How to Survive, and Actually Enjoy Summer During Perimenopause Without Melting Down
- Brainz Magazine
- Jun 12
- 6 min read
Written by Charlotte Cheetham, Gut Health Coach
Charlotte Cheetham is an expert coach in Gut Health for menopausal women. She is the founder of Lifeinsghts and aims to help all menopausal women one by one to heal their symptoms, which are preventing them from living a normal life. She has also written articles for Healthieyoo magazine about gut health, menopause and psychobiotics.
Hot flashes, mood swings, and disrupted sleep can make summer feel like a season of survival during perimenopause. But it doesn’t have to be that way. With a few simple adjustments, you can stay cool, feel balanced, and actually enjoy the sunshine without the meltdown.
The summer season no one talks about
Summer’s supposed to be fun, right?
Sunshine, holidays, family BBQs, floaty dresses, Aperol spritzes.
But when you're in perimenopause, summer can feel like a pressure cooker of symptoms.
Hot flushes that hit like a heatwave on top of a heatwave.
Irritability that bubbles over at the worst possible moments.
Body image struggles when you can’t stand the thought of swimwear.
Food triggers that leave you bloated and uncomfortable after every social event.
Sleepless nights in a sweaty bedroom, making everything feel worse by morning.
If this is you, you are not alone and you are not broken.
The truth is, perimenopause turns your body into a delicate balancing act, and summer only turns up the volume on the chaos.
The good news? With a few targeted shifts in your gut, lifestyle, and mindset, you can feel cool, calm, and in control and actually enjoy your summer.
Let’s dive into how.
1. Understanding why summer feels harder in perimenopause
Perimenopause is a time of hormonal change, particularly fluctuations in oestrogen and progesterone. These hormones don’t just influence your periods; they also affect:
Your internal thermostat
Your stress response
Your digestion and water retention
Your mood, sleep and metabolism
And in summer, all of these areas are already under stress, think higher temperatures, longer days, disrupted routines, social obligations, more alcohol and sugar, and disrupted sleep. So:
Your brain feels frazzled.
Your body overheats.
Your gut is overloaded.
Your sleep suffers.
It’s not all in your head; it’s happening on a cellular level.
But you don’t need to hide away until September. Let me show you how to navigate this season your way.
2. Hot flushes, sweats & summer heat: How to stay cool (literally)
If you’re already experiencing hot flushes, summer can feel unbearable. But you can lower the intensity and frequency of these surges.
What helps:
Hydration with electrolytes: Don’t just drink more water; you need minerals to absorb it. Try coconut water, add a pinch of Himalayan salt to your bottle, or use electrolyte tablets (without sugar).
Herbal helpers: Sage tea is a natural remedy for hot flushes. Peppermint and chamomile also cool the body and support digestion.
Dress with strategy: Light, breathable fabrics like cotton and bamboo make a huge difference. Keep a cooling spray in your bag and opt for layers you can peel off easily.
Reduce hot flush triggers: Alcohol, caffeine, spicy foods, and sugar can all trigger vasodilation (your blood vessels expanding = hot flush). Keep a food and symptom diary to identify your personal triggers.
Support your nervous system: The more stressed you are, the more your hypothalamus (your body’s thermostat) misfires. Daily breathwork, grounding, and magnesium-rich foods (leafy greens, seeds, dark chocolate) can calm your flushes from the inside out.
3. Mood swings & meltdowns: The summer rage is real
One minute you’re fine. The next, someone asks what’s for dinner and you want to throw a fork across the garden.
This isn’t just emotional instability, it’s brain chemistry.
Low oestrogen = lower serotonin. And high cortisol = more irritability, anxiety, and reactivity. Add heat, noise, and holiday stress into the mix, and it’s no wonder you feel like you’re losing it.
What helps:
Balance blood sugar: Mood swings are often blood sugar swings in disguise. Eat protein + healthy fats with every meal and snack. This stabilises insulin and calms the nervous system.
Good options:
Greek yoghurt with seeds
Eggs and avocado on sourdough
Apple with almond butter
Hummus and oatcakes
Get early morning light: This supports your circadian rhythm, which regulates mood and hormone balance. Aim for 10 minutes outside before 10am, even on cloudy days.
