While for some people the Holidays is the happiest time of the year, it can also be one of the most stressful times. Activities and events like shopping for last-minute gifts, family vacations, adult children returning home, dinner with in-laws, just to name a few, can make us feel nervous and tense. If you are in perimenopause or in the first 4 years of menopause, your hormones can make you even more sensitive and vulnerable.
It doesn’t have to be that way. As we approach the holidays, make a mental note about the emotion-amplifying effect of your hormones and commit to regular self-care, I bet that it’ll be a fun and most enjoyable Holiday season.
Here are some ways to reduce stress and manage mood swings:
Hit up a HIIT class. Short bursts of high intensity interval training (HIIT) not only is more effective for weight management than endurance training, it also improves blood pressure, cholesterol, and insulin sensitivity. Interestingly, endurance training like running is associated with negative effect on the adrenal glands as longer periods of sustained exercise induce hypercortisol, which increase blood pressure and blood sugar, and suppresse progesterone production. Increased blood pressure and blood sugar are associated with anxiety and energy crashes, respectively, while progesterone is a natural sedative. If you know the holiday engagements typically overwhelm you, sign up for a HIIT class at your local gym.
Guided Meditation. Backed by a great number of research, the subtle therapeutic power of mind/body practices can be comparable and complementary to that of anti-anxiolytics and anti-depressants. There are several methods but for those who have a hard time settling down their minds, the easiest way to uncluttered the voices inside the head is to follow guided meditation. Many recordings are available online or in apps for purchase. There are also really great one for free on Youtube. My favourites are those recorded for children. They are easy to follow and channel my inner child inside. I personally like these Space to the Moon (https://youtu.be/mV9BBR1RoGg) and Body scan (https://youtu.be/aIC-Io441v4).
Happy New Year! If you’re feeling sluggish and unmotivated after the holidays, the first thing you may want to do is a post-holiday detox. Once you offload the excess calories that you had taken in, you will start to feel better overall and have energy to get moving again.
I’ve created a 5-day meal plan to help you ease back into your regular routine. Use it to uplift your mood and stay focused on your 2020 game plan.
Cutting back and caloric restriction typically backfire. It leaves you craving more and feeling deprived. This meal plan is designed to help you ease out of holiday mode so that you can get back on healthy eating without feeling hungry and tired.
The first day is geared towards stabilizing blood sugar. If you’ve been having treats over the holidays, going cold-turkey will leave you feeling hollow, jittery, shaky, and even irritable. It’ll then be particularly difficult to resist temptations. To wean off treats and sweets, gradual is key. I’ve incorporated this strategy to help you get over your sweets hangover.
The second day is geared towards regulating appetite, sleep and mood. The sudden cutback in calories and sweets affect serotonin and melatonin activity in the brain. Choosing the right foods will help you cope with cravings, insomnia, and mood swings.
On the third day, you should start to feel normal and perhaps not dragging your feet as much. The foods selected for this day optimize digestion and keep bowels moving, ensuring that you’re feeling lighter and not as bloated.
On days 4 & 5, the foods chosen are of detoxification profile, optimizing liver function. Incorporate these detoxifying foods 2-3 times a week consistently and very quickly you’ll notice – as a result of optimized liver function – brighter/clearer skin, effortless weight maintenance, less puffiness, and increased energy.
I was asked recently, “my sister gave me a detox kit for Christmas. She’s done the 12-day program herself before and wants me to join her this time. Should I do it? Is it safe? Do I need to do it? How often should I do it?”
Indeed, there are many detox supplements and dietary programs out there. Detoxification is a natural, biological process taking place in our bodies at any given moment.
Our body is innately equipped to eliminate unwanted substances whether they are toxins from the environment or metabolic waste from inside the body. Unless we are living in the wilderness unexposed to environmental toxins, there are always toxins entering our bodies.
Even then, there are pollutants in the air and water as plastic particles have been found on alpines and oceans.
Truthfully, the rates of environmental toxins entering the body and metabolic waste being created within the body exceed the rate that a human body is capable of processing. In this consumer-driven society, we are constantly exposed to bisphenol-A, pthalates, pesticides, preservatives, antibiotics, hormones, even heavy metals in some populations, to name just a few.
In addition to toxin overload which clogs the outpouring (toxin-elimination) valve, a less optimal health state and unhealthy habits make our body less effective in eliminating toxins and wastes.
For example, if we eat a diet high in sugar and saturated fat – creating inflammation – the inflammatory markers, like any waste product which need to be removed, can clog the outpouring valves.
