The power of nervous system regulation in our menopause transition.
Understanding how to support our nervous system regulation as we move through perimenopause and menopause can be transformational.
It’s such a foundational system for our health and wellbeing. When we are stress, or in ‘fight or flight’ it changes our perception of the world, our decision-making, as well as impacts our digestion, our hormone cycles, our sleep patterns and more.
Is it stress or hormones?
I am a women’s health coach based near Bristol, and most of my clients are in the perimenopause to post menopause transition. I've been working with clients in this phase of life for 12 years.
And I still often ask myself this question if I notice myself feeling more anxious, jittery, or emotional. And revisit the basics of my wellbeing (I’ve got a list for you below).
If you were my client I might ask you:
Where are you in your menstrual cycle? As our hormones drop in the second part of our cycle, we can be more sensitive to stress, as we lose the buffering effect of oestrogen and progesterone. We also produce less serotonin, which can make our mood lower.
Where do you think you are in your perimenopause experience? This might be related to symptoms, age, HRT and other factors. Again, as our hormones change, it impacts our stress resilience.
How has your sleep been recently? Poor sleep can reduce our stress resilience, and become a self-defeating cycle.
How well have you been looking after yourself lately? This could be diet and alcohol consumption, exercise and rest?
Do you have any additional external pressure? This could be work, family, relationships, friendships, illness.
The answers all help me to help you find an approach to stress that works for you.
Here’s where I would start if you needed to find a way to calm your nervous system in a time of stress:
Hydrate - drink water and reduce caffeine and alcohol consumption
Find pockets of rest and add in simple breath work (breath in slowly for a count of 6 and out for a count of 6). This blog has some rest suggestions.
Balance blood sugar - make sure your nutrition has a good balance of healthy fats, protein, fruit and veg. When we are stressed it’s easy to end up using sugar and caffeine as a crutch, my suggestion is usually to add in the good stuff and gently plan in some meals before cutting too much out. This blog has some other simple suggestions.
Track your cycle (download my free tracker here) or read my blog about the ways in which this is helpful in perimenopause here.
Create or upgrade your pre-bedtime routine - can you put down your phone and switch off screens an hour or two before going to bed, and make your bedroom a cosy haven. I have a sleep blog here too.
Add in gentle movement - a walk, stretch, swim, cycle, or even just a stretch at your desk - it helps you bring your awareness back into your body and out of your busy, busy mind.
Not all of these things, all at once, start with one (hydration is easy - you can go fill your glass of water now!).
Regulating our nervous system after a period of stress can take time, and require a gentle, layered approach. But the good thing is, the more you learn about it, the more you build resilience for the future too, and notice the signs of stress building up.
If you’d like a chat about creating your own resilience and wellbeing strategy in your perimenopause transition you can book in a 15 minute call to see if I can help.