4. Managing Wellness and Creating your Toolkit Amidst Hormonal Chaos in Menopause
Nov 29, 2023
Host Dr. Enaka Yembe
Are you ready to arm yourself with the knowledge to navigate the intricate path of menopause?
Join me, Dr. Enaka Yembe, as we pull back the curtain on the hormonal shifts that take place during this significant life transition. From the role of testosterone and progesterone, to the symptoms their fluctuations can induce, we'll explore it all. Together, we'll step into various management strategies - hormone replacement therapy, incorporating regular exercise, mastering stress management and the role of dietary supplements. Remember, it's essential to seek professional advice before starting any treatment, and this episode aims to equip you with the awareness to do just that.
The conversation doesn't stop at hormones though - tune in as we journey into the realm of lifestyle adjustments and self-care during menopause. In sharing my own menopause journey and the lessons that inspired this podcast, I hope to shed light on just how important education around this life stage is. Together we'll dive into the power of a balanced diet, the need for quality sleep, the benefits of staying hydrated, and the importance of regular physical activity. The spotlight will also be on the benefits of whole, unprocessed foods and the potential pitfalls of stimulants like caffeine. My goal? To empower you with a roadmap to manage menopause symptoms and maintain your overall health during this transition.
Are you ready to arm yourself with the knowledge to navigate the intricate path of menopause?
Join me, Dr. Enaka Yembe, as we pull back the curtain on the hormonal shifts that take place during this significant life transition. From the role of testosterone and progesterone, to the symptoms their fluctuations can induce, we'll explore it all. Together, we'll step into various management strategies - hormone replacement therapy, incorporating regular exercise, mastering stress management and the role of dietary supplements. Remember, it's essential to seek professional advice before starting any treatment, and this episode aims to equip you with the awareness to do just that.
The conversation doesn't stop at hormones though - tune in as we journey into the realm of lifestyle adjustments and self-care during menopause. In sharing my own menopause journey and the lessons that inspired this podcast, I hope to shed light on just how important education around this life stage is. Together we'll dive into the power of a balanced diet, the need for quality sleep, the benefits of staying hydrated, and the importance of regular physical activity. The spotlight will also be on the benefits of whole, unprocessed foods and the potential pitfalls of stimulants like caffeine. My goal? To empower you with a roadmap to manage menopause symptoms and maintain your overall health during this transition.
I am a firm believer that every female needs to have a toolkit, and this toolkit is your strategy box, it's your game plan, it's the things that you do whenever you face something. So we each have to have a toolkit. I love thinking about menopause as that transitional time where we can look into our toolkit and pull up the things that we need and use them to face symptoms and menopausal changes. So I am so thrilled to dive into this topic today, one that impacts every single female worldwide.
Speaker 1:
Today, we'll talk about hormonal changes during menopause, so we'll talk about two more hormones. Last episode, we talked about three hormones. We'll talk about two today and, most of all, we'll talk about self-care. And these are the things that I want you to listen carefully, extrapolate those that pertain to you, put them into your toolkit and use them whenever you face a situation or symptoms that you want to mitigate. I am going to offer you some tips and strategies that you can use to create your toolkit. Believe me when I tell you that you have the ability and the power to control how your body ages with menopause.
Speaker 2:
We explore a wide range of topics aimed at supporting you in your health and wellness journey. Hopefully, the practical tips and strategies offered potentially help you adopt an empowering approach towards menopausal weight loss and belly fat reduction. And now here's your host, Dr Inaka Yembe.
Speaker 1:
Hello there, I am Dr Yembe, your host, and today we'll be talking about menopause and specifically, we'll address nutrition, exercise and tips and strategies that we can use to mitigate hormonal changes or the effects of hormonal changes on our bodies during menopause. We will talk about two more hormones Again. If you missed last episode, go back and listen to it after you're done with this one, because in that episode we addressed three hormones.
Speaker 2:
So let's go ahead and jump in reviewing the definition of menopause.
Speaker 1:
First, menopause is a natural phase that marks the end of a woman's reproductive years. Typically, average age for menopause is about 50-52. However, hormonal changes can start in some females as early as the age of 30 or 35. Anyway, menopause brings several changes in our bodies. Because of these hormonal fluctuations, we have symptoms like heart flashes, night sweats, mood swings, changes in our body weight, changes in metabolism, joint pain, dryness, hair changing. First, let's take a quick look at the impact of hormones. In the last episode we talked about estrogen, insulin and cortisol. Today, we'll talk about two more hormones that play a significant role in this hormonal storm that happens on the inside of our bodies during menopause. These two hormones are progesterone and testosterone. The first hormone, testosterone. We know that testosterone is a male hormone. It is produced in the testes, in milk. Most of us don't realize that every female has some testosterone as well. It's actually produced in the ovaries and in the adrenal glands. Now, women, most of the time testosterone is produced in the ovaries. It plays a crucial role in our overall wellness and hormonal balance. It contributes to so many different bodily functions, such as your bone density, your muscle mass, your fat distribution and your sex drive. It also supports red blood cell production as well as our mood. In women, testosterone levels start to decline as we age. During menopause, this decline can contribute to several symptoms. These include symptoms like decreased libido, loss of muscle mass, decreased bone density, changes in the mood, increased irritability. This can really affect our well-being. With menopause, women experiencing all these symptoms from low testosterone levels can consider some approaches. These approaches, I want you to consider whether or not you want to have them in your toolkit.
