Step into you Peri Power

Question.

What if all the symptoms you’re experiencing during your perimenopausal years are a sign, a signal, an offering from the universe to take a look at your life and make a change?

You might be thinking, crippling anxiety, painful breasts, heart palpitations and rage don’t feel like a calling Heather.

Stay with me.

This could be your bodies way of saying it’s time to look after yourself more. And that rage? Maybe it’s your power. Maybe the anxiety is telling you that there are elements of your life that must change, again, your power. Now is the time to listen to your body, listen to your heart and make those changes, step into your power.

But what exactly does that look like? We’ll it’s different for all of us. So I’ll share what it looked like for me.

Firstly it meant learning about perimenopause. I trained with Sally Parkes and Rachel Boon in Menoyoga®. This was ground breaking for me. I learnt so much about what was going on in my body and what I could do physically and in terms of the food I consumed to help myself.

Secondly it meant reading, almost everything I could find on this subject. From personal stories, to books about HRT, the brain and those which took a much more spiritual approach to this life transition. I read it all. Some books made me cry, some made me so angry and others I just put about 1000 sticky notes in. My top perimenopause books and why — Deaville Yoga

Thirdly I taught, I shared and I connected with a wonderful group of women to support them through their perimenopause journey’s . And trust me when I say, their support taught me so much too.

Then came action, me stepping into my power.

1. I started saying no to things. If it wasn’t a full bodies yes, it was a no. I needed to rest, do what I loved and keep my energy for myself and my family.

2. I started tracking my period and my moods and symptoms (there’s loads of aps out there you can do this with) and this was great because I saw patterns and could plan my work/life around that (mostly, you know the perimenopause eh!)

3. I stopped drinking, first alcohol, then caffeine. If this is something you’re toying with check out this podcast: What Alcohol Does to Your Body, Brain & Health - Huberman Lab

4. I tried HRT. Unfortunately it didn’t work for me. My body reacted badly and I had to stop, but I’m glad I tried it as I’ve seen it help so many women Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) - NHS

5. I started to grow my rest practice, using 20 minute yoga nidra’s daily to get some real deep rest: Yoga Nidra 22min | Guided Relaxation Meditation - YouTube

6. And I read a lot of books around happiness, which has lead to a deep interest in Buddhism and meditation.

7. And I always came back to my yoga practice, trying each time to make it what I needed. Sometimes gentle, sometime transformative, sometimes silly and sometimes all about stepping into my power as a perimenopausal queen. Yoga for Perimenopause Power | 15 min Class - YouTube

You’re journey will be different from mine, but I hope that in sharing mine yours will be easier.

Lets grow Happier, Older and Wiser together ladies.

Love and hugs as always, Heather*

6 Essential oils to support your perimenopause

As a yoga teacher and an aromatherapist I’m a big fan of taking a holistic approach to all stages of life. And one way you can do this is with essential oils.

Firstly, lets go over some safety.

1. Don’t take essential oils internally.

2. Don’t use the oil neat on your skin, always dilute with a carrier oil, rapeseed oil from the kitchen will do, I use sweet almond oil.

3. Check oils for contraindications and if you are on any medication please check with your Dr if it’s safe to use essential oils.

The best way to experience the wonderful benefits of essential oils is aromatically, through inhalation (unless your having a massage that is - bliss!)

And the simplest way to do this is by dropping one drop of essential oil onto a cotton pad and taking a few deep breaths. You can also diffuse essential oils and there is a great range of diffusers on the market.

So, what essential oils will support you during your perimenopause? I could list loads, but I’m going to keep it simple with 6.

1. Bergamot. This is a lovely citrus oil, it’s uplifting and energising so great to reach for if you’re feeling low and tired.

2. Rose. This oil is for me the oil of self love. It opens our hearts so that we can put ourselves at the center of all we do and why. It helps us connect to what our heart has to tell us at this time of transformation.

