Fatigue is no joke!
If you’re feeling exhausted and sluggish a lot of the time, you’re not alone. Many women in their perimenopausal and menopausal years feel a persistent bone-deep fatigue that leaves you feeling worn out and sapped of energy, and significantly impairs your quality of life. But honestly, fatigue affects everyone, physically and emotionally.
Both men and women produce estrogen, progesterone and testosterone in their bodies, just in differing quantities. Hormonal imbalances and other factors are often at the root of the fatigue you’re experiencing midlife. Instead of guzzling coffee when you run out of energy, here are some natural methods to rebalance your hormones and improve your energy.
1. Stay Hydrated
Even the beginning stages of dehydration can leave you feeling tired and weak. It is recommended that you get at least 64 ounces a day. Space this out throughout the day to make sure you are getting enough and keeping your hydration level.
2. Increase your Activity Level
Vigorous and intense exercise is not necessary to boost energy levels. You can see improvements from simple activities, like walking, and benefit from slower and calmer types of exercise like stretching, walking and yoga.
3. Manage the Blood Sugar Rollercoaster
Highs and lows of blood sugar levels can cause you to crash and burn. Allowing your body to maintain a steady blood sugar level will help raise your energy levels in a natural way. This is as easy as increasing your protein intake, eating meals with leafy greens and other vegetables and avoiding sugar and processed carbohydrates like baked goods.
4. Laugh
Laughter really is the best medicine. Laughing can bring you a sudden boost of energy and reduce your stress. Watch an online video that always makes you laugh, start a meme text chain with a friend who is always up for a laugh and that Ratethisdog account never fails
5. Take Small Breaks
Short breaks scattered throughout your day help fight stress, physical fatigue and can re-energize you. These breaks can last from 2 to 10 minutes. They should leave you feeling calmer and relaxed. So step away from the screen and shake out your muscles.
6. Avoid Negative People
Studies show that your body’s reaction to stress can leave you feeling drained both emotionally and physically. Negative people and situations can make your stress levels go up, so it is important to set boundaries and surround yourself with with positive people who don’t make you feel exhausted
7. Take a nap
Naps are not just for toddlers and kids! Research from the National Institute of Mental Health shows that taking a nap can help your brain and body recover from stress and other activities. Listen to your body and mind, if it is telling you it’s tired, schedule a date with your pillow. However, make sure to limit naps to 20-30 minutes to avoid impacting your overnight sleep.
8. Avoid Alcohol
Alcohol contributes to fatigue and can mess with your sleep schedule, making it difficult to get a good night’s rest. This can lead to even more fatigue and even weakness in the mornings. A vicious cycle. Luckily, nowadays avoiding alcohol does not have to impact your routine or social activities. Many restaurants and bars now offer unique and inventive mocktail menus and there seems to be a new non-alcoholic beverage released almost daily. It has never been more fun to be sober.
Fatigue is only one symptom that increases as we age. The changes in our hormone balance are also impacted by our weight, environmental disruptors, such as additives in our food and consumer products, genetics, medications and poor, chronic lifestyle habits. These can lead to frustrating symptoms and a lot for trial and error to find relief. So take a moment and commit to at least one of these strategies and see how it works for you.
If you have tried and failed to find the right balance, contact me for a FREE personalized, strategy session to learn about what steps you can take, further tips and support. Or check out my guided Mastering Menopause program specifically built for busy women by a woman (me!) looking for the right facts and resources.
