Menopause Got Your MOJO, or Balancing Life: The Tao of Women’s Health - Part 1

Hello and welcome to my podcast, "Ancient Wisdom, Modern Health: Reaching the Balance Within." This podcast is focused on Classical East Asian Medicine (CEAM) and Women’s Health. The title or focus of this podcast is "Menopause Got Your MOJO, or Balancing Life: The Tao of Women’s Health."

As we go through this podcast, there will be references to documents that are available on my website, in the members' area. Alternatively, you can work along with a pen and paper.

Quick About Me

You can read my full bio in detail on the about page. Here’s the dot point version:

• I have degrees in Human Biology and Chinese Medicine (CM) and a postgraduate Diploma in Classical East Asian Medicine. I am a Doctor of CM.
• I have been in practice in Ulverstone at my clinic, Sagire, for nearly 20 years. Prior to that, I was in Regional Victoria.
• Within the profession of CM, we don’t have specialists, but we do have special interests. Mine are regional health and specifically women’s health within regional Australia.
• My interest in women’s health started when I was young, watching my mum and baby sister have “women’s issues” that were given band-aid solutions. My mum went to the hospital to be fixed, and my sister was put on the Pill at 14.
• It was CM that finally gave me the answers to the questions I had about the why in the first place, and the how to truly fix the problems.

Western Medicine vs. Classical East Asian Medicine (CEAM)

Let’s look at some similarities and differences between Western Medicine and CEAM. The similarities are:

• We talk about the same organs,
• The same blood, and
• The same body fluids.

The differences are:

• QI: Usually translated as energy, which is a reasonable working translation.
• We see the organs, however, as an organ system, not as individual organs.
• Each organ has a system that is part of that organ, supporting it and connecting it to the next system in the sequence.
• One way to view this is through 5 Element Theory. (There is a 5 Element diagram in the Members' Area of the website, for reference.)

Very quickly, 5 Element Theory says that each organ system is paired to an element that supports the next in a sequence and, in turn, is supported by the previous one in the sequence, so each organ is part of a continuous cycle. This lends itself to the fact that all symptoms are and must be connected and are part of a cycle of health. Nothing sits on its own; no symptom is or can be seen in isolation. We also see all symptoms as real. If you feel it or experience it, then it is real, and can and should be treated.

• We also separate the brain and mind. We recognize that there is a brain in the skull, but that is not where the mind lives. We see the mind in the different organ systems. Western culture and society say a similar thing. For example, we say that it is possible to die from a broken heart, so joy and sadness must live in the heart system. We also know that if you have a big fright, you might wet your pants, so fear lives in the kidney and bladder system. These are just two examples.
• Another difference is that we see everything as either Yin or Yang. They are the two halves of everything, and everything must have a little of both Yin and Yang to maintain balance.

This all leads to the concept in CEAM that we don’t treat a disease but a person with some symptoms. Another way of viewing this is that there is no ‘one size fits all’ approach to health care in CEAM. No one will ever say, ‘It’s all in your head,’ or ‘That is not related, or relevant.’ The very important takeaway from this is that we treat you, that amazingly unique person that you are, with all your symptoms, and find what we refer to as the root cause of your imbalances, and not focus on what is like a leaf on a branch blowing in the wind. We want, no need, to get the full, real picture, so that we can then and really only then find the way to help you back to balance.

A Brief History of CEAM

So now, let's touch on a brief history of Classical East Asian Medicine (CEAM). It has been around for over 2,200 years, which is a long time. But what does that really mean? It means that CEAM has seen it all before. There is nothing new from the human body; the body only has certain ways of responding. It has set ways that are triggered by things that ail it, and those responses have not changed over time.

CEAM gives you a different lens through which it is possible to see your symptoms. That lens is rich, warm, insightful, and functional. Because of the richness, warmth, and importantly, the functionality of CEAM, you are able to start taking back control of your health, to become your own health champion. You are back in the driver’s seat, back in control. You are part of the solution, not a leaf to be carried along on the current of your health treatment. You can know why you have these symptoms, and more importantly, what you can do about getting back your balance, and once found again, maintaining it.

CEAM is about balance and the ability to maintain it. This is done through the use of a combination of diet and lifestyle, and if required, acupuncture and herbal medicine.

Menopause

So now, let's talk about menopause. The symptom list is long, as long as there are individuals. It is easy to come up with a long list of symptoms that can be connected to menopause. That list could easily be 100 symptoms long, but this would only be ‘the tip of the iceberg.’ For Classical East Asian Medicine (CEAM), every woman has her own list, and this will drive the treatment required. If you want, there is a worksheet for this next exercise available on the website, in the Member’s Area.

Now, if you could make a list of some of your more taxing symptoms—the ones that take more energy to deal with, the ones that you are most aware of.

Once you have that list, we are going to rate the impact they have on your life, the severity that you feel. To measure this severity, we use a severity scale. The scale ranges from:

1. Symptoms that you hardly notice, with little to no impact on your life.
2. Symptoms that have a mild impact on your life.
3. Symptoms that have a moderate impact.
4. Symptoms that have quite a bit of impact now.
5. Symptoms that have a severe impact.
6. Symptoms that are stopping you from doing things.

Next, we want to add up that list of severities. Once we have a total, let's look at what it might mean.

