Rosio (Rosie) is a Compassionate Inquiry® Practitioner, a Private Mentor, and an Excited Curiosity Coach. The first-generation daughter of migrant parents, her life is shaped by two languages and two ways of belonging. Priya is a registered naturopathic doctor who focuses on women’s health, breast cancer, autoimmune conditions, addictions, and mental health. She’s also a Compassionate Inquiry® Practitioner, Facilitator, Educator, Mentor, and Circle Leader.
This post is a short edited excerpt of Priya & Rosie’s conversation about how menopause disrupts women’s physical, emotional, and mental health. Hear their interview on The Gifts of Trauma Podcast.
Recommended Reading: Hormone Repair Manual, Lara Briden
Dr. Priya Duggal: The Compassionate Teaching Naturopath’s Lens
I’m here today as a woman going through menopause, that adventure of life. A woman sitting with many fans and a shawl. As I have been on this journey for some time, my intention is to share how the changes I’ve made have impacted me, from my diet to my lifestyle and my being. Also, how the Compassionate Inquiry® (CI) process brought compassion and kindness to me in this phase of life.
My patients ask, ‘Why am I so tired? Why can’t I do the things I used to do?’ They also judge themselves: ‘I see some women doing them; why can’t I?’ Many questions are around societal conditioning. ‘How do I look?’ Or, ‘How do I manage this? Rather than, ‘How do I care for my own well-being?’
Menopause is a genetically programmed phase of life, a natural event that occurs when the body is experiencing many physiological changes. It’s a reset, which brings up the questions, “How do I shift?” and “How do I slow down?” “How do I give myself time?” Naturopathic treatment is about educating and helping with diet, lifestyle, acupuncture, etc. Every woman experiencing menopause knows that it’s impacting her brain. Here’s what’s happening physiologically.
We have estrogen receptors throughout our body. In menopause, our estrogen and progesterone levels decline. Estrogen protects our brains and everything in the neurocircuitry responses. With decreasing progesterone, our HPA axis, which we talk about in polyvagal theory, is destabilized. Progesterone helps the GABA receptors to calm us down, so we need progesterone to sleep well. These changes remove our cushion of support. So along with brain fog and interrupted sleep. We become so sensitive that even little things in life touch us.
Due to the reduction of estrogen, the brain cannot utilize glucose well, which creates insulin resistance. Our body is producing lots of insulin, but our receptors are not taking glucose in, hence the brain fog. How can we tell if we have insulin resistance? There’s something called metabolic syndrome. When our impaired blood sugars get high, even if we haven’t reached prediabetic levels, abdominal fat is coming on, and our lipids are deranged, especially our triglycerides. Our liver enzymes are increasing and our blood pressure is going up. If all of this is not taken care of, insulin resistance becomes a major cause of health issues.
Menopause is also connected with heart issues. Estrogen gives females a protective cushion during our reproductive life. So when our estrogen levels fall, in combination with insulin resistance, we face the same risk of cardiovascular events as males, if not a higher risk.
Exercise and good nutrition play vital roles in managing our menopause experience. So really listen to your body. We all know that high-sugar, high-fat, processed foods are not good for us. So eating fewer grains, less meat, less acidic foods, and more alkaline foods can really help the metabolic shifts.
Menopause is a tipping point, a critical place for prevention. If I take care of myself, slow down, and change my diet, my brain adapts and uses ketones or fat rather than glucose. This is the healthy road. I sleep well, I take my time, and I soak up the sun. Because if I continue to live a crazy, ‘run-run’ life, health issues will start to occur.
Rosie Fuentes: The Compassionate, Curious Therapist’s Lens
Like Priya, I’m going through menopause, but my perspective comes from being born with a connective tissue disorder. I view this experience through that perspective. Yes, menopause is a rite of passage, but also, ‘What the hell is going on?’ My intention is to normalize what menopause does to the human body.
My clients’ questions are similar to those Priya’s patients ask, but they emphasize lack: what they’re no longer able to do or what they’re no longer doing and their related self-judgment. For example, if they lack sexual drive. ‘I’m no longer interested in my husband.’
We’ve all heard that eating well and exercising pretty much cure everything. But it’s so overwhelming it was difficult for me to get there. I’m still struggling to get my eating right. Priya, thank you for explaining the physiology. I noticed a lot of emotion as I listened, because something happened with my heart that took me to the ER. Now I’m on high blood pressure medication. Another time, I wasn’t feeling well and didn’t know what was wrong, so I consulted an endocrinologist, and now I’m on thyroid medication. Finally, because of brain fog and so much more, I said, “I need estrogen.” I’m against pharmaceutical medications, but now I need, and am grateful to have, three different forms of the white man’s medicine.
Priya: I’d like to talk about mind-body and conventional medicine. The latter views and treats our organs separately. Thyroid issues are conditions of the thyroid; rheumatoid arthritis is about connective tissues. But as humans, we cannot separate our bodies from our thoughts. Through mind-body medicine science, we know that we can change our moods by simply shifting our breathing patterns. We can regulate our hormones through our breath or by giving ourselves regular breaks. When we hijack our internal rhythm by abandoning the self, autoimmune conditions do come in. Since conventional medicine cannot address autoimmune conditions’ root causes, it can only provide symptomatic relief. Additionally, conventional medicine can’t discern if these conditions are hormonal or stress-related, when of course they are.
Rosie: We need to start educating women in their 30s so the impact is less horrific than it was for me. This conversation reinforces my intention to ensure women know that menopause is coming and how to respond. If we need the white man’s medicine, we’ll take it. We can also help ourselves by taking the healthy road, slowing down, and practicing self-compassion. It’s so important that we self-advocate and seek individualized care from people like Priya, naturopathic doctors, or CI therapists who can help us attune to ourselves. Individualized care is a must, so you don’t have to go through what we’ve gone through. I invite you to listen to what happens to your body when you’re trying to adapt to change. Be curious. How can you listen more and resist less?
Priya: Yes, and CI has been such a beautiful gift to me during menopause. It’s given me permission to slow down, to ease up at work, and to nap when I’m tired. So, be kind to yourself in this phase of life.
The Gifts of Trauma is a weekly podcast that features personal stories of trauma, transformation, healing, and the gifts revealed on the path to authenticity. Listen to the interview, and if you like it, please subscribe and share.
