHEA and Pregnenolone) to support the body to stay in balance.
However what happens, all too often, because we are living stressful lives, and our day-to-day living depletes these adrenal hormones. When your body needs to utilise the “back-up system” of the adrenal hormones – it is dipping into an “empty cup”. There are not sufficient adrenal hormones to keep your body in a balanced state.

This is when the hot flushes, mood swings, sleep disturbances, brain fog, and weight gain all starts.

For most women when they see the big picture of how life was for them leading into menopause, and continuing to be, it all makes sense.

You can also see how just topping up the body with a synthetic oestrogen is not going to treat the underlying cause of the hot flushes. More times than not, if a woman has been on HRT for a long period of time and their GP is suggesting they go off the HRT, when they do – the hot flushes come back. The real underlying cause of their symptoms was never addressed. This is not a discussion about synthetic hormone replacement v’s natural medicine. I’m just explaining how naturopathic and herbal medicine philosophy views the body and how we look at the underlying cause of symptoms – not just treat the symptoms. I’ve seen this many times in my 25 years of being a Naturopath.

Natural Medicines for Menopause
There are a myriad of herbal medicines, nutritional support and perhaps a few tweaks to what you’re eating to help relieve symptoms of menopause. All while addressing the specific underlying causes that are creating imbalances in your health. You’ve had your own individual journey up to menopause, and your natural health support plan will be just as individual as you.

You can balance your hormones and your health with natural medicine.