Treating Menopause with Chinese Medicine

I want to start by saying that menopause is not, as so many people seem to think, a disease. In my opinion, because so many women have symptoms, most of which are due to hormone imbalances that started at a much earlier age, menopause is seen as something being wrong rather than a natural part of life.

In Chinese medicine and in a lot of the ancient cultures women in menopause where respected for their wisdom and experience of life. It is the end of menstruation and the beginning of a new stage for women which was considered a very powerful time.

The status of older women in cultures seems to be a key influence on how they experience menopause. In cultures where older women are valued, menopause is either a positive experience or not even noticed.

But in the youth-obsessed culture of the West, where the emphasis is on youth and beauty not maturity. Menopause is seen as  “loss” – of fertility, rather than on transition and “gain” – of wisdom and freedom, the medical or “disease” model of menopause is dominant.

Hormone imbalances can start much younger than our 40s and 50’s it can start around the time of monarch, we see this with girls who suffer with irregular or painful periods, bad acne or mood swings.

Stress is a big factor in hormone imbalance as it directly affects the cortisol, adrenals and thyroid and then the oestrogen etc. And of course we also have external hormones and hormone disrupters in our food, wrappers, plastic bottles, body creams, cosmetics as well as cleaning agents.

When we keep our bodies healthy, learn distressing techniques and regulate the period then we keep our hormones balanced and menopause does not become a disease! We then get the opportunity to enjoy our life of freedom.

Chinese Medicine treats hormone imbalance with acupuncture, herbal medicine and nutrition.