3. Vetiver. This oil is the queen of sleep and for anyone whose struggled with their sleep during perimenopause this could be a great oil for you to try. It’s a very grassy in smell so I often recommend you use one drop of vetiver and pair it with a floral oil like geranium or lavender to sweeten it.

4. Rosemary. Great for concentration and brain fog. When I need to focus this is the oil I reach for.

5. Roman Chamomile. A really soothing and calming essential oil, this has become a regular go to for me. I find it helps release heat and tension from the body and mind. In turn helping me connect to my inner voice and wisdom.

6. Rosewood. This is a more unusual oil and is wonderful for protecting your energy, or aura. This can be great for when you need to preserve your energy for yourself or want to protect your energy from negative outside influences.

Other oils I regularly use and share with my perimenopause yoga students are Clary Sage, Frankincense, Benzoin, Lemon, Tea Tree and Sandalwood. I love combining essential oils with my yoga practice, I find it deepens and enriches my experience of both.

If you’re looking to buy essential oils I’d recommend you head to the ATC Membership List : Aromatherapy Trade Council and check out whose on there. Personally I use Base Formula and Neal’s Yard, I’m not affiliated to either.

I have some lovely free essential oils classes which you can access here: Energising Yoga Class w/ Lemon & Peppermint Essential Oils | 20 min | Beginner suitable | Uplifting - YouTube there not perimenopause specific, but were filmed during my perimenopause journey.

I hope this has been useful and if you have any questions please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Lets grow Happier, Older and Wiser together ladies.

Love and hugs as always, Heather*

Perimenopause Power

Wahoooooh! Well, if the title didn’t get your attention then I hope the energy of my whoop did.

It’s taken me years to find the grove of my perimenopause power and I want to share with you today what it is I’ve learnt and you find your perimenopausal power.

You may be questioning my use of the word power, especially if your struggling like I did with numerous perimenopause symptoms and getting through the day feels like a struggle, but bare with me and keep reading, I promise you’ll find some gold.

MY TOP PERI POWER TIPS:

1. The power of NO. Oh my gosh, say no as much as you can (I’m not kidding). This is a time when you need to rest and really focus on what feels good and right for you. Don’t want to go to the ptfa meeting. DON’T. Don’t want to go for drinks on Friday night. DONT. Don’t want to be pulled here there and everywhere by commitments. DONT. Just start saying no, say, thanks so much for the invitation but it’s a no from me this time, or I’m afraid I can’t help out because I’m busy. I know this can feel scary as you might worry that you won’t get invited again (FOMO calling) but you will, trust me and if you don’t then the invitation wasn’t from true friends. Remember, if it’s not a full bodied YES during perimenopause, then it’s a flat out NO!!!!!!!

2. Say YES to what you want to do. As women we’re kick ass at putting others first, so don’t worry about that for a movement. It’s time to put yourself first. Say YES to the things you love, whatever they may be. Do more of them. More girly nights in, more sauna’s and swims, more yoga, more walking, more reading, more naps in the afternoon. More yes yes yes to what you want and love to do. This is so soothing for your souls and will reduce your stress levels (helping ease those peri symptoms) and boost your enjoyment of YOUR life. Trust me, do it now. Cancel something your not looking forward to and book something you are!

3. DO LESS. You are going through a huge transition and having a jam packed life does not leave any space for your body, brain and being to do that. You need time doing nothing. Honestly if I could persuade you to do one thing today it would be to do less. You are not superhuman, so stop trying to be. You’re a beautiful woman who needs rest just as much as everyone else. You’re going through a huge transition and you need downtime for that to happen. The emotions that arise at this time need space to be sat with and listened too and you can only listen to your inner wisdom when you have the time to sit and do nothing.

4. EMPOWER YOURSELF. That’s what my blog is all about really, I want you to learn more about what’s going on during perimenopause and find tools that support you through this incredible, if sometimes challenging, transition. And you can do this by reading books about this subject, check out My top perimenopause books. Learning about the Hormonal changes during Perimenopause and how they affect you at different times during your cycle. What you can do to support yourself and your friends during this transition, like ways to improve your sleep Top 6 tips - Perimenopause and Sleep and how Yoga can help you today 3 reasons why you should practice yoga during Perimenopause.

