Manage Menopause Naturally

Over the years I have heard so many women in the 50’s and beyond talk about how badly they sleep. I really thought it was because they were “old” and didn’t need much sleep, at least that is what the medial profession have been telling us.  It wasn’t until I started perimenopause /menopause that I realised I was now one of those women! Or was I? Let’s see what the stats said.

In August 2016 I bought my first smart watch, a Garmin. That was when I decided to take up running for the first time and I became really interested in all the features offered, especially my sleep.  In 2016 I was sleeping 2 hours deep. That was great, yet in 2018 I was registering nearly 3 hours deep sleep! What had changed? I had lost some 13kg in weight, had upped my supplements and I was still in perimenopause.

Well into menopause I was still getting 3 hours deep sleep. Looking at the stats on my Garmin watch, I can honestly say that my sleep pattern changed on 12^th March 2021.  Two days short of a year after Spain went into lockdown. As a self-employed person, with a joint business with my husband that relied on people walking in through the door, this had a profound effect upon my sleep, more than hormonal changes had had for the previous four and half years.

Am I the only woman to have gone through lockdown in menopause? Of course not! Am I the only woman to have been unusually stressed since 2020 and of menopausal age? Of course not! It took a year before the stress came out and the previous year’s living in fight and flight finally took its toll on me and my sleep. This is also when my moods changed – but that is in another blog.

Insomnia Explained with TCM

Sleep problems are affected by the heart meridian.  As I’ve mentioned before, when the spirit cannot rest properly in the heart meridian, sleep cannot be calm. The heart and liver are directly responsible for a healthy supply of blood and yin. When this declines, insomnia or dream disturbed sleep is triggered. Yang flows upwards without counter control from yin.

Systemic blood vacuity and therefore yin vacuity is a common problem in menopausal women. The lack of menstruation is a sign of the body’s declining ability to create blood, therefore signs and symptoms of blood vacuity is common, as in insomnia.

Put this normal physiological change together with additional stress, insomnia can be accentuated, as the liver (mother) cannot feed the heart (son) and the result is an even more depleted heart blood and yin. The liver is directly affected by stress. Liver yang rises and overbears the heart yin.

What can be done?

What really helped me was listening to podcasts.  I’m a huge fan of Dr Wayne Dyer, unfortunately passed, but his teachings are still available at Hay House. He has done some wonderful work that has helped me enormously over the years. You can download the Hay House app onto your phone and enjoy lots of his work for free.

Meditation.

My meditation takes the form of running and listening to podcasts at the same time.  My meditation also happens in the garden.  When I’m looking after our vegetable and flower garden, I lose myself in time and space.  I don’t believe you have to sit still in a yogi position for an hour thinking of nothing to be able to meditate.  Meditation is about communing with yourself, taking yourself out of the flight and fight of daily living and breathing deeply.  Try it with something you love.  It could be reading, you just need to find your happy place, which is different for everyone.

Nowadays I have a Fitbit watch. I loved the Garmin but the strap get breaking and after the third one, I decided to move on to Fitbit.  I’m very happy with this watch too.  I love being able to measure my vitals and I highly recommend it to anyone who would like to know more about their sleep patterns, amongst other things.

Sleep patterns

How Much Should You be Sleeping.

According to Cleveland Clinic, from 19-64 years of age we should be getting 7-9 hours of sleep, and from 64 years plus, between 7-8 hours of sleep. In effect, that´s only 1 hours difference at the top end, but not until we are well into post menopause. I need 8 hours sleep, I always have and I probably always will do best with 8 hours.  And Cleveland also concur with me when they say that it’s a common misconception that older adults need less sleep. The sleeping pattern may change, you make wake up earlier or later than you used to, but over a 24 hour period, you still should be aiming for 7-8/9 hours. That leads on to the siesta debate – in another blog!

Stages of Sleep

An average sleep cycle lasts some 90 minutes, with between 4-6 cycles of sleep per 24 hours.

Each sleep cycle contains four individual stages.  Three stages form non-rapid eye movement (NREM) and one rapid eye movement (REM). The time spent in each cycle can vary, but each individual stage remains mostly the same for each person.

NREM Stage One is a light sleep, lasting 5-10 minutes.

NREM Stage Two is a light sleep, your muscles begin to relax, and your body temperature drops, and your heart rate and breathing slow down. This may last up to 25 minutes.

NREM Stage Three is deep sleep, when your eyes and muscles are fully at rest. In this stage your body is repairing itself, by regrowing tissue, strengthening your immune system and building bones and muscle. During the first sleep cycles this stage could last 20-40 minutes. As you sleep more, this stage will get shorter. As you get older, you spend less time in this stage and more time in stage two.

REM sleep is when you dream. The first period of REM occurs around 90 minutes into your sleep cycle and lasts about 10 minutes. Each further stage of REM gets longer the more hours you are asleep.

Nowadays, I’m quite happy with my sleep pattern. I need to be in bed by 22:30 so I can wake up at 07:30, which most nights gives me an 8-hour sleep. However, I do notice that if I go to bed stressed, or with a full stomach, my sleep is not so restful and I get less deep sleep. I try to eat earlier rather than later to avoid this and watch uplifting programs before bedtime and definitely no news programs! Let me know what works for you in the comments below.

Reference: https://health.clevelandclinic.org/your-complete-guide-to-sleep/