About our menopause workshop

By Gillian Sinclair & Nicola Clare

Next week at Bath Natural Remedies my colleague Nicola Clare and I will be presenting part three of our workshops looking at women’s health during the menopausal phase of our lives.

Next week we are right in the heart of the hormonal storm – menopause. Menstruation may have ceased but there are plenty of new things happening in the hormonal world to disrupt our day to day lives.

From cotton wool brain to sleep loss, peaks of energy at exactly the wrong time to utter fatigue, and then on top of all that weight gain and a sudden “allergy” to our favourite glass of wine. What on earth is happening?

Nicola and I are passionate about women’s health and believe that information is power. Knowing and understanding what is happening in that
internal world that has suddenly gone public will give you a better understanding on what needs to be addressed, how to do that and what
habits needs to be changed or upgraded.

Erratic and plunging hormone levels play havoc with our homeostasis but if you take control through nutrition and supplements and have a few well indicated Homeopathic remedies to hand you can manage the symptoms more effectively.

This is a natural stage of our lives and despite some of the press which often turns the “problem” back onto some failing or other of our own design we can actually have a healthy menopause and enter our Wise Woman phase in good shape.

I am often told that Soya is the supplement needed as “Japanese women don’t suffer with menopause”. Really? It’s that simple? Let me just clear that myth up for you. Yes in Japan soya is a staple, eaten in many forms through their lives and is probably a contributing factor but
only a contribution. In Japan, as is the way with so many populations cancer and heart disease are the top two causes of death albeit in a much older population – Japan has one of the world’s healthiest and long living populations. But just looking at stats doesn’t take into account living environment, food quality, lifestyles and accessibility to good health care.

As far as menopause goes we have a lot to learn from Japanese women. The Japanese word for menopause is konenki which translates to “renewal years” or “energy season” Konenki is viewed as a natural, non-pathological transition, often embraced rather than feared.
Ko (更) = Renewal/Regeneration Nen (年) = Years Ki (期) = Season/Energy

So unlike western cultures in Japan menopause is seen, taught, discussed and experienced in the completely opposite way to the way we look at it. It is not an end but a new beginning. Kōnenki emphasises growth, self-discovery, and empowerment as opposed to our version of it which is usually – keep that face taught, and your breasts and don’t forget your bum, and have a good strong libido and you better be doing something significant
with your career/children/support for your husband’s career. And the list of warnings goes on.

Personally after the peri menopause I couldn’t wait for the menopause to kick in. Yes there were symptoms I wouldn’t have passed on to my worst enemy but I was free from the monthly mood cycle, menstruation which had become a nuisance and I could look forward to a more even life with less distractions.

Just as we teach our children to be nice and considerate to others I would suggest the same social norms can be applied to menopause. Let’s be a bit more positive about a natural transition leading to perhaps the most creative, thoughtful and valuable part of our lives. I’m ok with my post menopause face and my post menopause energy levels and most of all my much improved ability to not give two figs about so many of the tiny details of being a woman that actually turn out to be enormous red herrings.

Come and have a chat about the new Wise Woman phase of your life.
Nicola and I are looking forward to meeting you.

Thursday 21st May 6 – 7:30pm

£15 a ticket – includes a goody bag and a 20% off shopping voucher to be used on the night/within a month of the event!

PLEASE NOTE: This workshop will be held in a treatment room above the shop which involves stairs.

The cost of the ticket is redeemable against treatments with Gill or Nicola when booked within a month of the event.

To book, please call 01225 466944.