The Key To Hormone Harmony (It’s Not Hormone Therapy) – A Tale Of Two Women
Written by: Kathy Fritz, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
So, I used to be an English teacher, and one of the first texts I ever taught was A Tale of Two Cities. Do you remember it well? I hope not, because other than the title, my article has little to do with the book.
I’m going to tell you A Tale of Two Women.
In this tale, one woman uses the key to hormone harmony and the other does not. Read on to find out what happens!
Tamila and Anabel are both in their late 30s. They work very hard. Tamila is a financial advisor and Anabel is a chiropractor.
Both women have noticed that something is feeling a little off. They’re not sleeping so well, relying on more coffee than they used to, their energy is low, and they aren’t feeling as mentally sharp.
Tamila and Anabel do what they’ve always done- they power through. They exercise intensely when they have the time, they eat a lot of salad, they even start to meditate, but quickly quit who has time for that?
Let’s fast forward a few years. Our two ladies are now in their mid-forties. They know things are changing, they’re still not feeling great, but they’re not sure what to do.
They’ve noticed their midsections seem to be shifting to more of an apple shape, but the weight-loss practices that worked in their 20s aren’t working anymore.
They laugh at their 37-year-old selves’ concept of tiredness. This is tired!
Intimacy with their partners is a no-go: who has the energy for that? And besides, they’re always snapping at their partners.
Both women feel hopeless. In fact, their doctors told them, “This is just midlife. You’re going to have to learn to live with your symptoms.”
But just like London and Paris’ stories split in A Tale of Two Cities, Anabel and Tamila’s paths are going to take different routes.
Tamila decides she’s had enough. She says to a friend, “Someone’s gotta help me. I can’t live this way. Or I can’t keep living this way.”
She finds practitioners (including yours truly!) who educate her about the midlife woman’s body, how it’s different from the body from her reproductive years, and how she can support it. I explain to her how there’s a normal drop in progesterone and estrogen fluctuates from month to month, and even though this is normal, it can leave us feeling like we’re riding a wild bronco.
Tamila learns about “insulin resistance” for the first time, and I help her understand how this essential hormone impacts weight. In fact, insulin resistance is the number one cause of weight gain for midlife women, and it’s a precursor to Type 2 Diabetes.
The biggest “ah-ha” moment comes when Tamila learns how the stress hormone, cortisol, impacts insulin resistance and being stressed would make her more insulin resistant.
Tamila changes her eating habits, her exercise routine, but, most importantly, she starts to take stress management seriously.
Meditation was never really her thing, so she tries journaling and discovers she loves it. She begins a gratitude practice, implements a 5-minutes of self-care nonnegotiable daily habit, and learns how to utilize a tool called tapping.
I’m happy to report that Tamila has her stress under control now. She is sleeping through the night for 8 hours, she is energized throughout the day, she’s reconnected with her romantic partner, and she has already lost 15 pounds without counting calories or “dieting.”
Most importantly though, she’s looking at midlife with hope and excitement. Unfortunately,
Anabel decides to keep on keeping on.
When she tries to get up in the morning, she feels like an invisible hand is shoving her back into bed. She doesn’t recognize the stranger looking back at her in the mirror – this woman is 35 pounds too heavy, looks 10 years older, and hasn’t smiled in what feels like months. She wonders how she can take care of her chiropractic patients when she can’t even take care of herself. Her migraines have become chronic, her insomnia is debilitating, and lately, she’s been having hot flashes.
Anabel’s story is not unique. It might sound a little like yours.
But I have good news! You can make changes and instead get Tamila’s story.
And the key is to manage your internal and external stress with self-care!
There are a couple of self-care guidelines I recommend you follow:
Start with 5 minutes/day.
Make sure you look forward to it.
It should be one step.
Commit.
If you don’t take care of your body, where will you live?
What you do during perimenopause will absolutely impact your menopause experience. I encourage you to address your hormonal imbalance now so that when you enter menopause you’ll be at optimal function.
If you have been dealing with…
Stubborn belly fat (even though you eat healthy)
Feeling tired all day long
Digestive issues
Inflammation
Inability to fall asleep or stay asleep
Lack of focus or ability to concentrate
Uncontrollable cravings
There is a solution for all these symptoms...
Natural food. Daily low impact movement. And practical self-care.
If you’re ready to start prioritizing yourself, your health, and your hormones, book a free 30-minute Power through Perimenopause Breakthrough Strategy Session.
Kathy Fritz, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine Kathy Fritz helps women in perimenopause and menopause experience relief from hormonal symptoms like fatigue, hot flashes, moodiness, and sleeplessness through nutrition, exercise, and lifestyle choices. Her clients lose weight, rediscover their energy, feel sexy, and define themselves on their terms as they become wise women who trust their intuition. In addition to helping individuals, Kathy is also working to change the negative narrative surrounding middle age. She is part of a movement to reclaim and redefine this time of life as one of joy, intimacy, and ease.
