Menopause — A Natural Approach
- Fanny
- 4 days ago
- 6 min read
Today, menopause is talked about as though it were a disease!
In reality, it is a transition, a life stage that unfolds over several years and gradually brings hormonal changes.
These hormonal changes lead the female body to, among other things, the end of fertility.
A phenomenon similar to menopause exists in men — it is called andropause.
It is entirely possible to go through menopause without unpleasant symptoms and to fully embrace this stage of life.
The Different Stages of Menopause
Just as puberty in adolescents unfolds gradually in stages, menopause also takes place more or less discreetly in several stages.
Pre-menopause: hormonal changes begin, but menstruation continues.
Cycles may gradually shift: increasingly irregular periods, very heavy bleeding, absent periods in some cycles, hot flashes, etc.
Then menopause itself: menstruation stops, and various consequences may arise.
The hormonal situation stabilises.
Menstruation allowed the body to eliminate certain waste and toxins — the body then loses this outlet, and sometimes uses other strategies to compensate, such as perspiration.
Like all life stages and hormonal transitions, menopause is a completely normal and natural phenomenon.
A woman who reached menopause in perfect health, complete balance, and general harmony, would experience little or no discomfort.
The discomforts associated with menopause are a reflection of a general imbalance — and so it is important to work on this overall imbalance, on each person's vital terrain, to restore harmony and reduce symptoms.
The Best Natural Treatment for Menopause
The best prevention and the best natural treatment for menopause is to look after your vital terrain!
As always, a harmonious organism in overall balance will allow the body to avoid or at least limit these well-known discomforts.
Diet, herbs, teas for the terrain, exercise, breathing, sleep, rest, digestion, elimination... all of this will help a woman live a serene menopause.
Psycho-emotional support is equally essential.
The image of the ideal woman in Western culture is a young, active woman who never seems to age!
Women in films or TV series rarely pass fifty — they always look radiant, with no wrinkles, no grey hair!
Women over 50 are hidden away, while men enjoy a more positive image at this stage of life, with more media presence for several more years.
Women who are mothers often reach this stage just as their children are leaving the nest.
Having typically devoted more time to their children, they are more affected than fathers by their departure.
One could say that a part of them loses their mission — and if they haven't anticipated this, it can be an emotionally intense and difficult period.
Staying active, doing things we enjoy, socialising, moving, exercising, eating well, sleeping well... all of this contributes to a woman's balance at this stage of life.
She gradually becomes a wise woman — one with experience who can pass that experience on.
This is how older people were seen in traditional societies: as sages with knowledge and lived experience.
It is also worth learning to recognise your cyclical nature even after menstruation stops.
Many women never had the chance to discover the power of their cycles during their fertile years.
But it's never too late — and it is very interesting to learn to identify your personal rhythms so you can adapt your life and activities to your energy and individual vibration.
Natural Ways to Support This Transition
As with everything, the best prevention is to take care of your vital terrain.
It is about seeking a holistic balance — harmony of the body and harmony of the being.
— Taking care of your body:
Eating well, moving, breathing, staying in motion, gently building your adaptive capacities without putting the body under strain, respecting yourself, listening to yourself, nourishing yourself.
— Taking care of your emotions:
Welcoming the waves of emotions that pass through us each day, embracing them and perhaps sometimes trying to understand them.
— Taking care of your energy:
Going into nature, surrounding yourself with people whose vibration resonates with yours, freeing yourself from what drains your energy, feeling aligned with your soul and your reason for being.
Addressing Menopause Symptoms Naturally
First of all, in natural health, we don't fight against symptoms!
This is not a war — we try to balance and harmonise the body.
We always look for root causes, and so we work on the vital terrain to address menopausal symptoms.
These symptoms may or may not appear: some women experience many difficulties during menopause, while others have no discomfort at all and go through this transitional period very serenely.
This is not inevitable. If the body manifests disturbances, it is sending a message.
