Menopause
What is Menopause?
Whether she feels annoyed, fearful, or resigned to it, every woman will probably experience the symptoms of menopause to some degree. Menopause is the transition a woman goes through when her ovaries cease to produce eggs.She no longer experiences menstrual periods, and her body produces less of the hormones of estrogen and progesterone.
This transition will usually take about five years to complete and often happens between the ages of 45 and 55. A woman is technically considered menopausal when she hasn’t had a period for twelve consecutive months, though the risk of becoming pregnant is greatly diminished at the earlier phases of this process as well.
The lessening of a woman’s production of estrogen and progesterone lead to a number of symptoms that coincide with the incidence of menopause.
When experiencing this transition, a woman may feel hot flashes, irregular periods, vaginal dryness, insomnia, emotional strain in the form of depression and anxiety, thinning hair, heart palpitations, incontinence, and pain in the joints.
To alleviate the severity of these symptoms, Western medical professionals administer hormone replacement therapy, prescribe medications(like antidepressants and Gabapentin) and suggest lifestyle modifications in the form of diet, exercise, and dietary supplementation (like vitamins).
How Does Ayurveda View Menopause?
Given how menopause is not a disease to be prevented but a biological inevitability, Ayurveda places emphasis on identifying the nature of the symptoms and treating them accordingly. In other words, the practitioner will determine if symptoms are caused more by the dry and frenetic nature of Vata imbalances (insomnia, vaginal dryness, depression, anxiety), the fiery nature of Pitta imbalances (hot flashes, irritability), or the heavy nature of Kapha imbalances (fatigue, lethargy, water retention, weight gain, obesity).
Once the most dominant symptoms are identified, the patient then works to resolve the imbalances of the related doshas.
A patient may have more than one doshic imbalance, and therefore the lifestyle changes must change to accommodate multiple types of symptoms.
The severity of this transition of energy is mainly due to the type of lifestyle and habits a person has kept over the years. A western lifestyle of late dinners, wine, excessive amounts of movement and exercise, and other heat producing activities can diminish a body’s youth and vitality and cause much more severe symptoms. If the nervous, digestive, and endocrine systems have been kept under healthy, low-stress conditions most of a person’s life, then they are more likely to experience very little shift in energy.
How Does Ayurveda Treat Menopause?
The goals of Ayurvedic treatment are similar to the goals of Western treatment, in that a practitioner aims to balance the patient’s emotions and hormones as well as rejuvenate the reproductive tract. Each of these goals is intended to lessen the severity of the patient’s symptoms as she weathers this transition. Once aggravated doshas are identified through the patient’s specific symptoms, the patient must then work to balance the them through a dosha-reducing diet, herbal therapy, changes in sleep habits and other lifestyle changes or therapies.
Lifestyle Changes for Menopause
The first step in resolving a specific imbalance in the body is to assess the nature of our lifestyle and make general modifications. Living our day-to-day life with a deliberate intention to improve our health will help us to both resolve the imbalance we are suffering from and prevent further incidence of it and other health problems in the future.
Create a regular sleep routine, and go to bed and wake up at the same time each day. This will help to regulate the body’s systems.
Similarly, create a regular eating routine, as this will likewise help to regulate the body.
Avoid eating at least 3 to 4 hours before going to bed, as leaving undigested food in the stomach may create constipation and exacerbate symptoms.
Favor a simple, easy-to-digest diet of vegetables, fruits, and grains so as to promote regularity in the gastrointestinal tract.
Avoid heavy foods at night, which will create more stress on the digestive fire.
Favor quiet moments that don’t overstimulate the nervous system.
Practice yoga postures on a daily or regular basis. This will help the breath to become self-controlled rather than controlled by the senses, and prevent heated, emotional thoughts.
Vata
- Favor nourishing foods such as white basmati rice, barley, and cooked vegetables.
- Apply ghee to foods and mix it with ginger, licorice, black salt, and/or triphala.
- Massage the body with warm sesame oil on a daily basis.
- Rub Brahmi oil into the scalp and hair.
- Sleep before 10pm (earth time), when the energy is more conducive to good sleep.
- Avoid a lot of nervous movement or chatter.
- Avoid being in windy conditions that will dry the system more.
- Avoid being in artificial light too much;favor natural light.
Pitta
- Eat foods with sweet and cold qualities.
