Life After Menopause...the GOOD the BAD and the DELICIOUS

I am an early riser. I wake with the birds and I think most Nurses are the same.We became accustomed to the 6.30am bedside starts during our training and it has been a habit ever since. The late shifts and regular night duty were a great intro to the early days of parenting, with the tiniest cry causing me to leap out of bed in complete darkness, trip over the ugg boots, grab a gown, pick up the bub, make my way to the couch, complete a feed and be back in bed asleep within 30 mins without another soul in the house being disturbed! Now things are very different....We are empty nesters, so I could sleep in if I desired but I do my best work early so am still up at sparow’s fart! Portia my beloved Kelpie and I head out to clock up our 8,000 steps and then it’s off to teach classes or see private clients.

But this morning, sitting with my coffee, I’m thinking about this sleep thing. It is such an important pillar of health. My clients will often complain about sleep or lack of it and I will say ”Oh I’m so lucky I sleep like a log” but on reflection that’s not entirely true. For the last few years, there are nights, maybe once or twice a week when a sound disturbs me, my bladder demands I rise from the bed and on my return to the pillow I can be awake for two hours pondering my life, and the most frustrating thing?my life is crazy good,I’m so grateful, love my kids, adore my grandchildren, GO BACK TO SLEEP! When did that start? I’m 65 as I’m writing this and thinking back... it was yep -Menopause. Even 7 yrs later some of that change of life stuff persists. A few tips that can help with this Sleep thing include developing a night time ritual. For me it’s, *No caffeine after 12 midday *Reduce spicy food at the evening meal *One glass of wine weekends only(any more than that and I wake with the 2am sweats) *No screen time 2 hrs before bed unless you are wearing blue light blocking glasses (Your body can not tap into it’s natural circadian rhythm and up regulate Melatonin to induce sleep if you’re hanging in a space as bright as daylight staring at a white screen till 10pm) *Science has shown that our most regenerative sleep occurs between 10pm and 2am so hit the sack at 9.50pm. *Try sleeping naked...No? OK well just a very light Doona then to avoid the power surges(hot flashes)at night. *Reduce stress and worry if possible.Try relaxation techniques or develop a meditation practice before bed. Calm or Headspace are great Apps. But wait there’s more! Our changing hormonal environment can create extra havoc. Weight gain, fatigue, mood swings and brain fog are common problems around menopause. I have never suffered from any of these, due I believe, to adopting a nourishing ancestral diet and movement practice 15 yrs ago. New European research published in 2018 followed 70 post-menopausal women for two years and suggests that the Paleo Diet which excludes all grains, refined sugars, dairy and processed foods resulted in a more significant reduction in abdominal fat than the Nordic Diet.The women lost on average 9kg with the weight loss still stable at the 2 year follow-up. Lowering your glucose load by ditching most of the grains, sugars and starches will lower your Insulin, encourage your body to burn your stored fat for energy and reduce inflammation. When you also remove the inflammatory industrial seed oils (manufacturers call them vegetable oils to make them sound healthy)and replace them with the good natural fats in oily fish, grass-fed meats, avocados, olives and extra virgin olive oil, your mind and memory will be sharper, your energy will skyrocket, and mood will be more balanced.

In the last 2 yrs I have reduced Carbs even more and added full fat dairy back onto my menu to increase healthy fats.Who doesn’t love Goat cheese with crackers, berries with cream,Greek yogurt with macadamias and sugar free cheesecake on special occasions....so much delicious food that I love and it loves me back! When it comes to movement, walking is one of the best anti-ageing exercises.Throw your legs out of bed and slide into your trainers every morning if possible, go outside and look into the sun to prime your body for the day ahead.Lift a few heavy things add some pushups and you’re good! Yoga is my lifeline, it keeps me physically strong, emotionally balanced and a much nicer person!

Other not so easy to chat about Menopause stuff like bladder incontinence, vaginal dryness and low libido can be helped naturally.Talk to your medical professional or email me and I can refer you to the best help.

Thanks for reading and keep rocking LeanCo LoCarb