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How to Ease Menopausal Anxiety and Stress   

Nov 09, 2017

Been feeling more stressed and anxious recently?

You’re not alone.

According to one study, up to 61% of women are suffering with anxiety due to the peri-menopause or intense PMT.

If you’ve ever experienced it, you won’t need me to explain just how challenging this can be. You just don’t feel like yourself anymore.

You live in a constant state of nervousness, worry and fear ranging from mild to severe.

Your mood fluctuates erratically and you can feel fine one minute, then depressed and panicky the next. As if that wasn’t enough, you find it hard to drop off to sleep and wake throughout the night feeling ‘out of sorts’, even though every ounce of you craves a good night’s sleep.

At times you lash out angrily at people around you, you don’t feel so comfortable in social situations (and maybe even avoid them) and you feel constantly on edge.

You know this isn’t normal for you, but it seems that no matter what you do, you can’t seem to shift those intense feelings of anxiety.

So let me help. Let me tell you what’s going on. I’ll explain why you’ve started to feel like this recently and what the connection is to your hormones, and why anxiety doesn’t have to be a symptom of the menopause. Then I’ll share several powerful tricks you can use right away to feel better. Read on...

 

The peri-menopause and menopause can be a difficult time for many

Before we talk more about anxiety and the menopause, I want to first point out something very important- it’s normal to feel slightly anxious or worried as the menopause approaches. It’s a stressful time for many women, especially in the earlier stages, and you’re likely to feel anxious because this is a big change for your body and also your mind. You start considering many big questions about your youth, your sexuality, your attractiveness and so on. And all of this can be hard.

However, whilst it’s feel like this, when it becomes severe, life-changing or overwhelming, we need to do something about it.

Why you feel more anxious during the peri-menopause

So why does it happen? Well, it all comes down to our hormones

You’re far more likely to experience anxiety just before your period and during the peri-menopause because of the way your hormones can fluctuate at these times. This can reduce some of the chemical activities in your brain which control your moods, your emotions and your overall sense of wellbeing.

Women who are low in progesterone often suffer with anxiety-related issues and women with low oestrogen are also more likely to suffer with panic attacks too.

Of course, this has a massive impact on your entire life. It affects the way you feel about the world, yourself and your life. It affects your relationship with your partner, your kids and your colleagues at work and even your friends. It affects your body too- increasing your hot flushes, aches and pains, libido, fatigue, sleep patterns, eating habits and much more.

The thing is, none of this is a necessary part of the menopause. Just because so many women suffer from anxiety, stress and worry during the menopausal years, it doesn’t mean you have to just put up with it.

Here’s what you can do to beat menopausal anxiety and lift your mood

Start alleviating your symptoms of anxiety and worry by taking matters into your own hands and doing the following.

 1. Add omega 3s and good fats to your diet

Over the years, we’ve been so trained to think of fats as the enemy- everywhere you look you’ll see low-fat this and low-fat that, which just aren’t doing any favours to our hormones. Far from being something we want to avoid, our bodies actually need fats for optimal health.

Without enough of them, we can’t produce the hormones that our bodies need to run properly, our female hormones won’t work as they should, and our nervous system is far more likely to struggle when faced with stress or challenges.

Don’t get me wrong- I’m not for a moment suggesting that you head to the nearest takeaway or start stuffing deep-fried mars bars. You need to give your body healthy fats which contain everything you need to thrive.

I’d suggest that you start by including foods like avocados, nuts and seeds, oily fish, flaxseeds, chia seeds and hemp seeds.

It’s also very much worth considering supplementing with fish oils (if you’re not vegetarian or vegan, of course). Several studies have shown that these work well to relieve stress and anxiety and improve mood. Others also suggest that fish oils could help relieve other menopausal symptoms such as hot flushes.

If you decide to do down this road, make sure you select oils that are specifically high in omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA.

 

2. Balance your blood sugar

Even though you might think you need that mid-afternoon chocolate bar to lift you out of your energy slump and ‘cheer you up’, you most definitely don’t.

And actually, you could be doing yourself more harm than good. No, I’m not here to make you feel guilty about eating foods like this, but I do need to tell you that you might want to reduce the amount of high-sugar foods, caffeinated drinks and processed carbs that you’re consuming. This is because of the disruptive effect they’re having on your blood-sugar levels.

Every time you eat or drink one of these things, your body needs to release a hormone called insulin so you don’t get sick from too much sugar in your blood. As the sugar starts to become ‘neutralised’, your blood sugars start to drop and all too often, they sink below optimal levels, so you start craving more sugars to top yourself up again. And so the cycle continues- your blood sugar levels yo-yo and you keep eating those foods.

This is stressful for the body in many ways. Not only does the extra insulin needed interfere with the production and balance of your other hormones, when the yo-yo cycle is in full flow (or you drink caffeinated products) your cortisol levels are also likely to increase which further disrupt your finely tuned hormonal balance.

The answer is simple. Avoid processed sugars as much as possible (or at least reduce them), reduce your consumption of tea, coffee and energy drinks, and stick to slow-release wholefood carbs instead.

 

3. Eat foods that support adrenal glands

Your adrenal glands play an important role in helping you cope with any stress in your life, but they can struggle when anxiety is a major factor for you. Switch your diet to include more adrenal-friendly foods and you can help ease the burden and feel much better quickly.

Foods that are great for your adrenals include:

  • Grass-fed beef
  • Sardines
  • Ghee
  • Butter
  • Pumpkin seeds
  • Fresh vegetables  

4. Get more fresh air and natural light

Even though it’s getting chilly out there, that’s no excuse not to get outside and enjoy that fresh air and natural light. Your body needs natural light to feel good, so why not give it what it’s craving?

If you’re feeling stressed, low or as if Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is creeping in, just stepping outside and reconnecting with nature will help lift your mood on many levels.

Fresh air will blow away those cobwebs and help boost your immune system, the natural light will help regulate your body clock and sleep better at night, and the light will help boost that feel-good hormone serotonin and get a smile on your face.

 

5. Focus on getting more sleep

Yes, I know that getting sleep can be tricky once you have kids, or when the menopause comes along. In fact, it’s one of the most common problems I get asked about all the time. But if you want to get to grips with your anxiety, it’s important that you start making sleep a priority.

Sleep helps regulate all of your body’s processes; it’s the time when many of your hormones are produced, when your body rests and heals and when your brain decompresses from everything you’ve been exposed to during the day. Without enough of the stuff, you’ll just feel rubbish, you’ll lack energy and you’ll be far more irritable, anxious, stressed and your hormones are likely to be a mess. Here’s what I suggest you do.  

  • Get to bed earlier- before 10pm is brilliant
  • Switch off your screen at least an hour before bed (I’d advise 2 hours if you can manage it).
  • Drink chamomile tea- it’s not just an old wive’s tale- it has a proven sedative effect.
  • Learn a relaxation technique such as meditation or visualisation. 
  • Eat foods high in tryptophan to help switch off your brain ready for sleep. 
  • Try to maintain a regular sleep routine- get to bed and wake up the same time every day.

[For more on getting a better night's sleep, please join me for the next enrolment of my programme ‘Wake Up Feeling Refreshed’ - dates coming soon]

 

No-one can really understand what you are going through with your anxiety right now because it is very much a personal experience.

But please know that it will get better- together we can start making those tiny tweaks to your life that help relieve the tension, help you feel calmer and more in control with your life and start getting back to the girl you used to be.

If you’d like to know more about coping with your anxiety and feeling calmer and more in control the natural way, please join me for my FREE webinar on 30th November 2017….

Sign up details to come soon. 

 

Learn more about your hormones and the menopause by following me on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

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