Use micro-moments of calm: Take 2-minute breaks when you're overheating emotionally. Sit in the shade. Walk barefoot. Do 4-7-8 breathing. These micro-pauses stop the build-up before the meltdown.
4. Body image in swimwear season: Let’s talk honestly
Let’s be real, perimenopause can feel like a betrayal of the body you once knew. Weight gain, especially around the belly, is common not because you’ve “let yourself go,” but because your hormones and gut health are out of sync.
Now add summer dresses, swimsuits, and social media pressure and you’ve got a recipe for self-doubt.
But this is where you reclaim your power.
What helps:
Change your language: Start with how you talk to yourself. Ditch “I hate how I look” and try “My body is changing, but it’s still mine. I choose to take care of it.”
Ditch the diet culture: Quick-fix summer diets only stress your body more, spike cortisol, and backfire. Instead, focus on nourishment, not punishment. Eating for gut health brings long-term confidence.
Curate your social media: Unfollow accounts that make you feel inadequate. Fill your feed with women who inspire you by being real, not just “beach ready.”
Wear what feels good: Buy the damn swimsuit that fits. Confidence comes from comfort. You deserve to feel at ease in your own skin now, not 10 pounds from now.
5. Sleep struggles in the summer: Why you’re tossing and turning
When oestrogen drops, melatonin production and sleep quality drop too. Add in the summer light, heat, late dinners, alcohol, and social chaos and suddenly you’re lying awake at 2am, wide-eyed and wired.
What helps:
Cool the room: Use blackout curtains, cotton bedding, and a cooling pillow. A fan or cooling mat can help, especially if night sweats are waking you.
Wind down with rhythm: Your body craves routine. Aim for the same bedtime and wake-up time every day, even on holiday, and keep screens off for at least an hour before bed.
Natural sleep support: Magnesium glycinate, tart cherry juice, and calming herbs (valerian, passionflower, chamomile) can help relax the nervous system.
Avoid scrolling in bed: Blue light and stress from news or social feeds will mess with your melatonin. Keep your phone out of the bedroom or on airplane mode.
6. Gut health during holiday season: How to enjoy yourself without regret
Summer means BBQs, ice creams, travel food and drinks on patios. You want to enjoy yourself, but you also don’t want the bloating, cramps, or brain fog that follows.
Here’s the good news: You don’t have to restrict everything. But you do need a gut-support strategy.
What helps:
Digestive rituals before meals
Drink lemon water or apple cider vinegar before eating
Eat slowly and chew thoroughly
Take a few deep breaths before your first bite to trigger “rest and digest” mode
Crowd in the good stuff: Fill half your plate with veggies, and the rest with protein and healthy fats. Add fermented foods like sauerkraut or pickles to support digestion.
Balance your drinks: If you’re having alcohol, alternate with water. Choose lower-sugar options like dry wine or clear spirits with soda water.
Consider digestive enzymes or probiotics: If travel throws your gut off, a quality supplement (just for the short term) can support regularity and reduce gas and bloating.
7. The real secret: Give yourself permission to rest, reset & reconnect
You don’t need to be perfect this summer.
You don’t need to be symptom-free, size 10, or serene all the time.
What you do need is to listen to your body and respond with compassion, not criticism.
Summer is a time to reconnect with your body, your breath, your loved ones, and your joy. That starts with gut health and hormone harmony, but it ends with self-kindness.
Summary: Your summer perimenopause survival guide
Here’s your gentle game plan:
Stay cool with herbs, layers, and hydration
Stabilise your mood through blood sugar and breathwork
Nourish your gut, not restrict it
Prioritise sleep even on holiday
Choose compassion over criticism
Say yes to what feels good and no to what drains you
You deserve to feel cool, clear and confident this summer
Charlotte Cheetham, Gut Health Coach
Charlotte Cheetham is an expert Gut Coach for menopausal women. After suffering from an acute gut infection, she had to learn how to manage her gut health to prevent another massive flare-up. She has learnt how to manage her nutritional needs to become healthy and happy during menopause. Her mission is to help as many women as possible to manage their diet and lifestyle so. too, can learn how to become healthy and happy again.
