You may think it’s far away… or limited to hot flashes and menstrual changes – but menopause (and peri-menopause)  can take you by surprise as early as your mid-thirties. Hormone changes can cause all sorts of weird things that you might not think about…

Here are some of the lesser known conditions that can be associated with “The Change”

• woosiness/light headedness/fogginess
• heavy legs, fatigue, stiffness, aches and pains often misinterpreted as arthritis pain
• forgetfulness
• heart palpitations, panic attacks
• changes in taste, smell, digestion
• changes in muscle tone, sagging breasts, collagen loss
• dry itchy skin, brittle nails
• Allergies
• libido, mood swings, depression and anxiety
• thinning hair, changes in body odor

…the list goes on… and includes some other scary (avoidable) conditions like osteoporosis, heart disease, cancers…

If you’re over 35 and experiencing these things it might be a good idea to get a hormone panel done with your doctor or naturopath.

There are MANY things you can do to lessen the severity of the symptoms of changing hormones – and we’re not talking hormone replacement therapy, supplements or anything like that. Normal every day things like diet and exercise tweaks can not only help balance your state of flux, it can minimize the severity of your symptoms as your body changes, as well as prevent side affects of hormonal changes.

On Saturday Nov 5th, Registered Dietitian Janice Marshall, and Personal Trainer and Biologist, Megan Delaney are hosting an in-depth and hands on workshop on managing your biological changes through diet and exercise. Here is the link to register: LINK

You will learn what is happening to your body on a systems and cellular level, the complex interplay between diet and exercise in managing your  hormonal changes, simple strategies to implement. If you’re considering HRT or on HRT, we will also talk about what kind of changes should you make to balance the side effects or support their function…and so much more.

It’s never to early to take charge and educate yourself. You’re certainly not alone! Connect with others, talk about it…you never know what you might learn.