I have seen thousands of women attend our aesthetic clinics and have gotten to know them very well over the years. I love having good chats with my clients and more often than not I come across individuals who are suffering from some form of hormonal imbalance – whether that be PMS, hot flashes, struggling to get through menopause or just feeling flat out exhausted all the time.
And it doesn’t surprise me. These women are passionate, driven individuals who in addition to trying to uphold and progress in their careers – they are constantly running after the kids, their partner, the dog, trying to work out 4-5 times a week and racking their brain for healthy food ideas to put on the table every single day. She wants to do it all. (Not to mention trying to maintain youth and beauty all at the same time!)
The Energizer Bunny
Now whilst we all strive to be this individual because that’s what we feel we *should* be doing to maintain our lives and prove to the world we can do it all, our bodies are not designed for this way of living and in return – they retaliate.
It is like living on credit, borrowing resources from the bank of wellness which is going to demand payback at any time.
This is not a healthy way to live. Our lives have become so complicated and complex (not always through fault of our own may I add) and the rise of problems such as anxiety has everything to do with the fact that we are leading highly stressful lives and our bodies quite frankly just don’t know what to do.
So you may be thinking by this point – ”I totally get that Asha. But if I don’t hold it together – my life is going to fall apart, I can’t just run away from all of my responsibilities”
And my response is – Your life will indeed fall apart if you continue to live the way you do. Cranky, PMSy, fatigued and living a life like a hamster on wheels without stopping to smell the roses is not living. Im not saying you have to run away from life, I am saying that time to time it is important to check in and see where you can create little shifts that can help support the lifestyle you currently lead.
So here are a few of my suggestions:
Work on spending your ‘energy’ economically
- Choose your ‘yeses’ – we all get a finite amount of energy per day and it is entirely up to us how we choose to spend it. Choose what you say yes to wisely.
- Carve out time in your day to to eat three nutritious meals a day (vs laptop lunch!)
- Learn understand how to best nourish yourself – I will write a blog post on this but essentially your body speaks to you, you just need to tune in. Just because it’s a ‘superfood’ or a healthy item doesn’t mean it suits you personally.
- Work on ensuring that your sleep is as optimal as it can be – more on this here
- Take some ‘you’ time – Even 15 minutes a day. You cannot give from a an empty cup. Nourish yourself first so that you can help others better.
- Meditation is a game changer – just five minutes a day is one of the best ways to help reduce cortisol levels
- Cut down on the coffee – this is a great healthy alternative to keep you going
- Get as much fresh air as you can and aim to move your body for 20 minutes a day – even a walk is good enough!
- Gain an understanding of your monthly cycle and how each week you will feel different and how to care for yourself throughout the whole month – check out this blog post
I hope this blog post has been useful and I will be writing much more on hormonal balance in the weeks to come to provide you with as much knowledge and tips as I can.
If you would like some more personalised help on helping you to achieve a healthier lifestyle please reach out to me at [email protected]
