Stay Centered Through Menopause With These 7 Strategies
Years ago, I overheard one of my daughter’s friends complaining about her mom being on a “menopause roller coaster,” and then groaning: “We can’t take her anywhere!” Granted, menopause does crazy things to your moods, but it’s important not to let this be a license to be a shrew. If you use menopause to excuse bad behavior, it can undermine your self-respect and damage your relationships.
Believe me, I’ve been there: You’re feeling stressed out, and then some little thing comes along to send you right over the edge. In those situations, I always ask myself: Is it worth it? So my dry cleaning wasn’t ready when it was supposed to be. Flying off the handle at the clerk isn’t going to get the clothes clean. All it’s going to do is raise my blood pressure, tax my adrenals, and spoil my mascara. Is it really worth the stress? What’s more, if I hadn’t waited until Thursday to drop off my clothes, none of this would be happening!
Learn to recognize when you’re slipping off balance, and do whatever you need to do to re-center. In particular, examine the ways in which you may be contributing to your stress.
Here are 7 strategies to implement to reduce your menopause-related stress:
1. Take It To The Mat
Yoga can help you get centered, relieve stress and rejuvenate. Even if you just have five minutes, taking this time to perform a few poses will help calm you. A yoga for menopause workout can be found in my Menopause With Ease kit.
2. Lift Your Feet To Lift Your Mood
Carve out some time to add cardio to your day. Cardiovascular exercises will not only lift your mood, but also protect and train your heart.
3. Balance It Out
Adding a balance and strength routine will help boost your confidence, improve your posture and protect your bones.
4. Take Inventory
Evaluate your actions and decide if you need to apologize to anyone. Yes, really! Keeping your conscience clear and your relationships current will lighten your load. Don’t let yourself use the excuse “Oh, I’m in menopause.”
5. Lower Your Expectations
Figure out what’s causing your stress, and how to relieve it. Chances are, you’re simply expecting too much of yourself at times when you’re already off balance from lack of sleep or other symptoms.
Why is sleep important? See how it can help fire up your metabolism.
6. Shoot For The Six
Perfectionism is a luxury most of us can’t afford. If everything in your life has to be a “ten,” you’re sure to be stressed and dissatisfied most of the time. If you shoot for sixes, you stand a good chance of bettering your expectations and feeling generally happier.
7. Try to Laugh at Yourself
Recently I was talking with a good friend, describing a stressful confrontation I’d just had. Instead of backing me up, she surprised me by saying: “Don’t you realize when you act like that, people just want to lock you in a closet?” I couldn’t help but laugh, and that image now makes me think twice when I’m feeling impatient or irritated.
I know this is a tall order when you’re already short on patience. Still, taking responsibility for your stress puts you back in control—believe me, that will make you feel better!
When I become impatient and short with people, it’s usually because I’m trying to do too much in too little time. If I want to do my best work and get the best out of the people I work with, I need to relax my schedule and give myself room to breathe. Of course, it’s one thing to notice it—it’s another to change it. Make the adjustment.
Remember, if you implement these 7 strategies, you’ll still go through menopause. But it will be a completely different experience than it otherwise would have been, and it truly can be a change for the better!