• Less than 10: You are in a pretty good place. Things are fairly well balanced, and you don’t need to do much to maintain this balance point. Some minor tweaks and regularly checking in with yourself can achieve this without much, if any, external (think professional) help. For example, someone in this range might say that menopause was or is ‘a breeze,’ having little to no symptoms that they can think of. This is really how it is meant to be. Under the CEAM framework, the treatment for menopause starts with a girl’s first period. It is here that her health management is set up for the rest of her life. If, for example, the first one is even the slightest bit out of balance, it is adjusted so that it is back in balance, and this approach remains for the rest of her life.

So, what should be the expectation of a good, normal healthy period?

• Regular, around 28 days (a day or two either side is acceptable).
• 3-5 days of bleeding.
• No cramps.
• No mood swings.
• No clots.
• No breast tenderness.
• No lower back pain.
• No headaches.
• No diarrhea.
• It should simply be a point on a calendar, totally uneventful.

How many women don’t have this and have been told, or led to believe, that it is normal, or worse, feel that it is theirs to accept because that is what it means to be a woman!

• 10-20: Your body is starting to ramp up the signals and is trying to tell you to take some notice. Things are not out of control yet, and with a little effort to address what is out of balance, balance can be reached and maintained again. A small amount of outside help might be needed. This woman will probably feel some small amount of pain or discomfort that goes with her period, but it doesn’t really reach much past that. She might feel that if she doesn’t let herself get too run down, things are not too bad, really.
• 20-30: In this range, things are out of balance, and help is needed now. This is an indicator that your balance point is a bit further away, but with some help, it can be reached. It is going to take a little more time and effort, though. At this point, some strong pain, discomfort, or other symptoms are starting to appear. Perhaps the symptoms are not just around period time, or the discomfort or symptoms, whatever they are, might be for a few days prior and a few after. But she is still trying to convince herself that it is not that bad, really, possibly saying that it’s just because she is tired or things are a little bit more stressful, and when she gets things back under control, she’ll be okay.
• 30 and above: Things have possibly been out of balance for some time, but you have missed the signals, or perhaps you have been travelling a path that did not suit your body and its needs. Not to worry, balance can be achieved again; it just requires more help and assistance. In this range, you might feel that your balance is something that you can’t see as a possibility right now, but with help and time, it is most definitely achievable. This lady usually has quite a bit of trouble with her life. This is the time when things like endometriosis or polycystic ovary syndrome are talked about, or symptoms like heavy bleeding, severe cramping, severe mood swings, night sweats so heavy that the sheets need to be changed nightly or more than once a night. Jobs are being threatened, and Western medicine is strongly suggesting hysterectomies, hormone therapies, and possibly anti-depressants. This is this person’s life and worse.

Another big signpost used by CEAM for women’s health is your period. Even if you are past your fertile stage of life and no longer have one, we can talk about its history. In the fertility world, we use a tool that is known as a Basal Body Temperature Chart (BBT), also available in the Member’s Area. A BBT is really a temperature chart, and as such, it is used to primarily track your temperature. It is, however, still useful even without a period, as it can give an indication of how your body is coping. It indicates what your body's base or resting temperature is.

Over a month, the daily temperatures are plotted on the chart, and then we can see the rise and fall of the temperatures over that month. The rise and fall can give a view of the timing of hormonal release. From it, you can see whether the normal cycle of hormones is happening and if they are happening at the correct timing for fertility to take place. For use in a menopausal scenario, we are not looking for the timing and release of fertility hormones so much as the rise and fall of temperatures in a general sense for the individual. For example, it is quite common to see a woman with menopausal symptoms where her temperature is a little low. In the chart, you can see that the range goes from 35.8 to 37.3 degrees. This is a ‘normal’ acceptable range; however, if the temperature is sitting in the lower range, then CEAM would consider this along with signs and symptoms and might decide that the person needs to be warmed slightly to help achieve balance.

If it was used in a fertility setting, there are other bits of information gathered that are not all that relevant for menopause treatments.

How to gather the Basal Temperature is important. It is measured before you get out of bed. It is important that you have not got up and moved around, as this will affect your temperature reading. Then, with this information, simply plot it on the graph and start your day.

The BBT is quite a good piece of basic modern scientific information that gives an insight into your cycle. However, it can still ‘see inside’ any woman’s health patterns, so it is still very useful for menopause treatments.

Balance

Balance, I have used this term a number of times so far, but what does it mean? Balance is the key to not just good health, but great health. Without balance, there can be no good health. There is simply reactivity. We react to whatever symptom is current or most pressing, without the ability to see the cause and effect as an overall approach to reaching that point where our life is back under control, and back in balance.

Because it is a balanced life that will be easy to maintain, it takes less energy, one without exhaustion, brain fog, or mood swings. One that has you able to meet each and every day with abundant energy, vitality, and a vision for the future that is bright and full. This is why it is so important and what it means to be in balance.

So can it be maintained? Can it be achieved? Emphatically, yes. However, there is a caveat: you need to listen to your body. The body is always talking to us. Its messages usually start as a gentle, quiet voice that, if listened to, says something along the lines of:

• Just not feeling 100%.
• A mild, low-level discomfort.
• A recurring ache that is hard to pin down.

The body then starts to ramp up the ‘volume’ of the message and continues this increase in volume until you take notice. Then what usually happens is that we say things like, ‘It just suddenly happened yesterday,’ ‘I was just bending to pick up a tissue,’ or perhaps, ‘I have always had this, but it suddenly got worse for no reason.’

So, if we start to listen to these quiet calls for help and take action on them when they are just quiet calls and act on our own behalf, then we are able to reach the balance of good health and maintain this balance once it is reached. All things require work to maintain, but maintenance takes less work than it does to get there.

That is all for today’s blog – join me again next time for Menopause Got Your MOJO? Part 2