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ABOUT CONSTITUTIONAL MEDICINE
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Menopause is a change, not a disease, and there are a number of ways to help navigate that change a lot more easily. Each woman has distinct differences but there is also a lot of common ground and what's reliably been seen to help the most is shared here. Much of what's written in this article is entirely suitable for a person to work through themselves but, especially if things are quite bad, or you just know that you need further help, then there may be a great deal of benefit to you to go to whatever lengths necessary to find a good herbalist or truly holistic practitioner to guide you on to a safe and strong treatment program. There's a short write-up to suggest how you might go about finding such a person here Hormone replacement therapy, HRT is undergoing a resurgence in popularity and there are many vocal advocates for it being safe to use for short periods in low doses. A report that highlights the issues of concern is linked here
The speed and ease of the changeover process, from the ovaries to the adrenals, has a major influence over how long and how difficult is the menopause. Our adrenal glands are pivotally involved in our stress- responses and, for many women, it is an accumulation of adrenal strain and fatigue that brings about a much harder 'change' Stress, and our responses to it, is a big subject in itself, but before anything else, there are two herbs that are of paramount value to supporting the adrenals take up their new role, they are Withania somnifera and Panax Ginseng.
Withania is a key herb from Ayurvedic medicine, read more about it here Panax Ginseng has particularly potent effects on the whole system's response to stress. It is not a herb that suits everyone but, when appropriate, can make an enormous difference to the adrenal changeover, more here
Check your records to see what your number was and, if above 2, consider doing some further testing with a thermometer at home. This process is described, along with what to do if it is a problem, here
If the woman is being plagued by hot flushes and excess sweating then one of the first remedies to try is Sage. Sage can be great to get some immediate relief whilst you are working with some off the deeper acting but slower working hormonal herbs as discussed next. Some women will respond to much lower doses but, you might need to be prepared to make it very strong the first time to be sure if it will work or not. For a strong medicinal tea of Sage take up to 2 heaped tablespoons (this would equate to between 8-10 grams of dried Sage, and you would need about double that amount of the fresh herb) and place in a saucepan with about a little over half a litre of water. A heaped tsp of Sage leaf is about 1.5 grams, so you could use 6 heaped tsps to get around the same amount. Bring to the boil, cover it, then leave for another 15 minutes before straining the tea, then allow the tea to cool to room temperature, or even refrigerate it. The extra heat from briefly boiling the water helps to extract some of the active constituents in the Sage and, so long as it is well covered, the important essential oils that come out in the steam will condense back into the liquid tea as it cools. For some people with excess sweating this tea will be fine to drink at room temperature but for others it will be even better if it is chilled right down by being placed in the fridge. For some people a small and regular dose through the day will clearly work better and for others it will make no difference to their response if they just have the tea in two or three large doses. Be guided by your own body and what makes you respond the best. It is okay to add some honey or maple syrup to taste. Note that this recipe is a way to make a very strong preparation of Sage. The idea is to start at the maximum dose and, assuming it works, you then have the happy problem of being able to reduce the amount to see if you still get as much benefit. Most women who are taking this to help menopausal sweating will end up only needing a smaller dose, but I recommend starting at the top of the dose range anyway. It won't hurt and it means you quickly get to find out if it will help! In practice, Sage in often given in tincture form where we can easily adjust the dose up or down as needed. Some people respond to quite small doses e.g. just 2 or 3 mls in a day, whereas others might need 3 times that much to see an obvious response. More is not always better. The right dose is the one that works. You must be prepared to experiment, both going up and down, to see what works best for you personally, more about Sage here
Again, it must be taken in sufficient doses to get the true action of the remedy but when taken correctly the effect on an agitated nervous system can be profound, more here
Again, reasonably significant doses may be required to provide sufficient amounts of the hormonal precursors that are within the plant, more here
Compare this attitude to our Western worship of youth and aversion to age and you can see a large part of the reason why women in traditional cultures do not associate the menopause with suffering as we do in the Western world. We often talk as if we like change but when people aren't well they would rather that change just left them alone! However, there may not be a choice about this when it comes to the menopause, it is not just a physical change that is happening but a profoundly internal one as well, and there may be no getting around the fact that if you resist a necessary change then it tends to persist all the more! There are some further and quite detailed thoughts on emotional healing in this site that may be of some help in this regard, they are found here
Finally, you might benefit from learning about your constitution to know what kind of foods, herbs, exercises etc. will work especially well for your health in general. Constitutional health is an old and fascinating way of understanding our differences. There's a brief introduction here and a more detailed section on working out which constitution you are here
Please understand that I cannot personally advise you without seeing you in my clinic. |
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© 2011 R.J.Whelan Ltd