Speaker 1:
1. Hormonal replacement therapy Menopausal hormones are not for everyone. This is where I want you to visit with your primary care provider or your gynecologist or an endocrinologist and discuss if menopausal hormone replacement therapy is for you. Anyway, this therapy involves the use of estrogen, and sometimes testosterone, in order to balance female hormones. Again, this is important for you to discuss with a healthcare provider. Other things other than hormones that you can use include things like regular exercise, particularly resistance training. This can help stimulate the production of testosterone and promote overall well-being. Stress management is also important. Chronic stress can affect testosterone levels. Engaging in stress-reducing activities such as medication, yoga and other things can help reduce stress. Relaxation techniques can help manage overall hormonal balance. Next, we have some dietary supplements, such as DHEA, dihydroepiandrosterone. This has been suggested to support natural production of testosterone in women. I'm going to say that again Dhydroepiandrosterone, dhea. Okay, again, that's another one. You must speak to your primary care provider before you start taking any supplement.
Speaker 2:
Very, very important.
Speaker 1:
Testosterone replacement therapy. It helps some females. Some healthcare providers can prescribe this for you. I know that it can come in some pellet forms that could be implanted under your skin. Again, that's another one to speak to your medical care provider. Very, very important. All right, let's move on to the next hormone here. This one is progesterone. It's primarily produced in the ovaries as well in women. The menstrual cycle has a first part and a second part when you're younger, so that second part of the menstrual cycle really prepares your body for potential pregnancy. It's also produced in small amounts by an adrenal gland. Anyway, as we age, progesterone levels start to decline and during menopause, the ovary production of progesterone declines and as a result of this decline, some women may develop some symptoms, such as irregular periods, heart flashes, mood swings and changes in bone density. So again, if you are experiencing these symptoms, especially when you get into menopause, this is a good time for you to speak to your doctor if you are considering menopausal hormone replacement therapy.
Speaker 1:
For those of us if you're like me, I never went for menopausal hormone replacement therapy, even though I had all symptoms, oh my goodness. So some lifestyle changes that can help you include incorporating a balanced diet, regular exercise, stress management. This can really, overall, help you. Other things that you can do for symptom relief you can try some herbs again. Before you take any herbs or any supplements over the counter, very important to speak to your primary care provider. Some herbs that have been suggested include black cohosh, red clover and evening primrose oil. All right, in cases where women experience symptoms such as irregular periods, may suggest progesterone supplementation. Other things that you can do with your diet, especially to alleviate the symptoms, are consuming foods that are high in healthy fats. So things like the nuts and seeds, fatty fish those may also help you. All right. So, moving on here, let's shift our attention to specific healthcare strategies.
Speaker 1:
One of the biggest reasons why I started this podcast was because I realized that women don't really have any formal education on what to do when you get into menopause. I remember personally I hit menopause around the age of 47. It hit me almost suddenly, or maybe it came on slowly and I didn't realize it. But one day I remember I was at work and I had this major hot flash. I was sweating down my face, under my arms, between my boobs, down my back. It was terrible Last time. It almost seems like forever, but I would say maybe about two, three minutes and it was intense. It went away and then I felt cold and it wasn't long before I got this hot flashes back to back to back. So first thing I did, I ran to my mom. I said mom, look, I had all the symptoms. I think I'm in menopause. I was a practicing physician at times, so I know what menopause symptoms are.
Speaker 2:
I said mama what?
Speaker 1:
did you do when you went into menopause? My mom said oh gosh, don't talk about that. You know we're women, just like you. Don't talk about your cycles, just openly. You don't need to talk about menopause. And that's one of the reasons why people like my mom never spent time trying to educate us or her daughters on what to do when you get to menopause.
Speaker 1:
I remember very clearly a young girl, when I was about the age of nine or ten, my mom sat me down. She talked to me about my periods. She talked to me about what to expect, what to do with my body, how to take care of it. She actually also invited a nurse who came and talked to me about the same thing. So when my cycle started, I was not surprised. But with menopause it's different. Not even the medical providers prepare us women for this transitional period of menopause, and it so happens that menopause hits us by the age of late 40s and 50s, and during this time we are at the prime of our lives. So right now I'm going to talk about some self-care techniques and lifestyle changes that you may want to consider to have in your toolkit so that you can use them to mitigate multiple menopausal symptoms.
