The Truth About The Menopause

Did you watch The Truth About The Menopause by Mariella Frostrop? I did and I’m sure a lot of women at perimenopause and menopause stage of life watched it too.

Did you learn anything new?

What I learnt on The Truth About The Menopause

Being perimenopausal with perpetual brain fog and jet lag, due to insomnia, I was very interested to learn about hormone replacement therapy (HRT).

My insomnia and disturbed sleep has got so bad, that I am considering going on HRT.

The programme opened with Mariella showing us the oestrogen cream and progesterone tablets that she takes. My first reactions was ‘Ugghhh!’.

Since my nutritional therapy studies, I am more precious about what I put on, as well as in my body.

I no longer buy commercial facial moisturisers and use now use a combination of organic oils, for this reason. Sadly I still use commercial body moisturiser, as I have yet to find one that makes my skin feel comfortable.

But Mariella looks healthy and vibrant, so I continued to watch. The programme continues with her on a visit to her gynaecologist, who specialises in the menopause.

I mentioned to my fiance that her gynaecologist must be doing well. She has a clinic in what looks like an expensive area of London. It’s definitely NOT NHS service. I should know, I work for the NHS!

Perimenopause Symptoms

On the programme, Mariella met other women with different menopause symptoms. The main focus on symptoms is on hot flushes. One woman she interviewed had such severe hot flushes, that she had to give up work! How awful!

Luckily what I term as ‘hot flushes’, do not feel any worse than just feeling slightly hot. Although a couple of weeks ago, I remember waking up in the middle of the night feeling really hot!

I could feel the heat rising from my chest, right up into my head. The heat was enough to give me a headache. I often worry how these extreme changes of heat and hormones affect my long-term mental health and memory.

The fear of losing my compos mentis and getting Alzheimer’s is real.

Menopause Osteoporosis

Due to the lack of oestrogen, women have an increased risk for osteoporosis. Hormones are a b****r aren’t they?

In the programme, Mariella was seen on a dexa scanner to measure her bone density. In comparison to her previous results, her current results show that without changing anything else in her lifestyle, her bone density improved just on HRT alone.

This is a great result for her. But what natural options do the rest of us mere mortals, who can’t afford private healthcare have?

The show does include a mini experiment on how exercise improves bone density. But these were only a group of 20 women and are not representative of the rest of us.

Menopause Diet

Mariella then took a group of women out for a sushi. You know where this is going.

The women also brought an array of supplements and other herbs etc that they use to control their menopause symptoms. They also discussed how oily fish, soy isoflavones and similar supplements aim to balance female hormones.

Unfortunately the programme provides little scientific evidence to back up the results that women achieved from the supplements, diet and exercise.

Different women will get different results, namely because of diet, lifestyle, stress, illnesses and other factors come into play.

Perimenopause And Menopause Nutritional Therapist

My peri menopause symptoms gives me great interest in this subject. My insomnia and the lack of menopause advice, are my driving force in finding ways to feel good and have vibrant energy during the ‘Age of Change’.

Being a Midwife, I know that women at childbearing stage have a lot of support compared to women at perimenopause and menopause.

As a Nutritional Therapist, this is what I focus my knowledge and skills on. It is my aim to support women at this stage in life.

A Taboo Subject

Perimenopause and menopause is currently a taboo subject. The programme illustrates people’s thoughts about the latter part of life. But it doesn’t have to be the end of life and we don’t have to lose ourselves or our identity.

This is what I will explore at Warm Blush. I aim to make my journey through the perimenopause and menopause a celebration of a new stage in my life and hopefully the lives of other women.