How to love your Adrenals In Menopause
Adrenals, Stress and The Menopause
Well, firstly let me tell you about these little walnut sized organs that sit just above the kidneys.
The biggest job that the adrenals have to do is to help us to cope with stress, and lets face it in our fast paced crazy world, we have to deal with varying degrees of stress all the time. So, you can imagine that our little adrenals are up against it most of the time and are probably completely knackered.
We probably associate our adrenals with cortisol and adrenaline, our flight or fight hormone, that can keep us alert and help us escape the tiger that is chasing us for his dinner! Obvs we don’t run from actual tigers these days, but interestingly the body, specifically part of the brain called the the amygdala, can’t differentiate between getting stressed by our teenage son not picking up his dirty laundry, and a divorce. If we spend a lot of time in this fight or flight state, we can end up with adrenal fatigue. You can also get tired adrenals from physical pains not just emotional. And if we arrive at perimenopause with exhausted adrenals, you may find this can add to your symptoms, but more on this in a bit!
The adrenals also produce hormones that help regulate your metabolism, immune system, and blood pressure.
DHEA and Androgenic Steroids are produced by the adrenals and they are weak male hormones. They are precursor hormones that are converted in the ovaries into female hormones (estrogens) and in the testes into male hormones (androgens). Before menopause, estrogens and androgens are produced in much larger amounts by the ovaries and testes.
So fast forward to perimenopause and menopause and the role of our adrenals really becomes like a trojan goddess. Just a reminder, perimenopause is the lead up to menopause, can last up to 10 years and that is when you might experience most of your symptoms. Menopause kicks in 1 year after you have had your last period. The average age of menopause is 51.
Back to our beautiful adrenals. During the perimenopause, when the hormone levels drop in our ovaries, it is our wonderful walnut-shaped friends that take over a lot of the female hormone production from our ovaries and become the main site of estrogen. They also make some progesterone too. This places even more stress on our adrenals and, if they are unable to cope with the pressure, it can lead to adrenal fatigue. Here are some symptoms of adrenal fatigue:
Inability to cope with increased physical or emotional stress
Poor sleep patterns
Difficulty waking in the morning
Cravings for salt or salty foods
Energy fluctuations
Reduced sex drive
Fatigue
Recurrent infections
Depression and irritability
Blood pressure fluctuations, particularly low blood pressure
Lack of motivation and inability to perform daily tasks with ease
Reduced mental clarity and memory
Blood glucose fluctuations
Afternoon energy slumps
Desire to sleep after stressful events
Reduced productivity
Sounds a bit scary, doesn’t it? But don’t worry, there are some tips and tricks that can be incorporated into your life, to help your adrenals flourish with the extra jobs they must do in menopause.
1/ Identify your stressors
Sit down with a cup of something non caffeinated (caffeine raises cortisol levels!) and make a list of everything that is stressing you out right now, however big or small. Then you can pop those in order of priority - things that need to be attended to now at the top and things that can wait underneath. There are some stressors we can’t get away from, but there are some that can be delegated, or even just got on with to remove from your list. I always feel calmer when I’ve made a list! My wonderful coach Sophie Breslin from One Of Many gave me this little nugget.
2/ Get some stress busting activities going
Pilates, yoga, running, weight training (we all know we’re supposed to be adding that into our exercise regime in our 40s), and meditation (doesn’t have to be the om hippy vibes, but grabbing a few breaths when you can) allows your central nervous system to reset - one client does her breathing on the loo! Walk in nature with your beloved pooch or borrow one if you don’t have one! Have tea with a friend or call someone you’ve been meaning to.
3/ Nourish your body
So, we know caffeine, alcohol, sugar and refined foods are crap for us and can actually bring on higher levels of cortisol and stress to our body. We then come crashing down and, like an addict, we search for the next fix. But banning all those things might seem like a huge punishment, so try swopping your chocolate bar for 85% chocolate (it’s good for you, and you won’t need as much as it is much richer, so you won’t get a sugar crash either!) Try swopping some of your caffeine to decaf and herbal teas. Cook from scratch with whole foods (one of my young clients didn’t know what a whole food was, but only knew the store!!!! She does now!) Whole foods will keep you fuller for longer and stop those crashes of energy when you might be tempted to reach for the caffeine and sweets.
Quick salmon supper
Click on this link to my adrenal-loving quick mid-week supper, that you can put together in around 30 mins.
4/ Sleep sleep and more sleep
Sort out your sleep hygiene by making your bedroom a welcoming place to rest. Tidy all the clothes away, pick up the dirty washing from the floor and make sure you sleep in complete darkness. If that is not possible, consider wearing an eye mask. I wear silicone earplugs as I sleep next to a foghorn! Try turning in a bit earlier, treat yourself to that bath with those healing Epsom salts and maybe even spend a few moments lying in bed breathing and thinking of 3 things you are grateful for.
5/ Move…..
However you can get it - run up and down the stairs, go for a brisk walk, a run – get your heart pumping and expel some of that pent up energy that sits there and makes you stressed.
6/ Laugh, laugh, laugh and then laugh again!
It really is the best medicine, and if you can giggle away with someone else, you will both get that oxytocin release going on (feel good vibes).
7/ Cry it out too
Just as laughing is the best medicine, sometimes a good cry can release stuck patterns and just make you feel less burdened. After your cry, if possible, connect with a friend, a pet or even just go to the shops, to be around someone, or have a chat on the phone. This will help your nervous system to regulate and calm down.
Ideas To Nourish Your Adrenals
Eat clean- organic where possible, fresh, whole foods, locally grown and in season without added crap.
Add extra protein to your diet, and if you don’t eat meat or fish then add beans, nuts and seeds. Try and eat protein with every meal.
Try some gluten free alternatives like brown/wild rice, quinoa, buckwheat and millet.
Foods to support
Vitamin C , E and all the Bs have crucial roles in the production and actions of stress hormones.
Vitamin C red and orange fruits, rainbow vegetables
Vitamin E avos, nuts, seeds, spinach, asparagus
B6 sunflower seeds, wheatgerm, fish (tuna salmon trout responsibly sourced)
Magnesium provides necessary energy for your adrenals and every cell in your body to function properly.
Magnesium dark green leafy veg, fish, nuts, seeds and whole grains (I personally always supplement with magnesium as it helps my restless legs and achy muscles.)
Calcium and several trace minerals, like zinc, manganese, selenium, and iodine produce calming effects in the body, which will help restore normal cortisol levels.
Calcium. dairy foods, dark leafy greens, soy
Zinc fresh oysters (yummy) sardines, beef, lamb, turkey, soybeans
Hope this has been helpful
Hannah xxx