Speaker 1:
The very first one, though, is my favorite regular exercise. When I talk about engaging in exercise, sometimes we may feel like it's just too difficult, or we're going out of our way, or I don't exercise anyway. So what do I do? I want you to think about exercise in the terms of some physical activity that you like Enough that you can be consistent. So even dancing going for dance class if you're somebody who likes dancing, that could be exercise for you. Walking, swimming, yoga, that's exercise for you.
Speaker 1:
Very, very important, because our bodies are changing. We don't want to be sedentary. Exercise is very important to help with symptoms such as hot flashes, sleep disturbances. It also helps with mood swings and improves the overall sense of well-being. So exercise, especially during menopause, is important. If you're somebody who does cardiovascular exercises, I want you to consider also adding some resistance exercise. Resistance exercises, as in using dumbbells, barbells, resistance bands or your body weights for squats, push-ups, lunges and things like that. Those help preserve your muscle. Why is that? Because as we age, we lose muscle. That's a normal phenomenon. That happens during menopause, and studies do show that women with decreased muscle mass have a higher mortality rate. So exercise is very important.
Speaker 1:
That's number one. Number two is stress. Stress reduction is so important during menopause If you're struggling with belly fat and you're struggling with your weight. Sometimes we are so stressed that the hormone, cortisol, that we talked about in the previous episode cortisol, which is a stress hormone, can be high, and when it's high, it promotes belly fat storage. It's so important to practice stress reducing activities, such as meditation, prayer, deep breathing, mindfulness. These stress management techniques actually help contribute to improvement in overall mood and in your quality of sleep.
Speaker 1:
The very next one actually should have been number one. This one is maintaining a balanced diet. Balanced diet that consists of whole foods not manufactured foods, but whole foods. So these include things like vegetables, fruits, whole grains, lean proteins such as meat, fish, chicken. These help support your overall health, they help with mitigating that loss of muscle mass and they also help alleviate or reduce belly fat storage when you stay on a balanced diet and you consume food, or you consume just enough food. Now we will have a separate podcast for nutrition, but one of the things that I know for sure is that if you continue to consume the same amount of food or the same kinds of foods that you did when you were 20 years old, your body responds differently you don't need that much food and we definitely need to change the quality of our foods Now.
Speaker 1:
When you consume whole, unprocessed foods, and especially foods that are rich in vital estrogen, such as soy products, flax seeds, chickpeas these can also help with hormonal balance, all right. Number four we're talking about self-care. Number four is adequate sleep. Establishing a healthy sleep routine is so important. Why is that? Because hormones are also balanced during sleep, specifically your hunger hormones, leptin and grilling. So inadequate sleep throws of those hormones causes increased cravings and causes increased fat storage. So we really want to make it a habit of sleeping at least seven to nine hours, especially if we are struggling with our weight. One good thing to do is to avoid stimulants like caffeine, especially in the evening, because those can impact our sleep quality. All right. Tip number five this one is another big one Hydration.
Speaker 1:
Drinking an adequate amount of water throughout the day can really help alleviate symptoms like hot flashes, night sweats, and it also helps with your weight. Now, if you're struggling with your weight, your overweight and you have increased belly fat, studies do show that a slight dehydration, even minor amount of dehydration, can reduce your ability to lose weight. So very important to stay hydrated. All right next one here I'm going to get some backlash here Limiting caffeine and alcohol. I did put alcohol here in a separate box, so I'll talk about that a little bit more. But you do want to cut back on caffeine. Why is that? Because it helps manage symptoms. When you cut back on caffeine, it can help insomnia. It can actually help anxiety and hot flashes, because too much caffeine can increase your heart rate slightly and if you already suffer from anxiety and stress, drinking caffeine especially multiple cups of coffee through the day can make symptoms worse, symptoms of anxiety worse, rather, all right.
Speaker 1:
Number seven having that supportive connection, having social contacts that help you really along your journey, your menopausal journey. So it's important to have a few friends. I'm not a big one of proposing tons and tons of friends, but anyway you want to have some social connections that are supportive for you and this is where, if you don't have those, you want to find a group. I do run a group online. It's called a 10 21 day bootcamp and this is a group of women who are perimenopausal or already menopausal, who are trying to get healthy and stay healthy. That's a private group online. If you go to my Instagram pages, these pages there. If you go to my TikTok channel, the page is promoted on there as well. So, if you don't have adequate social connections, find a group, a group of like-minded people that can help support you along your journey. Maintaining strong social connections with friends and loved ones, though, help provide that emotional support and a sense of community, which is really, really beneficial for us during this menopausal transition. All right, number eight again this one.
