Last month I did a video on Inspired Aging As A Triple Goddess where we took a close look at the Maiden, Mother, Crone Archetypes and stages in a woman’s life. This post is a follow-up to that, but focused more on the how to improve the quality of life during menopause and your crone years. This is because, as I shared in that post – I am currently transitioning through this stage and am having great success managing menopause naturally. I have a lot of helpful advice to share with you!
I’ve seen a lot of women make this transition before me, many of whom are my acupuncture clients. So I’m applying to myself what I’ve learned as I’ve worked with them. So far, I’m doing really well – physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually. I’m starting to miss periods and the only “bad” symptoms I’ve experienced are heavier than normal flow and some weight gain (both are not serious). I have not had any hot flashes. All in all, I’m pretty happy and am actually excited about this new stage in my life!
I have 5 tips to help you move into menopause and beyond with more ease, less resistance, and with more excitement! It is possible. And these tips address all layers of your being, so starting with the physical and going deeper to the spiritual, which you know I enjoy doing and I hope you enjoy it as well!
5 Tips For Managing Menopause Naturally And Improving Your Life During Your Crone Years
1. Detox Your Body And Home
Our bodies are very efficient about removing toxins through sweating, breathing, urination, and defecation. However, we are exposed to so many environmental toxins both outside and inside our homes, in our drinking water, in our food, not to mention pharmaceutical drugs that many ingest or inject in their bodies.
If you’re not trying to avoid this exposure and not giving your body extra support to release it, this can burden your body (your liver in particular). This buildup can become worse as you age. With time, you might start experiencing:
- indigestion
- constipation
- weight gain
- blood sugar issues
- fatigue
- headaches
- skin rashes/breakouts
- and more!
You may think these symptoms are just hormonal fluctuation and part of menopause. This assumption may make you feel you don’t have control. But you do actually have control when it comes to these symptoms and there’s much you can do to ease them. This is one reason why menopause is so different for women, because they all have different toxic loads.
In addition to avoiding toxins, first steps are to increase fiber (veggies) and water to flush. And you’ll want to make other changes as well, which I talk about in these posts:
Also, my Nourish To Heal Diet & Lifestyle Cleanse is also a wonderful place for you to start, where I have a guidebook and videos to support you through the program. It can be just a 7 day cleanse or you can choose to continue to eat & live this way. If you’re feeling great, why not keep it up! I also give you seasonal advice that will help you throughout the year, regardless of your age.
2. Stretch AND Strengthen Your Body
We just talked about movement being important for detoxifying the body, sweating through the skin (and also helps with peristalsis and defecation). Strength training in particular is going to keep your muscles strong which can atrophy quickly as you age when you’re not using them. This makes you more prone to injury, which you want to avoid, because recovery can also be harder in this stage of your life. Menopausal women may start to notice that they’re getting injured more and this may be the reason why.
If you’re already strength training, but not seeing results – you may need to change up your routine, as your body may get used to certain movements. Lift heavy weights, but don’t do too much (plenty of rest in between) or it may be too stressful (we’ll talk about that in the next step).
All this being said, strength training can create more energy stagnation in the body which you’ll experience as soreness. So along with strength training it is doubly important to stretch. Gentle yoga is perfect. I like to sandwich my day with a few mindful yoga postures in the morning, then in the evening before bed which helps me relax.
Places to focus on are reversing your seated posture: open chest/strong back, retracting/lengthening your neck, stretching your hip flexor/strengthening your butt, stretching hamstrings/strengthening the legs, and keeping the front & back core strong and mobile (twisting/side bending too).
If you’re looking for more guidance on this, I have a free video here on YouTube:
Meditative Yoga for Stiffness: Start Your Morning with Ease
I also have a bigger course with over 10 yoga classes that will keep you open, supple, and also help you manage important transitions in your life such as menopause.
Yoga And Self Healing Practices For Holistic Health
Acupuncture/acupressure will also help keep your body open and energy flowing so you remain pain-free. Consider finding a practitioner in your area. If you’re in the San Francisco Bay Area, I’d love to see you at my clinic in Belmont, CA.
3. Prioritize Relaxation To Manage Hormones And Weight
Everyone’s body changes as they age. However, weight gain during menopause is not inevitable. And you can lose weight, if you do gain. Prioritizing stress relief if key.
Insulin, cortisol (& other stress hormones) and thyroid hormone imbalances are way more responsible for weight gain than estrogen and progesterone fluctuations you experience in menopause. So this is another example of misunderstanding menopause symptoms. If you’re gaining weight – look at your stress, blood sugar regulation, and thyroid function first!
Start by trying to keep yourself in a parasympathetic state as much as possible (rest & digest as opposed to sympathetic – fight or flight). This will ensure that stress hormones are only released when you’re body actually needs them (during exercise). If they’re around when you’re not active, you will gain weight.
Try incorporating casual walks through your neighborhood, do relaxing yoga, knit, take baths, get massages. See if you can tone down the stress-inducing activities like lots of cardio, running around town, late nights working, or even watching too much news. Release unnecessary worry. Get plenty of sleep.
With regard to blood sugar, normal insulin response is achieved when you eat regular meals, limit snacking, balance your macronutrients (carbohydrates, protein, and fat w/ each meal), and stay active (a good idea is to walk after a meal).
Thyroid hormone regulation can also be managed by a more relaxed lifestyle and balanced diet. Your thyroid does not like to eat less, exercise more! That is really stressful. If you’re exercising more, you need to eat more. If you’re not exercising, eat less.
Relaxation is important for managing hormones, but this subject can be complex, confusing, and you may need more support. So it’s best that you’re also working with a natural health practitioner who can guide you.
4. Explore Deeper Healing
Many women experience resistance as they move into menopause and into their crone years. This can bring up new issues that require healing – not just physically, but mentally, emotionally and spiritually.
Or, old issues may start to surface. This is especially true if you’re moving from the Mother to Crone stage and your children are leaving home. In motherhood, it’s easy to stuff emotions and ignore painful experiences because your focus is on your children, on other people. So when they leave and you have more time with yourself, old issues may resurface and complicate how you adjust to aging.
It’s common for women to have these issues:
- an identity crisis (not know what to do after motherhood, what they want to be known for)
- to have issues with their self esteem/body image
- to start to worry about their health and fear death
The sooner you address healing these issues, the better your life will be for longer time! When you’re proactive and go beyond just treating surface-level menopause symptoms, you can prevent disease that can arise from emotional and energetic stagnation.
Who you see for healing depends on your comfort level and what you’re interested in. Many of you may wish to work with a psychotherapist, which is awesome. I’m a huge fan of traditional therapy.
If you’re open to deeper spiritual healing, know that I help women quite effectively in my holistic healing sessions with meditation, coaching, Ahai 7D energy healing, and many shamanic techniques.
5. Allow Yourself Grace and Peace
You are moving into a different stage of your life.
Can you allow yourself to shift and change?
Can you stop being so hard on yourself?
You are on your on unique journey, so try not to compare yourself to your friends or family in their crone years.
Can you shift your mindset to being curious about what life is going to bring up for you without the stress of expectations?
Allow yourself to be led by your higher self, by spirit, by God. Get closer to your authentic nature and focus on your own life path, and you’ll be more likely to experience peace with whatever comes.
I hope this guidance feels supportive to you while managing menopause naturally! Let me know what you think in the comments below. I’m happy to answer any questions you have or point you to resources. Well wishes friend!
