Thriving Through Menopause: Lifestyle Habits to Help Support Your Mind, Body, and Soul

During menopause, your body goes through many hormonal changes. From hot flashes, to mood changes, brain fog, and fatigue, the symptoms brought on by menopause can wreak havoc on your daily life and make it challenging to manage. While hormone replacement therapy can be the right solution for some, there are also simple changes you can make to your lifestyle habits to support your body and mind and reduce the symptoms of menopause.

Optimized Nourishment for Menopause: 

Increase your intake of fiber

It is recommended that we eat at least 21 grams of daily fiber during menopause and throughout our lives. However, many women do not get enough fiber into their diets. Fiber has a variety of benefits to you, including:

• Increasing the feeling of fullness (which may help with weight struggles)
• Decreasing blood sugar spikes
• Supporting the health of your gut microbiome (the good bacteria in your intestines)
• Improving cholesterol
• Helping with hot flashes
• Decreasing the risk of heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, constipation, and some types of cancer

Eat foods that support your gut microbiome

Eating foods that support the gut microbiome can also help your mind during menopause. Many women can experience mood changes and brain fog during menopause. Nutrient-rich foods that support the gut microbiome have been found to support mental health and mood as well as decrease the risk of dementia.The gut microbiome likes a diverse array of plant foods and foods that are unprocessed or minimally processed. Try to prioritize the produce section of your grocery store and cook meals at home whenever possible. 

Staying Active During Menopause

Physical activity becomes even more important as we age. Due to the hormonal changes of menopause, it is common for women to gain fat and lose muscle. BUT – this doesn’t have to be the case! 

Every minute counts

While the guidelines suggest we get at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity activity weekly, remember that every minute counts. From taking a simple walk at lunch, to doing jumping jacks in between meetings or errands, any movement is beneficial!

As women age, it’s important to keep building lean muscle, which is typically lost with age. You don’t have to become a body-builder (unless you want to!), but engaging in resistance exercises, such as lifting dumbbells, using weight machines at the gym, or using resistance bands, will help you gain or maintain your lean muscle. If you are new to resistance training, consider working with a physical therapist or certified personal trainer to help you create a safe and effective routine. 

Yoga and tai-chi are beneficial for women as they can help improve balance. This is important as falls become more likely with age and can lead to bone fractures and a loss of independence.

Getting Some Zzzzzzs

A little-known symptom of menopause is struggling with sleep, even though it’s extremely important for aging women. Getting an optimal amount of restful sleep can help:

• Strengthen the immune system
• Recover faster from injury
• Decrease pain sensitivity
• Increase energy
• Decrease the risk of dementia
• Improve mood, memory, and creativity
• Manage stress

What does adequate sleep look like? You should aim for around 7-8 hours nightly. Have difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep? Here are some tips that could help:

• Keep your wake time and falling asleep time fairly consistent throughout the week
• Don’t take late afternoon or evening naps
• Save caffeinated beverages for the mornings
• Avoid screens for an hour or two before bedtime
• Engage in relaxing pre-bed activities such as journaling or yoga
• Use the restroom one last time before going to bed

Staying Resilient Throughout Menopause

Hormonal changes happening in your body during menopause can increase your sensitivity to stress. As less of the calming hormone, progesterone, is made, more of the stress hormone, cortisol is distributed throughout our body. Prioritizing stress management practices is especially important during the menopause transition and beyond. 

If you’re going through menopause, you have decades of experience dealing with sources of stress. Stop to consider what has helped you get through stressful times in the past in a healthy way. Here are some ideas:

• Meditation or prayer (depending on which feels most comfortable to you)
• Spending time outside, getting vitamin D
• Talking with friends who understand and care for you
• Journaling 
• Speaking with a mental health professional, such as a therapist

When times get tough, we often reach for junk food, forgo exercise and neglect sleep; however, this is when it’s most important that you eat healthy, get adequate physical activity and prioritize sleep.

Although we typically associate menopause with symptoms that we wish were avoidable, it’s important to remember that these symptoms are a natural part of aging. As you age, focus on your wisdom, your gifts, and your passions. Menopause is a beautiful time for reflecting on what we have learned from the past and deciding how we want to move into this next phase of life. The stereotypes of menopausal women are just that, stereotypes. You deserve to flourish throughout each of the stages of menopause and for decades to come. 

If you are struggling with menopause symptoms or have any vaginal bleeding after going through menopause, please see your Diana Health provider to discuss. You can book a visit with us online or call us at (629) 206-6858.