Speaker 1:
I want you to talk to your doctor or your medical care provider before you jump into any one of these things. I had mentioned them earlier, but I'll mention again herbal remedies. Some women find relief from menopausal symptoms by using herbal remedies such as black cohosh, red clover or evening primrose oil. I personally take 2,600 milligrams of evening primrose oil almost every day. Again, consult with your medical provider before you start taking any one of these things. We have talked about the next one here, which is menopausal hormone replacement. It is very beneficial for most women. Some women qualify to get it, some do not. It may be suitable for you. It's important to discuss this with your doctor and especially discuss the risks of menopausal hormone replacement therapy. And if you qualify, you do want to start it early, as in right when you get into menopausal All right. Other self-care practices include things like relaxation, pursuing hobbies. I love to travel, that's my big one. It really helps me to get out of my regular daily routine and just travel. Travel to a different state with the friends, travel to different countries when I can. Those kinds of things help you just live well and help overall well-being All right.
Speaker 1:
Number 11, we're going to talk about the two big ones that I put into this separate bucket here. Menopausal women let's talk about limiting alcohol and smoking. The effects of smoking and drinking on menopausal women is really, really severe. It can make your symptoms so much worse. It can impact your overall health in so many ways. Smoking and alcohol have significant implications on women who are in menopause because already your body is going through hormonal changes and going through several fluctuations, and so the effects can be extremely harmful.
Speaker 1:
Number one smoking. Smoking will make your heart flashes so much worse. Smoking will also make your bone density even worse. Your bones get thinner faster if you're in menopause and if you smoke. Regarding your heart, menopause already brings changes that can impact your heart health. Smoking is just going to further increase your risk of cardiovascular issues such as heart attacks and strokes, Other health risks. Smoking can cause respiratory problems or breathing problems. It can decrease your immune function and it can increase the risk of cancers. So again, my menopausal women, please, if you are a smoker, just know that being in menopause, smoking, the impact of smoking is just so much worse.
Speaker 1:
The other one is drinking Alcohol. The effects of drinking are also drastic now that you are in menopause. Excessive alcohol consumption and I said excessive, so I said I know I'm going to get the backlash here, but anyway excessive alcohol can cause your heart flashes to be worse. Night sweats, mood swings are all made worse than with alcohol. Alcohol can also influence your bone health. It can diminish your bone density, increase your risk of osteoporosis and put you at greater risk of bone fractures. Alcohol causes sleep problems. We're already having sleep problems and sleep disturbances because of heart flashes, so drinking alcohol just makes it so much worse. Chronic alcohol consumption can also influence your hormone regulations, throw your hormones off and just causes a complex amount of hormonal changes. Just because of drinking alcohol it affects your liver and so it can cause liver toxicity. It can cause even liver damage. We have a higher risk of liver damage because of our diet and so adding alcohol to it just makes it so much worse. Long-term, alcohol can cause liver disease and health concerns such as cardiovascular problems, and so just a huge, huge impact there on the health of a menopausal woman.
Speaker 1:
So, again, if you're a smoker or if you are someone who uses alcohol excessively, especially menopause I want you to consider just reducing the amount and consider seeking help, because sometimes we may not be able to help ourselves, and there's nothing wrong with seeking help when you need it. All right. So giving these potential effects is so, so important for you to consider eliminating alcohol, minimizing alcohol and eliminating smoking very important, all right. So we've covered the wealth of information today from understanding the impact of those two hormones, testosterone and progesterone, on our health. We've talked about several health care tips that you can put into your toolbox and use when you need them. Especially, we talked about self-care, nutrition tips and exercise tips just to help you navigate this transformative journey of menopause.
Speaker 1:
I want you to remember that each woman's experience with menopause is unique and different. Sometimes we need support. We need support from friends, families, or we need support from support groups online. So there's nothing wrong with seeking help, because this is a journey that can be managed. I want to thank you for tuning into today's podcast. I hope you find some of these insights valuable as you embrace the changes that menopause can bring, and I want you to prioritize your health and your well being and, until next time, take good care of yourselves. Bye.
Speaker 2:
Thank you for tuning in to this episode of Thriving Through Menopause. We hope you found valuable insights and practical advice to support your journey. If you enjoyed today's episode, be sure to subscribe to the podcast, share it and review. Your feedback is greatly appreciated. Remember, menopause doesn't have to be a challenge. It can be an opportunity for growth, renewal and self-care. Connect with us on social media, where we share additional resources, tips and advice to help you along your path. Once again, thanks for listening in and we hope you'll join us again on the next episode of Thriving Through Menopause. Until then,