Start right now.

1. Cancel something

2. Book something lovely in

3. Stare into space for a bit

4. And then order that perimenopause book

Lets grow Happier, Older and Wiser together ladies.

Love and hugs as always, Heather*

What I wish I’d known about Perimenopause

My mum went through the menopause at the age of 41. Today, I’m 43. Women’s cycling years (periods) generally mimic or mothers, unless your on hormonal birth control that is. Perimenopause symptoms typically start 3-7 years before you transition into menopause, so it’s likely that I went straight from being postnatal with my son (born when I was 36) into perimenopause.

So, before my perimenopause journey began, what do I wish I’d known . . .

1. That the symptoms of menopause start before menopause! And that this is called perimenopause. I knew my menopause experience was likely to be earlier than a lot of my friends, but I didn’t know that you got any symptoms before your periods stopped so I wasn’t expecting them in my late 30’s.

2. That this isn’t something that happens to “old ladies with grey hair” and all they you experience are hot flashes! This stereotypical image of a menopausal women doesn’t fit my experience at all, and that scared me and made me doubt my own experience time and time again. If this is you, I feel for you, but do not doubt yourself- trust those instincts!

3. The word perimenopause and what it means, What is Perimenopause? — Deaville Yoga I’d never heard it before.

4. it would have been so useful to know how to recognise that all the symptoms I was experiencing in my late 30’s were perimenopause. Not knowing this left me feeling lost and confused by what was happening to my body physically and emotionally.

5. That I wasn’t going mad. I felt like I was when I was feeling anxious, crying for no reason or flying into periods of rage. That actually all of this was as a result of hormonal changes, and that there was a whole wealth of things I could do to support myself was amazing to learn. Hormonal changes during Perimenopause — Deaville Yoga

6. Anything about what was going on with my body hormonally. This actually goes for my whole hormonal cycle, from periods starting, through 2 pregnancies and now in my perimenopausal years. The Hormone Repair Manual by Lara Briden and the Menopause Brain by Dr Lisa Mosconi, are two great books for understanding the science behind these vitally important changes My top perimenopause books and why — Deaville Yoga

7. How important it would be to having a community of women also going through perimenopause to support, laugh and cry with me - I wish I’d known in those lonely hours awake in the night that I would form a community of women who really understood what I was going through and would see and respect me for who I am today. And tomorrow. And in a years time when I’ve changed again.

8. The power of the word no. I wish I’d learnt this sooner. I now proiritise saying say no to others and yes to myself.

9. That I don’t need to uphold any standards when it come to my yoga practice. I can accept that my body simply doesn’t enjoy certain poses any more. I can meet my body where it is today.

10. That also, despite all the hardships, the anxiety, depression, rage and disillusionment. That I would, with the right support and knowledge, learn to absolutely love this transition. Books like Second Spring by Kate Cordrington and Wise Power, The Red School, were a huge part of this evolution for me. My top perimenopause books and why — Deaville Yoga

I hope this blog and my others will reach hundreds of women, so that they can start to gain the knowledge they need to enjoy their perimenopause, so please do forward this onto the women in your life who may need this.

Also, get in touch, let me know, what do you wish you’d known before you entered perimenopause? Please let me know in the comments below.

Together lets live our best Peri HOW, Happier, Older, Wiser.

Love and hugs,

Heather*

Top 6 tips - Perimenopause and Sleep

Waking up in the middle of the night and being unable to get back to sleep is a common experience during the perimenopausal years (unsure when this is, click here.)

Firstly please know that you are not alone. And also know that there are different tools you can use to help you though the emotionally and physically exhausting experience of disrupted sleep.

Here are my top 6 tips on how to cope with and hopefully improve your sleep and find more rest.

