When I was a pre-teen, my mother was going through menopause. I didn’t have any idea, of course, that was far off my radar and didn’t come up for discussion in our family.
But I do recall it making a strong impression the few times she came home and her symptoms being brushed aside by the doctor. Something involving some choice words for him. “I can’t stand that doctor,” she would say. “If he tells me one more time ‘It’s just your hormones…’ or ‘You’re just at that age…’ and then quite possibly a mention to throw him off a cliff. Maybe I’ve added that last memory retrogressively, but that was the general sentiment.
I had no idea 20 years later, I’d be hearing the same complaint from my own clients.
Now I have much more appreciation of how frustrating it is to walk away from a visit to your primary care physician feeling unheard, feeling like – at best, they sympathize but they don’t have any resources for you – or worse – feeling dismissed completely as if any concern that crops up during a woman’s menopause decade can be explained away because of that.
Vibrant, smart, beautiful women are still being told that their doctors don’t have any help for them beyond synthetic hormone replacement therapy, and when they show concerns for taking that because of the proven side effects they are met with a shrug.
“It’s just your hormones” all over again. And I’ve been hearing hundreds of women, one after another, tell me this common experience for the last 12 years in clinic. So nothing has changed about the general vibe towards women’s health in a generation?
This is not a pill I can swallow.
I know from physician colleagues it’s equally frustrating to not have the tools to offer to patients seeking help. The fact is, there seems to be a huge gap in having good support for women experiencing imbalances during menopause that won’t make you significantly more prone to problems with your heart health, bone health and breast health in the long term.
Luckily there is a better way.
I’m very proud to be part of the growing revolution that is changing this, that cares enough about my group of clients to dedicate my efforts to finding solutions (oh, and, by the way, about changing the conversations & stigma around menopause & possibilities available to me when it’s my turn!)
You CAN address your hormone imbalance symptoms naturally. I see it every day in my clinic. Women are taking back their experience of changing hormones, transforming their relationship to stress, challenging the mainstream thoughts of hormone change and proving to themselves and their fellow ‘Pausers that you don’t have to be knocked about even if you struggle with rather extreme symptoms.
Over the years, I’ve been drawn into working with clients in their menopause decade because they inspire me. Once we work together to reduce the physical symptoms, something much more interesting is unearthed: they see so clearly their potential turn into action and joy and they feel more aligned than ever before. They come into their own.
Ayurveda seems to be a good fit because approaches a woman as a whole person, not a set of symptoms, and can help a woman navigate the decade of change on many different levels, from physical to spiritual.
So my advice when you get a vibe from your doctor that “It’s just your hormones…”:
Keep searching until you find someone who is going to take your concerns seriously and has experience helping people through them. There ARE natural solutions for the discomfort you are feeling. Ayurveda is one of many effective traditional medicines that has great success recalibrating the hormone balance during the menopause decade. Ask around, advocate for yourself, get into conversations and don’t hesitate to reach out. I’m always happy to have a quick conversation to determine whether we’re a good fit, whether I can help you and otherwise help connect you.
Learn more about my program, Menopause By Design and make sure you’re on track to have your best menopause decade possible.
