JUST ONE CHANGE!

We have all heard the famous quote "change is the only constant". It is a good one to keep reminding ourselves.

Lets look at our body as the perfect example. Our body is forever in a state of flux.

Here are some amazingly miraculous changes our body goes which we probably don't even realise is happening.

New cells generate all the time when we sleep, eat, bathe.

The body regenerates a full bone within ten years.

Non-injured skin tissue is regenerated within two weeks.

It is completely natural for 50-100 hair strands to fall as part of the body's renewal process.

Our body continues to function (most of the time) like clock work, changing all the time. However, us as humans our first reaction to change is resistance. We get so set in our ways and comforts that even when we know something is not that good for us, the brain that has been trained for years to do the same thing, wants the comfort of doing just that.

There is JUST ONE CHANGE that we need to make in our lives to smoothly transition from pre-meno to peri-menopause to menopause. Do you know what that is?

That one change is a lifestyle change. We have to really look at our lifestyle with a magnifying glass and review every aspect of our life to make sure we are supporting ourselves completely through this transition.

It is this one thing that will make our journey from a transitional to a transformational one.

It really is as simple as that, but it is not that simple. Because there are so many factors that impact our lifestyle. There are tangible, physical factors that are related to where we live, what we do for a living, nature's impact on our lifestyle. There is also intangible factors like our upbringing, personality traits, our family and cultural influences, nurture's impact on our lifestyle.

It is still really possible for us to change though because it is something under our control. And we know ourselves best. So take hope in the fact that we have within our reach the ability to transition through this journey without having too much of an upheaval.

We can only do that if we go through the process of change with belief, hard work and consistency.

Based on my lived experience, I've listed below some pointers in your lifestyle that you can review to make a direct impact your symptoms.

I've put in a summary of the points below and I will elaborate more over the next few blogs so that you get time to digest all the information being provided.

Hot flashes - Food, caffeine and alcohol

Insomnia - Food, digital impact, fitness routine, rest

Anxiety - Self care, work load, stress triggers and exercise

Depression - Self care, self love and fitness routine

Exhaustion - Workload, rest and fitness

Weight gain - Self love, food, fitness routine, rest

There are heaps of other symptoms like itchy skin, palpitations, skin rashes, lack of sex drive, mood swings etc. but these that I have listed above, I believe, are the most debilitating of them all.

You might notice that there is a common theme of self care, food and fitness regime.

Lets take matters into our own hands guys. Put self love on top of your priority list. Get that self care routine underway.

Keep reminding yourself that self care is self respect.

When we are going through the throws of a symptom, we feel overwhelmed and it might be that we cannot think of what we can do to help ourselves. So these modifications and changes to our lifestyle have to be addressed when we have days that we feel reasonably normal.

So how do we make these lifestyle changes?

Lifestyle changes don't happen overnight. It might happen for some but for most of us we have years of habits and impressions that have seeped into our system. There are practices and patterns that are nicely marinated into our blood, ingrained into our brains that we slowly need to pick out one by one.

You can start with the ones that you know have the most impact.

Food: Food is easy to check. You know what you eat. You can either keep a diary of what you eat and how this impacts your symptoms or just make mental notes and observations. Become aware of what you are eating. For that you have to eat mindfully. Lay out a plan of what you will eat during the week. Focus on problem areas like snacks. Manage your shopping based on your food plan. Eat food that will support your menopause journey not ambush it.

Alcohol: Alcohol is a big one. Most women in the age group now who are going through peri-meno and menopase will have had a past where alcohol has been a major player. We will have not thought twice before opening a bottle of wine mid week or even have a glass with dinner each day with weekends full of binge. So to cut down alcohol suddenly might be hard.

BUT when you go through a few days of good sleep, reduced hot flashes, and you know how good it feels to be back in your natural state, then you can make giving up or reducing alcohol a priority.

Exercise: Again, this is something that is in our control. The easiest thing for you to do is go for a walk. If you are leading a sedentary life, please please, bring some level of movement into your life. Whatever that might be. However small the steps are. I will most definitely recommend yoga because it has a holistic approach but even if you dont want to do yoga, do something you like. Make it regular. In fact I have noticed for myself, that I have to do more to keep fit and build muscle.

Rest: Rest plays a BIG part in how you go through life and your relationship with others in your family. Insomnia and exhaustion is inevitable as we go through menopause and so whenever you get the opportunity however small, make sure you rest. I am known to go and lie down in my bed whenever I feel like I just need that break from it all. You don't have to sleep, you don't have to even go under the covers. Just lie there doing a five to 10 deep breaths and that will rejuvenate you. Of course if you are at work then it is not always possible but you can find a quiet spot at work to sit down for 10mins or when you get back home you can take 10-20mins to yourself just to rest. Rest without any interruptions, any digital media next to you. Make it immersive and impactful.

And remember, IT IS OKAY to stumble upon your new improved path to a healthy mindful lifestyle.

It is normal for the brain to go into autopilot. We know that having an extra cupcake or an extra glass of wine is going to affect us tomorrow yet the brain goes into autopilot. So it takes awareness, training and resilience. The more we alter and modify our choices the more our brain can learn from those choices so that it helps us for the next time. We have to change the way the brain is wired and remove the association of "reward" with the act.

Trust me, it is normal to be weak minded, it is OK to stumble. If we do stumble, we learn from the experience, pick ourselves up and keep going. We don't dwell and feel sorry for ourselves. We know we can do this and it takes time. We know that we have it in our power to make these changes because we know how much it will help us in the long run.

Managing the choices and reviewing my lifestyle has had a huge impact on the way I have transitioned through menopause.

I really hope that if you are having a bad time with your menopause journey, you get the motivation to review your lifestyle.

I really hope that you have a detailed look at your choices day to day and modify them so that you can support and nurture your beautiful body.

I really hope that you can make this a transformative journey rather than just a transitional one.

with gratitude,

Purnima