1. Acceptance Did you know that waking for a few hours in the middle of the night, known as biphasic sleep, is actually a very natural thing to do. In Medieval times (and before) everyone in the community would be awake for 2 hours in the night (usually between 11 and 1am), doing whatever they wanted, eating, household chores, chatting to family and friends (there was a lot of bed sharing going on!)

   So don’t worry, nighttime waking might not be normal for you, but it is normal, so don’t let it stress you out. If you’re awake, your awake. The forgotten medieval habit of 'two sleeps' - BBC Future

2. No phones in bed Numerous studies have shown that turning off or stopping looking at hand held devices, particular phones 1.5 - 2hrs before you go to bed has a huge impact on how quickly you fall asleep and the quality of your sleep.

   If it’s hard for practical reasons to turn your phone off in the early evening. Try just not looking at it in bed and see how that helps. 6 Ways That Night-time Phone Use Destroys Your Sleep | Psychology Today Canada

3. Stick to a set wake up time Even at the weekends, the more you can stick to waking up at the same time the better your sleep will be as your body and especially your brain loves to follow a pattern.

   Establishing a regular sleep pattern helps improve the bodies circadian rhythm and leaves you feel well rested - good sleep is so important for good energy levels and mood. Even when life is busy don’t let this slip as it really serves you well. Consistent Wake-Up Time: Sleep’s Surprising MVP - Headspace

4. Meditate Whenever you can but especially before you go to bed, or at 2am when you wake up and can’t fall back to sleep, try meditation or Yoga Nidra. There’s loads of free classes online (hmmm breaks the phone rule though, life is nothing if it’s not contradictory!)

   Keeping the body in a calming meditative state, where you can tap into your parasympathetic nervous system (rest and digest,) helps to slow down your heart rate, breathing and helps you to feel calm and relaxed. Even if your not asleep you can rest deeply in meditation so when you do wake for the day at 6am you don’t feel exhausted.

   Also, if you meditate or practice Yoga Nidra during the day, it can give you a even brief period of deep rest which will boost your energy levels for the rest of the day.

5. Exercise and nutrition Think about eating well and exercising regularly. I highly recommend for nutrition you look to experts in the Menopause field like Lara Briden, Rachel Boon and Karen Newby. Women I’ve found to be great sources of accurate advice on eating well during perimenopause.

   And for exercise, well firstly do exercise, don’t worry if things aren’t quite the same as they used to be, your changing and that aerobics class isn’t going to do what it did for you in your 20’s. Gentle to moderate yoga is a wonderful practice to adopt at this time, when you find the right teacher you’ll find not only do you grow more flexible and stronger, it will also more peace and calm into your life, giving you the tools you need to enjoy your perimenopausal life.

   Think about when is the best time for you to exercise - they’re isn’t a one size fits all answer to this, here’s a link to a great article which will help you The Best Time of Day to Exercise for Sleep | Sleep Foundation although generally speaking don’t do crazy cardio and then expect to just drop off to sleep

6. Magnesium Is known to reduce cortisol, which is a stress hormone, levels and have a calming affect on the brain, which helps to improve our sleep.

   Try to eat magnesium rich foods, such as nuts, leafy greens, legumes, soy products (organic if you can) avocadoes, banana and even good quality dark choclate Foods rich in magnesium: 11 to eat for better sleep | Woman & Home

   Or you could consider taking a supplement (please get advice from a trusted source, ie a nutritionist as to a good supplement.)

There are more things I could add to this list, cut out alcohol (not a perimenopausal woman’s friend trust me) reduce caffeine intake, get out into daylight as soon as you can when you wake up, but these 6 are a great place to start and I’ve seen them support so many of my own yoga students to a place where they feel happier and more in control of their sleep and night-time waking’s.

Until next time, I hope you are enjoying growing Older, stepping into your Wisdom and finding deep Happiness.

With love,

Heather*

My top Perimenopause books

There are loads of great books about perimenopause out there. But these 4 are my favourites that I refer back to and recommend all the time. They’re in no particular order, so take a look at my brief summary and what I love about them and then grab yourself the one which most appeals to you (or 2, or 3, or all 4.) There are no paid links in this blog.

