Hi friends, Warning: my email is a bit ranty today. You might enjoy that. I’m working on clarifying and sharing my point of view on perimenopause/menopause treatment as I see it. Something I’ve been giving a lot of thought to lately is competing messages around perimenopause and the Eastern/Western medicine world. There are many allopathic, Western docs out there now on a big bullhorn practically screaming about how great hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and how it can take care of your symptoms and suffering without you having to change much of your life. I am SO grateful these people are bringing more attention to the perimenopause time of life for women. I also call BULLSHIT. There are also a few (not as loud) Eastern/Ayurveda/TCM practitioners saying you absolutely should not EVER take HRT. I call BULLSHIT on this too. My take on it is that we have all these tools in the toolbox, and we need to have access to all of them. Every woman is unique in her journey and what she may need. Here are a few of the problems I see: 🔥Replacing hormones, even bioidentical ones, have risks and side effects. Those need to be explained to you. In the allopathic world, we say “benefits need to outweigh risks”-- this is nebulous. No practitioner can 100% know this will be the case for you, but I will argue that deep down YOU can have a knowing about this. There is no drug in the allopathic world with zero risk. Trust me, I'm a pharmacist 😉 💧When the body has symptoms, from an Ayurvedic perspective, it means we need to address something usually related to lifestyle. This doesn’t automatically mean Ayurvedic herbs. For most women, it means slowing down, creating more space and managing stress (vague, I hate this, but I would have to write much more to get into the nuances). At the core, it means addressing the digestive fire, which is very much related to the stress piece. ⛰️Sometimes, we need a Western drug or hormone to help BRIDGE the gap. For example, if you’re struggling with depression, you may need hormones (this is the preferred treatment in midlife v. an antidepressant) so that you have the energy and motivation to make the changes. When undertaking use of medications, hopefully you have a great practitioner who helps you use them for the right amount of time (the least amount of time for the least exposure to the risks). 🪷Eastern medicine (including Ayurveda, of course) is NOT about what herbs or supplements you now add for symptoms. That’s a very Western lens. The western lens has also separated out systems, as though your sleep quality is separate from the food you eat and as though your GI tract is separate from your ears. EVERYTHING IS CONNECTED. Ayurveda acknowledges that your mind affects your body and your body affects your mind. Your spirituality affects all of it. We’ve been told so many lies within our culture. One of the biggest lies is that pushing through is what you have to do, AKA mind over matter or mind over body. This is part of what’s wrecking us now in midlife. I certainly know that I’m dealing with symptoms because of choices I made in my 20s and 30s to push push push. And then, to add insult to injury, we’re lied to again and told “this is just aging, and you have to deal with it.” The WHY question is a big one for me. It’s not just related to our choices; I believe it’s also related to the toxicity of our world, including our food supply, especially processed foods, our water, and our air. In Ayurveda, the state of mother earth is reflected in the wombs of women. Thanks for hanging out in my head today. If you want to learn more, I’m giving my workshop, Holistic Management of Perimenopause + Menopause with Ancient Ayurveda in two different ways coming up soon.
To using all the tools in the toolbox 💓Much love, P.S. It's not too late to join the cleanse! We officially start tomorrow. It's $54. All the deets are here. If you're not sure and reply, I'll send you the info session recording for FREE. P.P.S. If you were forwarded this email, click here to continue receiving these little notes in your inbox! Practice Yoga with Me- Karma YogaAll Levels Flow, Thursday afternoons 5:30 pm Decrease stress with a gentle flow at the end of the day designed to ground and steady. Sunrise Yoga Flow, Friday mornings 6:30 am Start the day off right with an invigorating flow practice designed to help move kapha and stimulate prana. Register here. If you don't live in Denver and are interested, Karma offers an online streaming option for all their classes. Banyan Botanicals DiscountI'm a proud participant of the Banyan Tree Collective. If you're not familiar with Banyan, they are a certified B corporation committed to providing products that support the Ayurvedic lifestyle and are organically grown, sustainably sourced, and fairly traded. Below is an affiliate link which supports my business every time you use it, as well as a one time 15% off coupon. 15% off discount code: MARIAG15 |
Maria Gabriela is a certified Ayurveda Health Counselor, a doctor of pharmacy (Pharm.D.), a 200 hour certified yoga teacher, and founder of Intuitive Ayurveda. She specializes in helping women prepare for, celebrate, and manage the transition into menopause. The eastern and western perspectives of medicine each have something to offer us, and Maria Gabriela understands this dance. Her goal is to educate on Ayurvedic tools that can (and should) be individualized to each complex person. She strives to help her clients tune into the messages their bodies are sending them. Ultimately, she believes that every person is the expert on what is best for them, and can be empowered to hone in on which tools they need to support themselves in mind, body, and spirit. She shares stories, inspiration, and of course, Ayurveda tips on managing perimenopause + menopause. She sends out a weekly newsletter and sometimes an additional email per week with upcoming events. Check out the Starter Kit below!
Hi friends, I’m writing to you this week as I visit with my oldest and closest friend, who lost her dad, Aziz, this week to dementia. I’ve known her family since I was 7, and our families spent a lot of time together growing up. They are chosen family to me. Aziz was a really fun person. He was a sweet, and loved to tease people. His humor is what I remember most. Towards the end, he couldn’t verbalize anymore, so he would make faces at people to make them laugh. He also worked as a...
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