Beginning Of A New Phase Of Life
Women who view menopause negatively—as a sign of mental and physical decline—can experience
adverse psychological consequences with the onset of menopause (Gannon, 1985). By contrast, in
countries where women achieve higher status in middle age, like Sweden, Finland, India and China, few,
if any signs of menopause are reported (Varpa, 1970). These findings point out the importance of cultural
attitudes. In other words, what women expect or feel about the midlife phase in their life determines what
they will actually experience.
Menopause is one of the most important time periods in a woman’s life – a time when major
transformations occur on the physical, mental and spiritual levels. It is a time for re-evaluating life and
entering a new phase of maturity, wisdom and success. With a greater sense of maturity and wisdom, a
woman can more easily revise some of her outdated beliefs and habits, improve her diet and lifestyle, and
begin to focus on the deeper issues of life. Sometimes, changes in one’s marital relationship, children
growing up and leaving home, caring for ailing parents or employment-related issues may coincide with
hormonal changes and produce a physical/emotional crisis.
The inner transformation that the menopausal woman goes through can use up a lot of energy, as well
as tax her immune system and emotional strength. This is likely to bring to light any hidden anxieties or
physical imbalances that may have been suppressed or left unnoticed for a long time. If a woman was able
to live an unhealthy lifestyle or have a poor diet without developing major health problems before
menopause, she won’t be able to afford doing the same during and after this transition. Her “new
purpose” in life, whatever that may be, requires a pure and well-functioning physiology.
The ovaries of a woman entering menopause purposely reduce their production of estrogen.
Menopause is not a sign of becoming old or the body becoming useless; it simply prevents a woman from
conceiving children so that she can devote the rest of her time and energy to the process of developing
and maturing new, formerly untapped skills and capabilities. During midlife and advanced age, a healthy
woman’s adrenal glands and fat cells begin to take over the role of producing enough female hormones to
keep her body vital and efficient. Since she cannot reproduce any longer, it would actually be harmful if
she did maintain the old levels of hormones. (High estrogen levels are responsible for breast cancer.) So
menopause, as such, does not cause hormone deficiencies at all. The story, however, is very different if a
woman hasn’t been healthy before the onset of menopause.
It’s Not The Lack Of Hormones...But...
Hormones are made from the food we eat. The body’s ability to produce the right amount of hormones
is mostly determined by the quality of food we eat, the body’s digestive ability and the condition of the
liver. Women who suffer from severe menopausal symptoms do not experience this upset because of a
sudden drop in hormone production, but rather because a long-standing digestive weakness is now
becoming more apparent. During a woman’s midlife transition, dietary imbalances and stress generally
cause more chaos and confusion in the body and mind than they did before. As a direct result of this now-
amplified interference in the balanced performance of mind and body, the woman’s ovaries may receive
fewer nutrients. This, in turn, will lower her hormone production. For similar reasons, the adrenal glands
and fat cells may also be unable to maintain their normal output of these hormones.
Stress, alone, can greatly affect the endocrine system that controls blood sugar levels (which affect
mood swings), energy levels, calcium balance, weight and sex hormones. Stimulants have the same effect
as stress. Regular consumption of alcohol, coffee, sugar, chocolate, soft drinks, sports drinks, diet drinks
and foods containing sweeteners like aspartame, and cigarettes strongly interferes with hormone