- Avoid a lot of rapid movement and aggressive exercise.
- Avoid the hot sun and letting it shine directly on the head and body.
- Massage the body with ghee on a daily basis (you can add ghee to some scentless cream).
- Avoid too many sour, salty, and pungent foods.
- Avoid the emotions of anger or heated arguments.
- Avoid anything which raises the heart rate a lot and makes the mind heated and imbalanced.
Kapha
- Follow eating with a cup of hot water.
- Avoid heavy foods, which take longer to digest.
- Burn incense of basil, frankincense and cedar.
- Wash the nasal passages out with a little salt water.
- Avoid too many sweet, salty, and sour foods.
- Avoid a lot of sitting around unless it is in lotus posture (crossed legged) on the ground.
- Avoid heavy feelings of attachment to things like food, sex, and sleep.
- Keep the mind active with positive, compassionate, and loving thoughts.
Better Foods For Menopause
Ayurveda teaches us that disease and sickness are derived from poor digestion and inappropriate food choices.we then have the opportunity tomake deliberate and more conscious decisions as to what foods we do and do not put in our body which increases the chance of resolving the body’s imbalance.
Food needs to be in season, in moderate combinations of one or two food groups, not too hot or cold, in a modest enough quantity to allow for room in the stomach later, consumed without too much liquid which hinders digestive power, and should be fresh and not left over for more than a few hours. The following foods are listed to be a dosha-balancing diet for whichever energy is causing the specific menopausal symptoms:
Ghee
Milk
Berries
Figs(Fresh)
Apricots
Peaches
Plums
Carrots
Beets
Zucchini
Sweet potatoes
Asparagus
Whole wheat (unbleached)
Rice (white basmati)
Mung beans
Ghee
Apples
Pears
Mangoes
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Brussels Sprouts
Asparagus
Barley
Oats (cooked)
Rice (white basmati)
Milk
Coconut oil
Olive oil
Prunes
Raisins
Cherries
Pomegranates
Figs(Dry)
Radishes
Onions
Sprouts
Brussels Sprouts
Vegetable soup
Barley
Millet
Ghee
Mustard oil
Foods To AVOID In Response To Menopause
While some foods can help to balance an aggravated dosha, other foods can cause further imbalance. Dry and cold foods as well as pungent, bitter and astringent tastes will dry out the body and aggravate the Vata dosha. Sour, salty and pungent tastes as well as spicy foods will add more heat to the body and aggravate the Pitta dosha.Sweet, sour and salty tasting foods will add heaviness to the body and aggravate the Kapha dosha. The following three lists provide an outline of which foods to avoid in respect to whichever dosha is associated with the most significant menopausal symptoms:
Apples
Pears
Watermelon
Cauliflower
Broccoli
Tomatoes
Celery
Eggplant
Apples
Pears
Watermelon
Cauliflower
Broccoli
Tomatoes
Celery
Eggplant
Corn
Oats (dry)
Barley
Most legumes including green lentils and garbanzo beans
Raw and cold foods
Grapefruit
Bananas
Cherries
Pineapple
Tomatoes
Garlic
Carrots
Spinach
Rice (brown)
Corn
Nuts
Lentils
Corn oil
Almond oil
Spicy foods
Sour foods (like yogurt, sour cream, and pickles)
Salt
Meat
Bananas
Melons
Papayas
Avocado
Plums
Sweet potatoes
Zucchini
Cucumbers
Tomatoes
Wheat
Rice
Nuts
Seeds
Sweets and candies
Allergy-causing foods
Dairy products (except goat milk, in moderation)
Unnatural sugar
Cold foods
Beverages For Menopause
Generally, Ayurveda discourages the consumption of too many cold beverages, as doing so hinders the strength of the body’s digestive fire. Instead, favors room temperature or hot beverages to encourage the strength of the digestive fire.
All Doshas
- Hot water, especially during meals and first thing in the morning.
- Avoid cold and frozen drinks.
- Avoid sugary or fizzy drinks that blend with the digestive juice and make it weak.
- Avoid alcohol, coffee, and black tea.
Boiled milk with myrrh, saffron, ashwagandha, and aloe vera gel.
Herbal tea of licorice and cardamom
Boiled milk with saffron, aloe vera gel, and shatavari.
Hot milk with a tablespoon of ghee and nutmeg.
