This is for the ladies of a certain age and stage - and their partners

World Menopause Day was on the18th October and we certainly need more than awareness days as every day is a day where we can pro-actively work on our own health and well-being.

A journalist asked my recently how to deal with overwhelm, anxiety or irritability – so if that feels familiar (and you don't even need to be menopausal for that matter), read on:

Many menopausal women experience a range of symptoms, both emotional and physical and being kind and loving to ourselves isn't always enough to manage these symptoms, although it certainly is a first step to prioritising self-care and one's well-being – as opposed to looking after everybody else instead.

When I hear that clients want to manage any feelings of being overwhelmed, anxious or irritable, my top tip is always to work on balancing the nervous system as this is key to (almost) everything.

A well-regulated nervous system functions optimally and in a balanced way – between action/stress (sympathetic/fight or flight) and rest (parasympathetic/calm and composed).

So when both parts are in balance we feel calm, relaxed and focused, without getting too stressed or overwhelmed by situations or events.

People with a well-regulated nervous system ...

... can handle stress better, respond calmly (to stress in general or to unkind comments in particular), are more emotionally stable and less overwhelmed by life in general and stressful/negative encounters in particular.

And after the stressful situation can return much quicker to a relaxed and calm baseline.

So how do we achieve that balance?

It's all about stimulating the vagus nerve, the longest nerve in the body that wanders (vagari) from the brainstem down the neck and into the abdomen (brain – gut axis).

It is part of the parasympathetic nervous system and promotes relaxation; and when it's activated it reduces stress hormones so that we feel calmer and more balanced, can regulate our emotions better and cope with anything life throws at us in a much calmer and even kinder way.

There are a range of things we can do to activate the vagus and therefore the parasympathetic nervous system:

• Breathing consciously and mindfully by just making the out-breath a wee bit longer than the in-breath (nothing complicated like counting is needed!)

• Laughter – it is a great, instant stress relief and very contagious

• Singing or humming

• Cold showers, cold water swimming or simply splashing cold water in your face

• Gargling with (cold) water

• Grounding exercises (check out the 5-4-3-2-1 method)

• Stretching - I'd recommend the child's pose or the downward-facing dog as most people probably know these

• Movement in general, whether that's dancing, running, boxing … the list is endless

  
  

The best practice – in my opinion – is the body's very own and natural mechanism to deal with stress.

And the body does it in the most innate way and by shaking it off - and that's what we do in TRE.

We give the body the opportunity to release the built-up tension and stress by literally shaking it off. 

Really???

Really!!!

And we can do it retrospectively, i.e. after the stressful encounter as we don't want to shake during an argument with the boss or partner.

Every mammal tremors – dogs do it beautifully –  and when they encounter a stressful incident, they quickly shake it off and life is good again.

And we can learn how to do the same in a safe manner.

What's more, this shake doesn't 'just' down-regulate an overly active nervous system, it also releases tension we are holding in the body.

If you keep in mind that a vast majority of health symptoms are based on too much stress and tension, it's highly likely that once the tension is gone, many symptoms can also disappear.

I've worked with clients who got rid of their headaches/migraines, neck/shoulder/back pain, gastrointestinal issues, stopped teeth-grinding and so much more.

What would you like to shake off?

I'm here for you and I invite you to get in touch for a fact-finding chat to explore how TREmendously amazing your body is and if TRE can meet your expectations.

You deserve to feel so much better.

Natural. Innate. TREmendous.