How To Deal With Hot Flashes And Mood Swings The Natural Way
We give you more reasons to live a more natural way of life!
You start spending your nights drenched in your own sweat, and your days are filled with erratic emotional outbursts. Surprise: you’re most likely nearing perimenopause or menopause.
Hot flashes and mood swings are two of the most common symptoms of menopausal transition. This is the time when your ovaries stop releasing eggs, your periods become more irregular and eventually stop, and your hormones start to go whack. Menopause transition usually lasts about seven years and even up to 14 years, so it’s important to know how you can handle or even lessen the symptoms that come with it to make your life a little less uncomfortable.
When it comes to treating menopausal symptoms like hot flashes and mood swings, a lot of people will recommend hormone supplements and antidepressants. While taking these medicines have been found by various scientific studies to lessen hot flashes and mood swings for menopausal women, some women still fear the side effects of taking medications for a prolonged period of time. There are also some women like those who’ve had a prior history of invasive disease or a strong family history of breast cancer who are advised against taking hormones.
This is why more natural ways have become popular to aid women in this challenging period of their lives. Living a more natural and earth-centered life has resonated with a lot of people recently, as the world becomes saturated with chemicals and metals that are harming not just the human body, but the environment. And when it comes to menopause, generations of women before us have successfully lived through this hormonally crazy period of their lives without the need for western medicine interference, so we turn to their wisdom and experience to help us through ours today.
Check out the gallery below for natural ways and tips to deal with hot flashes and mood swings caused by menopause:
Natural ways to deal with menopause
Natural ways to deal with menopause
Ginseng
Ginseng is probably one of the oldest and most popular ingredients in eastern and traditional medicine. And according to a recent double-blind randomized controlled trial published by Sun Young Kim and partners on PubMed, red ginseng has been found to be beneficial for postmenopausal women, especially those with elevated cardiac risk factors. Known as an “energizer” and “mood normalizer,” taking ginseng tea, powder, or extract can help improve mood and sleep.
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Maca root
Another age-old herbal remedy that is returning to popularity is maca root, which has been used for thousands of years to reduce the effects of anxiety, stress, and aging on the body by alleviating cortisol levels and promoting hormonal balance. In a study published by Myeong Soo Lee in 2011, randomized clinical trials demonstrated favorable effects of maca among healthy perimenopausal, early postmenopausal, and late postmenopausal women experiencing menopausal symptoms. To make maca intake easier, Sekaya has a Raw Actives Maca Factor powder that you can easily stir in water or in your favorite beverages like hot chocolate, smoothies, or coffee.
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Red clover
In the past, red clover has been a popular herbal medicine to treat respiratory problems and skin inflammations such as psoriasis and eczema because of its ability to act as a diuretic (helping the body get rid of excess fluid) and expectorant (helping clear lungs of mucous). However, in modern scientific studies, red clover has been found to contain isoflavones, which are plant-based chemicals that produce estrogen-like effects in the body. Various researchers have found that these isoflavones have shown potential in alleviating symptoms associated with menopause such as hot flashes and osteoporosis. Take note that red clover is usually not recommended for women with hormone-dependent cancers or blood-clotting disorders.
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St. John’s wort
Just like ginseng, St. John’s wort is a popular herbal remedy used commonly as an herbal antidepressant. In 2010, Reuters published an article about a study conducted by Marjan Khajehei of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences in Iran that suggests St. John’s wort may help cool menopausal hot flashes. According to their findings, the women taking St. John’s wort experienced less frequency of hot flashes in a week and less severity. While further research is needed, Khajehei thinks that the St. John’s wort estrogen-like plant compounds called phytoestrogens could be the source of these benefits. St. John’s wort extract is now usually available in capsule form for easy supplementing.
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Vitamin D
Vitamin D, usually called the “sunshine vitamin”, has many functions in the body, including maintaining good bone, brain, and heart health. And while good vitamin D levels promote good well-being, vitamin D deficiency can cause physical and psychological problems—including depression and mood swings. Various studies published on Pubmed have found that early-life lack of this vitamin may be a physiological trigger for depression and mood swing development at a later period in a woman’s life. This means that to lessen your susceptibility to mood swings and depression symptoms, which can be brought about by menopause, it’s good to maintain good vitamin D levels early on. If getting enough sunlight is not an option, vitamin D supplementing is also a good way to prevent deficiency.
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Yoga and Meditation
Yoga therapy and meditation has been found by many studies and people to relieve mental and emotional imbalance. In the same way, regular and mindful practice can help address the irritability and anxiety brought on by menopause. Breathing exercises, mindfulness techniques, and stretching have been found to help stabilize mood swings while improving the overall well-being.
Photo Credit: Antonika Chanel on Unsplash
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