Our task is to learn to understand and decode these messages. Symptoms may include:
— hot flashes
— fatigue
— weight changes
— dry skin, dry eyes and vaginal dryness
— low mood, periods of depression or low spirits
— lack of energy and vitality
— menstrual cycle disturbances in pre-menopause: heavy periods, pain, irregular cycles
— premenstrual syndrome: pain, breast tenderness, irritability, mood changes
— sleep disturbances — hair loss
The best way to limit these symptoms is to take care of yourself preventively: eat well, exercise, sleep well, tend to your emotions, limit stress, develop a regular physical practice.
In naturopathy, we use many techniques and plants to ease the symptoms of peri-menopause.
Herbal teas, baths, essential oils, specific foods, treatments, body care, cleanses, detox. All with the aim of supporting the body during this sensitive period of transition.
Acupuncture and Menopause: Is It Effective?
Acupuncture is interesting because it works deeply on the body's energetic circulation.
As we've seen, the ideal is a preventive and global approach.
Symptomatic approaches — whether conventional or alternative — only aim to compensate for symptoms.
This is generally not very lasting, even if sometimes effective in the short term.
In a holistic approach during menopause, women generally notice significant improvement in their main symptoms within a few weeks — sometimes longer.
And if symptoms persist, we use other techniques to continue relieving discomfort and, above all, to seek a complete balance that restores joy of living and vitality — to be fulfilled and do what you love.
Menopause could be a liberation! No more contraception concerns, children are growing, you find time for yourself — you can do the things you've always wanted to do... as long as you feel well!
Most natural remedies tend to copy medical treatments — for instance by providing phyto-oestrogenic plants. But we find ourselves once again in symptomatic approaches.
Herbs, teas, hydrosols, and certain exercises can relieve specific symptoms.
We can use them alongside a deeper underlying treatment to ease discomfort.
A Closer Look at Some Natural Treatments
— Herbs: I find herbs to be very useful allies. I readily recommend them during menopause — but always holistically, not symptomatically.
I favour whole, natural teas and plants over extracts. I am far from convinced that 2 miracle capsules a day will solve your problems.
Take charge of yourself — seek support to find, rediscover, or maintain complete balance!
Natural treatments must always be personalised and adapted to your vital terrain.
Not every woman needs to take sage, for example.
— Acupuncture: here again, acupuncture, homeopathy, traditional Chinese medicine, Ayurveda, and naturopathy — applied holistically — all seem to me to be very good approaches.
Unfortunately, they are again too often applied symptomatically.
— The Ayurvedic and Chinese approach: this is another way of addressing health. Take the example of hot flashes. In Ayurveda and traditional Chinese medicine, they are considered an excess of fire or heat in the body.
— Fasting: cleansing and regenerating the body seems very appropriate — as long as fasting takes place in a suitable framework and with proper guidance, especially for the first fasts.
Too often I receive calls from people in distress who have fasted in a group but find themselves completely lost when they return home.
Cleansing the body, relieving it of overloads and toxins, generally allows it to find better overall balance.
It's important to first verify that the body can abstain from food without difficulty. Thorough preparation, taking your time, and guiding the refeeding phase are essential.
— Detox: you can also do a detox period without necessarily fasting.
A few days of raw foods, a mono-diet, a juice cleanse... there are many ways to give your body a break.
It's truly useful to be guided to determine priorities, the best approach, and to adapt the detox as you go according to the effects and symptoms felt. I organise fasting and detox retreats in Portugal.
In Summary
— Take care of yourself preventively: drink quality water, eat healthy, fresh, vital foods, exercise, move, surround yourself with positive people, go out, enjoy life!
— Cleanse your body regularly for better overall balance, to support good liver, hormonal, digestive, and urinary function.
— Anticipate this period: slow down stressful activities, give yourself time to relax and welcome your emotions.
— Seek support from a naturopath or professional who will help you gain perspective and choose natural solutions that suit you.
— Trust yourself, trust nature, trust life — and give yourself the best conditions to live in full health, happy and vital!
I accompany you in individual consultations and retreats on this path to full health and balance.
Read more
Contact: fannynaturo@mailo.com
Comments