For another example, when going through menopause, the increasing level of cortisol and estrone can also clog the outpouring valves. Essentially, any unbalanced state of health burdens the outpouring valves, making our natural detox mechanism less effective.
In that context, a high-quality detox supplement program gently enhances the function of the organs that are responsible for detoxification, and an impressionable detox diet provides essential nutrients critical to supporting the normal function of detox organs – skin, lungs, intestines, liver, and kidneys.
Each detox organ has their unique tasks when it comes to getting rid of toxins, and they may work independently or collaboratively with each other depending on the biochemical properties of toxins/wastes that need to be processed.
Make careful considerations when buying and trying detox kits. They are not one-size-fits-all. For instance, if a program that only optimize the liver and not the kidneys nor the intestines, one may end up feeling very tired and lethargic from the program.
I have seen acne and skin lesions manifesting as a result of such imbalanced detox program. Similarly, a program overly focused on the intestines may increase the number of bowel movements, allowing the user to feel lighter and less bloated, but underneath the surface is dehydration and low blood pressure in progress, putting the user at risk of headaches, dizziness, fainting, and even heart distress.
Go low and slow when trying out any detox kits, and do your research beforehand by recruiting the help of a reliable healthcare provider. I get my patients to bring in their detox kit if they are interested in starting a new one, and we go through the ingredients and dosages to see whether the program is the right fit for their health at that time. What worked for your sister or your best friend may not be suitable for you. Let’s look at some detox truths and myths:
#1 It’s normal to feel lethargic on detox programs
Myth. Feeling tired or having a mild headache on the first 3-4 days happens to some people and is normal. These symptoms are a result of toxins stored in tissues and fat cells being pulled out and re-entering into the circulatory system, waiting to be eliminated via the detox organs.
When these toxins float around in the circulatory system, they can irritate neighboring tissues and organs, as a result, the individual going through the detox program can feel tired and headache-y.
As well, some detox diets dramatically reduce carbohydrate consumption and demand for greater fibre intake. If an individual was previously eating high carbs diet, the sudden change without adequate blood sugar balancing support can bring on mild hypoglycaemia, making the individual feeling tired and sluggish.
While these symptoms are normal, it’s certainly not normal to feel lethargic. Being on a detox program shouldn’t require you to take time off from work or be bedridden. If that occurs, the program may be too strong for you, lack the proper supportive component, or may simply be inadequate for you.
#2 Getting loose stool or diarrhea during detox means the program is working
Myth. Getting these symptoms simply means that there are laxatives contained in the program. It gives you the illusion that you’re purging something, but it may not actually rid toxins stored in tissues and fat cells. In fact, if you are getting multiple bowel movements of that consistency, you are losing fluids and electrolytes.
This can cause arrhythmia and disrupt heart contractions (dangerous!). A good detox program ensures that you have 1-2 bowel movements per day and that the stools are well-formed of medium brown colour.
#3 Detox program restores liver damage caused from binge drinking
Myth. While a detox program can upregulate liver detox function, it is not meant to “save” the liver. The liver can only be healed by its own regeneration, under optimal condition, ie. devoid of heavy drinking and unhealthy dietary habits.
Mind you, one single binge drinking occasion is associated with brain shrinkage, early onset dementia, and alzheimer’s – brain damage not reversible by detox.
#4 Detox can be done as frequent as one likes
Myth. Since the body is already equipped with self-cleansing function, it’s not necessary to facilitate this process all the time. On a daily basis, if we lead a lifestyle with as minimal toxin exposure as possible, plus a balanced diet rich in greens and fibre, adequate amount of water intake, and regular exercise routine, we would already be doing the maintenance work required to keep up our detox mechanism. Implementing a high quality supplement-based detox program every 6 to 8 months is all you need.
Years ago, I accompanied my mom to go see her doctor. She desperately needed help with sleep. After describing some other symptoms such as muscle fatigue and general achiness, the doctor suggested that she was starting to enter menopause. My mom was so offended and upset, because at that time she was only 45! She didn’t identify with the diagnosis and thought that the doctor didn’t do a thorough investigation.
Whether the doctor was right is not what I want to discuss here.
What’s more important here is women’s attitude towards menopause. What’s your own attitude towards your own menopause? A systemic review by Institute of Psychiatry in King’s College London revealed that individual’s attitude towards her own menopause is a determinant of her own menopausal experience. If you believe that you’re going to have a life-altering, positive journey in menopause, then you will!
Calgary Menopause Wellness 