The Hormone Repair Manual by Lara Briden.

What I like:

• Great information to help you understand exactly what is going on during your perimenopausal years.

• Great information on a variety of symptoms, including causes, and what you can do to help yourself when experiencing them.

• A fantastic mix of science, nutrition, HRT and holistic advice which all comes together to give you back some control during these turbulant times.

Extra: Check our Lara’s website for a massive range of information on periods, perimenopause and menopause here.

Second Spring by Kate Codrington

What I like:

• An incredible holistic overview of the different stages of perimenopause, menopause and our post menopausal years.

• An honest and frank book with practical meditations, mantras and holistic practices you can easily use to support yourself.

• Filled with real life stories to help you deeply realise that you are not alone, far from it.

• This book offers guidance, like a best friend of a book, supporting you through these sometimes turbulent years.

• The hope. This is a time of transformation, not to be feared, but revered - I’m on board with that!

The Menopause Brain by Dr Lisa Mosconi

What I like:

• Key message that your not loosing your mind, quite the contrary, your brain is rewiring itself for a higher purpose - whoop!

• Science backing up a holistic approach to women’s health during the perimenopause and menopause

• Explaining what is going on and the deep connection between our hormones and our brain - fascinating stiuff!

• Deep dive on the benefits of hormonal and non hormonal therapies

• 100 pages on the importance of an all round approach to your health at this time - one size does not fit all and one aproach does not tend to reduce all your symptoms.

• This is a great book for giving you the tools and knowledge you need to make the best choices for you.

Extra: Check out Dr Mosconi’s Ted Talk: Lisa Mosconi: How menopause affects the brain | TED Talk

Wise Power, Red School, Alexandra Pope and Sjanie Hugo Wurlitzer

What I like:

• A completely holistic approach to the perimenopause experience, but grounded in the reality of the experience too.

• Offering you guidance on how to cope and honour the emotional changes that occur

• Giving you hope and belief in yourself that even in the darkest of times, you will get through this and emerge more wonderful than every before.

• A framework in which to put your experience in (fluid as those frames may be) which allows you to truly experience the incredible change that is occurring in your body.

• This book empowers, honors, cherishes and celebrates the perimenopause years and beyond.

Extra: Check out their podcast for loads of great interviews and conversations around the perimenopause The Menstruality Podcast | Red School

In conclusion… every woman’s experience of the perimenopausal years is different, I could have recommended 20 books, I could have picked just 2. But I wanted to offer a range of books which would appeal to a range of women who all have their own needs, demands, desires and preferences.

I’d recommend if you can to choose one book from the above that immediately calls to you. And one that doesn’t.

Your brain is being rewired (which I’ll tell anyone who’ll listen to me) so open it up to something new, and you just might find something magical which help transforms your perimenopause experience.

Lets love growing Older, Wiser and Happier ladies,

Heather*

email me heather@deavilleyoga.com with your perimenopause book suggestions - I’d love to know them.

3 reasons why you should practice yoga during Perimenopause

Firstly yoga is fantastic for reducing stress, which can be at an all time high during perimenopause.

It’s quite likely that during your perimenopausal years, which could start in your mid 40’s (or sooner) and continue for up to an average of 3-7 years, that you are going to be busy working, raising a family and life is going to jam packed with work/life commitments.

Add into that mix achy joints, night sweats, anxiety, brain fog, disturbed sleep, and any number of perimenopause symptoms (find a list here: What is Perimenopause?) And, well, then you have the perfect storm for stress.

Yoga is a great antidote to stress, many forms of yogic breathing, referred to as pranayama, are specifically designed to help us release stress from the body, bringing us into a calm state of rest and digest. It does this by activating what is known as our parasympathic nervous system. This 20 minute free class is specifically designed to help reduce your stress levels, so give it a go.

