When Morag and Laura talk about menopause, we mean the stages of peri menopause, menopause itself and life beyond menopause. Whilst the menopause is not necessarily a stressful time, it occurs during midlife when we may be dealing with other life challenges, such as parents’ ill-health or bereavement, children, children leaving home (or not leaving home), or work demands. In fact, women over the age of 50 are the fastest growing segment of the workforce, and most will go through the menopause transition during their working lives. Not only do we have complexities of work-life balance to cope with, now there are more hormone changes to consider!
Hormonal changes of the menopause affect every woman differently so working out how best to manage these changes requires individual support. Whilst we are all unique, attention to diet, lifestyle and mental health is important for us all since the later effects of the menopause and oestrogen deficiency can be helped by adopting a balanced a lifestyle. How can we at Moonstir help?
Physical health during menopause
This year, World Menopause Day focused on bone health. Research tells us women who exercise and follow a balanced diet can cope better with menopausal changes. At the same time, we can protect ourselves against other diseases like osteoporosis and heart disease. Laura Leslie is an expert in nutritional health with a passion for whole body support. She designs programmes to suit each individual at their unique stage in life, understanding pre-existing medical conditions and building nutritional plans to accommodate each woman’s needs. Laura is a keen runner and knows that adding exercise into our daily routine has also been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease, breast cancer and osteoporosis. But we don’t need to suddenly join a gym or take up marathons like Laura, brisk walking is a great form of exercise too for whole body health! Talking to Laura about early about your menopausal journey can in fact be lifechanging. Here are her contact details https://www.laura-leslie.com/one-to-one-consultation-packages
Mental health for Menopausal Symptoms
Cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) is a talking therapy with a sound research base for assisting for a range of health problems. During menopause we can see increased anxiety and stress, depressed mood, hot flushes and night sweats with sleep problems and fatigue (to name just a few symptoms).
Morag Ormiston is a Cognitive Behavioural Therapist who helps people to develop new coping skills and useful strategies to deal with both physical and mental symptoms. CBT focuses on the links between thoughts, feelings, physical symptoms and behaviour. The way we think about symptoms tends to affect how we feel and what we do, and these reactions can in turn increase intensity of bodily reactions. It can become a vicious cycle leading to avoidance, withdrawal, negative views of yourself and ultimately mental ill health.
CBT is an effective treatment for stress, anxiety, depression, physiological responses, tiredness, hot flushes, self-esteem and for coping with the lifestyle changes we experience during menopause. Talking to Morag will help you gain control over what can feel like an overwhelming period of change in your life. More information available at https://www.moonstir.co.uk/psychotherapycoaching
Our combined programme
At Moonstir, we see physical and mental health as integral; we cannot have one without the other. The bio-psychosocial model is key to do maintaining and improving health hence our combined programme is being developed with this in mind. Morag and Laura are currently researching some key developments in this area with a view of having a new offering in 2022!
Whether you’re taking a proactive approach to menopause like Morag and Laura are doing, or whether you’re in the thick of your menopausal journey and want some guidance on how to cope now, we have you in our minds. Let us be part of your journey to menopausal health, arrange a confidential call now.