Herbal teas of ginger, guggul, and pippali.
Hot water with some fresh lemon.
Herbs For Menopause
Herbs are used in the Ayurvedic system much like Western medicine utilizes drugs and vitamins and can be taken like tea 2 to 3 times a day. Herbs aid in the digestion of food, the breakdown and elimination of toxins, and help to strengthen the cellular structure of our system for greater vitality. Herbs become more potent once mixed with other herbs of similar properties. Mix together 2 to 4 different herbs from the list below by adding a quarter to a half teaspoon full of each, for a total of 1 teaspoon. Drink these in half cup of hot water.
Myrrh
Saffron
Cardamom
Garlic
Guggul
Licorice
Sandalwood
Ashwagandha
Aloe vera
Astralagus
Aloe vera
Saffron
Arjuna
Gotu kola
Shatavari
Nutmeg
Bilva
Musta (main herb for PMS and other heat forming ailments)
Ginger
Bayberry
Cayenne
Cinnamon
Motherwort
Myrrh
Guggul
Pippali
Yoga Postures For Menopause
When applied therapeutically to specific ailments, yoga postures provide an opportunity to strengthen the body, rid it of toxic matter, and restore balance. The postures included in this section can be practiced as part of a more general sequence or can be focused on in short sessions. When first exploring yoga postures, it is best to only practice them for twenty minutes or so per day and buildup from there once the body becomes more flexible.
Camel
Bridge
Plough
Shoulder stand
Knee to chest
Corpse
Bridge
Shoulder stand
Knee to chest
Fish
Corpse
Hero
Boat
Bridge
Plough
Forward bend
Fish
Vata
Pitta
Kapha
Aromatherapy For Menopause
Aromatherapy utilizes the fragrances of essential oils when applied to the skin. Essential oils can burn the skin and therefore must be diluted with a base oil such as sesame, coconut, sunflower, canola, or mustard oil. Mix 1 fluid ounce of base oil with about 12 drops of essential oil before applying to skin. You can also just mix 5 drops of base oil to one drop of essential oil if using on one spot.
Vata-like menopausal symptoms can be treated with basil, camphor, cedar, eucalyptus, frankincense, ginger, cinnamon, lavender, lily, lotus, musk, myrrh, patchouli, or sandalwood oil.
Use a sesame oil base.
Apply oil on the forehead or on the back of the neck.
Pitta-like menopausal symptoms can be treated with sandalwood, tea tree, rose, honeysuckle, gardenia, lily, iris, lavender, mint, or lotus oil.
- Use a coconut or sunflower oil base.
- Apply oil in the center of the chest in front of the heart.
Kapha-like menopausal symptoms can be treated with cinnamon, eucalyptus, sage, basil, musk, cedar, frankincense, or myrrh oil.
- Use a canola or mustard oil base.
- Apply oil on the skin between the navel and pubic bone.
Mantra Therapy For Menopause
Ayurvedic tradition suggests that repeating certain words or sounds can help a person suffering from an ailment to restore subtle balance to nerve tissue and enhance one’s mental clarity. Different sounds are prescribed to either repeat mentally or chant outwardly. These sounds are also used and repeated in the mind for the purpose of spiritual growth.
For Vata-like menopausal symptoms, repeat the syllable “Ram” for several minutes a few times a day and build more practice over time.
As a Vata-related disorder, it is helpful to inwardly repeat this syllable for the duration of time it is practiced.
For Pitta-like menopausal symptoms, repeat the syllable “Aum” (pronounced ohm) for several minutes a few times a day and build more practice over time.
As a Pitta-related disorder, it is helpful to both outwardly chant and inwardly repeat this syllable for the duration of time it is practiced.
For Kapha-like menopausal symptoms, repeat the syllable “Hoom” for several minutes a few times a day and build more practice over time.
As a Kapha-related disorder, it is helpful to outwardly chant this syllable for the duration of time it is practiced.
Breathing Practices For Menopause
Controlling the breath is a central practice toward developing peace and stillness in the mind and body. When the breath is under our control, we are no longer at the mercy of the senses that are stimulated by everything and lead to greater fluctuations of the mind. When applied to the context of resolving specific ailments, the breath is used as a tool for developing lung capacity, heating and cooling the body and resolving mental afflictions like anxiety and stress.
All Doshas
Vata
Pitta