Changes here can make you feel better and set you on a path to decades of wellness.
While it’s good news that feeling better can come from things we can do, change is hard, particularly amid busy lives. So start small. Make it doable. Can you add in a seven-minute workout to your day before you shower? Can you fit in 5 minutes of breathing or meditation in a parking lot or pick up line? What about resolving to start a hydration streak (see #1 under food and drink below)? For those with sleep challenges: try going to bed and waking up at the same time each day. Invest in you — one change at a time!
Improve Perimenopause Symptoms with these Self-Care Mantras
FOOD & DRINK
1. Stay hydrated. Many things go awry when we don’t stay hydrated; headaches and constipation to name a few. Many people have debunked the 8 glasses per day theory. However, busy lives can make it hard to remember to drink enough water. And, there are contexts (e.g. hot weather, exercise) that call for increased intake. Many reasons to pay attention to your water intake.
2. Assess the impact of food: your body, your guide. Take notice of how you feel after eating certain foods. This can change as we age. Which foods make you feel clearheaded versus foggy? Which foods bring on a nap 45 minutes later?
Our experience: We did a 21-day elimination cleanse — a program designed to eliminate potentially irritating foods in order to repair the digestive system. It gave us the chance to see how we felt with no gluten, sugar, dairy, caffeine, and alcohol. We didn’t buy any of the powders or supplements sold by the program. After three days without sugar, we felt great! It taught us how much of an impact food can have on energy and how you feel.
3. Reduce alcohol intake. This is no fun, we know! But here are a few reasons to consider it: alcohol has been shown to increase estrogen levels.2 If your estrogen is high already, alcohol could worsen your symptoms. Second, when you consume alcohol, your liver immediately turns its attention to expelling the toxin from your system. The combination of excess estrogen and alcohol make your liver work overtime. We have found that we now have a harder time metabolizing alcohol, particularly red wine. Is this true for you? Lastly, alcohol interferes with good sleep which becomes a challenge for many at this time of life.
4. Monitor caffeination, particularly for those experiencing increased anxiety. Caffeine can exacerbate anxious feelings.3,4
When I really stick to “clean” eating (and drinking – i.e. no alcohol!), my perimenopause symptoms are sooooo much better. I can’t believe what a MAJOR impact food has!WLB Community Member
MIND & BODY
1. Move, move move. So many reasons to keep moving. Note: If you haven’t been exercising, ask your doctor what kind of exercise would be best for you to get started.
- Exercise can promote sleep and lower extra estrogen that makes you feel crappy!5,6,7 Read this article on guidelines for midlife women. Hear what Dr. Richardson has to say about exercise in the video below.
- Improve symptoms. You will be amazed at the positive impact any type of regular exercise can have on improving symptoms.8 Try something new to shake things up, like flow yoga, cardio boxing, West African dance, or interval training. Pressed for time? Try a 7-minute workout.
2. Devise a sleep strategy. Although sleep hygiene is important too, what we mean here is to be proactive about your sleep just like you are about your meals, your exercise, your schedule, and your social life. Make it a priority. Leave enough time. Try to go to bed at the same time each night and wake up at the same time each morning. Don’t squeeze it in around other things. If you are experiencing night waking, allow for a little more sleep time. A video about sleep.
3. Add a mindfulness practice to your life to combat the increased irritability, anxiety, and reactivity that can accompany perimenopause. This can include meditation (seated, walking), breathing or yoga. Really anything that brings you into the present moment will help — for some, it’s running or another aerobic activity. Many studies show the benefit of mindfulness for symptoms.9,10, 11 Some recent research shows that a regular meditation practice can lead to a reduced risk of inflammation-related disease.12,14 Other research shows that meditation has a positive effect on cell aging.13,14
Find a deeper dive into mindfulness with specific recommendations here.
TELL US: WHAT HAS WORKED FOR YOU?
I have switched to a vegetarian diet but still eat eggs, fish, and shrimp. I meditate and do yoga 3 times per week and I have no symptoms of menopause. I stopped eating before 8 pm (no easy feat!) and try to be in bed by 9:30-10pm (even if I am not sleeping). I now take walks after dinner and this helps.WLB Community Member
If self-care type changes don’t improve your perimenopause symptoms, seek healthcare.
You deserve to feel well, don’t suffer!
REFERENCES
2. Jan Gill. The effects of moderate alcohol consumption on female hormone levels and reproductive function . Alcohol and Alcoholism, Volume 35, Issue 5, 1 September 2000, Pages 417–423.
3. Lara, DR. Caffeine, mental health, and psychiatric disorders. J Alzheimers Dis. 2010;20 Suppl 1:S239-48
4. Broderick P, Benjamin AB. Caffeine and psychiatric symptoms: a review. J Okla State Med Assoc. 2004 Dec;97(12):538-42.
5. Kathryn H. Schmitz, Hui Lin, Mary D. Sammel, Clarissa R. Gracia, Deborah B. Nelson, Shiv Kapoor, Tracey L. DeBlasis and Ellen W. Freeman. Association of Physical Activity with Reproductive Hormones: The Penn Ovarian Aging Study. DOI: 10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-07-0061 Published October 2007
6. DA Kossman, NI Williams, SM Domchek, MS Kurzer, J. Stopfer, and KH Schmitz. Exercise lowers estrogen and progesterone levels in premenopausal women at high risk of breast cancer. J Appl Physiol (1985). 2011 Dec; 111(6): 1687–1693.
7. Kaoutar Ennour-Idrissi, Elizabeth Maunsell and Caroline Diorio. Effect of physical activity on sex hormones in women: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Breast Cancer Research 2015. 17:139
8. Mayo Clinic article on exercise during perimenopause.
9. Wong C, Yip BH-K, Gao T, et al. Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) or Psychoeducation for the Reduction of Menopausal Symptoms: A Randomized, Controlled Clinical Trial. Scientific Reports. 2018;8:6609. doi:10.1038/s41598-018-24945-4.
10. Marcelo C. Garcia; Elisa H. Kozasa; Sergio Tufik; Luiz Eugênio A. M. Mello; Helena Hachul. The effects of mindfulness and relaxation training for insomnia (MRTI) on postmenopausal women: a pilot study. Menopause. 25(9):992–1003, SEP 2018. DOI: 11.1097/GME.0000000000001118.PMID: 29787483. Issn Print: 1072-3714. Publication Date: 2018/09/01
11. Gordon JL, Halleran M, Beshai S, Eisenlohr-Moul TA, Frederick J, Campbell TS. Endocrine and psychosocial moderators of mindfulness-based stress reduction for the prevention of perimenopausal depressive symptoms: A randomized controlled trial. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2021 Aug;130:105277. doi: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2021.105277. Epub 2021 May 19. PMID: 34058560.
12. Buric I, Farias M, Jong J, Mee C, Brazil IA. What Is the Molecular Signature of Mind-Body Interventions? A Systematic Review of GeneExpression Changes Induced by Meditation and Related Practices. Front Immunol. 2017 Jun 16;8:670
13. Elissa Epel, PhD.,* Jennifer Daubenmier, Ph.D., Judith T Moskowitz, Ph.D., Susan Folkman, PhD., and Elizabeth Blackburn, PhD. Can meditation slow rate of cellular aging? Cognitive stress, mindfulness, and telomeres. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2009 Aug; 1172: 34–53.
14. Bhasin MK, Dusek JA, Chang BH, Joseph MG, Denninger JW, et al. (2017) Relaxation Response Induces Temporal Transcriptome Changes in Energy Metabolism, Insulin Secretion and Inflammatory Pathways. PLOS ONE 12(2): e0172873.