Secondly, yoga is also wonderful for reducing feelings of anxiety, which might pop up from out of no where, which feels unnerving to say the least. I remember frequently wondering why on earth I felt anxious when they was seemingly no real reason.

As I learnt more about the hormonal changes during perimenopause, check out my blog on these here. I started to understand that it was these hormonal shifts that were causing my anxiety, which was a relief, but it didn’t mean those feelings just went away.

So I turned to my yoga practice once more. Moving gentle and kindly, and working with mantras like “It’s going to be okay” I found I was able to support myself through those days and weeks each cycle where I just couldn’t shake off my anxiety.

Yoga is designed to help us find a deeper connection to our bodies, minds and souls and when we do this we feel more grounded and centered, which helps those feelings of anxiety slip away. I’ve created a lovely free class for you to enjoy on YouTube here:

And thirdly, yoga is great for getting our joints moving, which helps to ease those common perimenopause aches and pains. I remember waking up some mornings and thinking, “oh my god, I feel like I’ve never even practiced yoga.” I was so stiff and everything ached.

I found that gentle rhythmical movements (like those in the class above) really helped to ease out my early morning aches and pains.

By gently rotating our joins we encourage blood and lymph (a fluid in the body that delivers nutrients and proteins to your muscles) to head to these areas and this really helps us to feel less achy. It’s especially important to do this before you get into a more challenging yoga practice, or before you go running as it helps to cushion and protect the joints.

With limited time I also regularly reached for this morning practice below:

Yoga can support you during the perimenopause transition in so many wonderful ways. In this blog I’ve touched on just 3 of hundreds, and I hope they help you. Heather*

Hormonal changes during Perimenopause

So, what exactly is causing all these physical and emotional changes in your 40’s?

During perimenopause, the years leading up to Menopause, you may experience any number of changes in mood as well as physical changes, maybe some of the symptoms listed in my What is Perimenopause blog article will ring true for you.

And why is this happening? Well, it’s your hormones. And not just your sex hormones, known as progesterone, oestrogen and testosterone, there’s others involved, stress hormones in particular, but our sex hormones are the main instigators so that’s what were going to fucus on.

During perimenopause the first thing that happens is that progesterone levels lower, and when that happens you may experience some of the following.

Symptoms of low progesterone:

• Feeling of anxiety

• Your periods may become irregular

• Your cycle length may shorten

• You may get spotting in the luteal phase of your cycle, although you should always get this investigated if you're worried. Note, The Luteal phase of your cycle is the days or weeks after you have ovulated, before your period comes or pregnancy occurs.

• Depression

• Water retention

• Migraines

  Secondly oestrogen peters out, but not without some major ups and downs. And when that happens you may experience:

  High Oestrogen:

• Breast pain

• Heavy periods

• Fibroids (non-cancerous growths that develop in or around the womb (uterus) and vary in size. They can cause heavy periods, pain, infertility and other complications, and are linked to the hormone oestrogen.)

• Fluid retention

• Irritability

• Anxiety

  Low Oestrogen:

• Depression

• Anxiety

• Weight gain

• Hot flushes/night sweats

• Insomnia

• Hair loss

• Vaginal atrophy

• Vaginal dryness

• Inflammation

• Muscle aches and pains

Now you may be reading this thinking but I have symptoms of both high and low Oestrogen, and low progesterone, what's going on?

Well, our hormone levels change throughout the day and throughout the weeks of our cycle (which is what makes blood testing for perimenopause so inaccurate) so it would make sense that you have a range of symptoms and some that might cross over.

What I would recommend you do, is take 5 minutes now to write down the symptoms you’ve experienced, and do this every few days from now on (or daily if life allows) and over time you may seem a pattern forming that helps you to work out which stage of perimenopause you are in. Or maybe it just reassures you that you are perimenopausal, which I certainly found a relief to know.

Please let me know if you have any questions from the blog above or if anything isn’t quite clear heather@deavilleyoga.com I’d love to hear from you!

I’s also highly recommend this blog post from Lara Briden, which includes a great graph of what goes on with your hormones throughout your life.