How To Understand And Control Night Sweats In Women

Why do some women get more night sweats than others during menopause?


Night sweats are a common menopause symptom, but what are they?  What causes them?  Where do they come from? 


What are your options for dealing with night sweats - and which is the best option and why. 


Thats what we're looking at in today's blog video... 

What causes night sweats in women?

#1

The western view

Western medicine says

Night sweats are caused by changing hormones and "the low or changing levels of estrogen in particular." Check out this quote on the Cleveland clinic site

However - All  women experience this change in estrogen and only some women have a lot of night sweats - other women have almost no night sweats!

Why do some women get such intense nights sweats while their estrogen is changing and decreasing while other women don't?

And how can you become one of the women who doesn't??


If your hormones:

  • Stay in good balance with each other while they change
  • And none of them drop too too low or too too fast

That's when you're most likely to be night sweat free.  

So if you give your body help

  • Building hormones (in case they try to drop too low) 
  • And balancing hormones (so they stay in balance with each other while they're changing) your hormones during the change... 

You're more likely to avoid night sweats.

(More on HOW to do this soon...) 

#2

The Eastern view

Chinese medicine says

When you feel hot it's caused by the fire energy in your body.


But there are TWO ways this can happen

  1. You likely either feel hot all the time...
  2. Or you feel hot in flashes that come and go and/or only at night and often with heat in the head, hands, and or feet.

The first type of heat, where you just feel hot all the time, is caused by too much fire energy in your body.  Too much fire - you're just plain hot.
Chinese medicine calls this full heat.

The second type, where the heat comes and goes in flashes, is more common at night, and is often felt in your in your head, the palms of your hands, and the soles of your feet is called five heart heat (the two hands two feet and one head being the 5 hearts.)

And this is where it gets interesting - because this sounds familiar right? 

It's called empty heat because it's not caused by too much fire.  It's not caused by too much of anything.


empty heat is caused by not enough of something.  Here's what often happens:  You have a normal amount of fire energy, but you don't have enough water energy to balance and to control that fire.

So your fire, while not raging all the time, flares out of control now and then because your water energy is not able to control it they way it's supposed to.  This is called empty heat and it means you tend to feel hot in surges, at night, and in the hands feet and head. 

What's the connection between night sweats and hot flashes?

Most of the time hot flashes and night sweats are both caused by this Empty Heat.  


With mild empty heat you'll experience night sweats, and with more severe Empty Heat the daytime hot flashes appear as well.

The Solution

So the solution?

Build up your water energy enough and the hot flashes and/or night sweats will go away.


But because it can take months to fully build up your water... 

 
You can also take herbs to clear this special kind of empty heat to get faster relief while you're building up your water.


Usually after a few months your water is replenished and you can stop the herbs to clear heat. 

sleep well in this bed

And the great thing is... This works! 

(Please note - this month is all about UNDERSTANDING what's going on during menopause and getting the strategic, big picture view of how to address it.  Next month we're diving deep into exactly how to follow through on things like building up your water!) 

What About... 

1.

A fan by the bed?  Some women find this helpful, but its actually a big no-no in Chinese medicine!   Because when you're sleeping you're much more susceptible to wind invasion - so direct breezes are to be avoided if possible.  (More on this in the video above!)

2.

Special wicking or cooling pajamas?:  Sure you might get some comfort from these right away - but no question getting to the rooot f the ns and getting rid of thm is a better solution overall. 

3.

A different bed (is your bed causing more sweating?)  Definitely have the top layer of your bed be breathable.  So if your bed is latex get a wool mattress topper (more on this in the video above!)  Other than that it shouldn't make that big a difference.


 

Click here for all my best sleep habits and to learn more about how to manage insomnia during menopause. 


Night sweats are an internal issue.  

If your temperature is properly regulated and your water and fire are in balance you'll sleep without night sweats:

  • On any decent bed 
  • In any pajamas
  • In a range of bedroom temperatures 
  • Without a fan blowing directly on you

So where does that leave us? 

Night sweats are caused by changing hormones - especially lower levels of estrogen.  


In Chinese medicine this equates to a decline in your water energy (female hormones like estrogen) dropping too low or too fast or getting out of balance with your other hormones while they're all changing during menopause.


Helping the body build up your water energy and harmonize your hormone levels can get to the root cause of the night sweats and help give you relief from the inside out.


The right bed, PJs, and bedroom setup can give quick relief - but getting to the root of the problem is a better choice long term.


Next month I'll be diving deep into how you can build up your water energy with Chinese herbs, diet, lifestyle, and other tips.


Plus building up your water energy has rejuevenating, energizing, and healthy aging benefits for your whole body. 


Questions?  Comments?  Let's chat!  Put your comments in the comments are below, or get in touch. 


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This information is being provided to you for educational and informational purposes only. It is being provided to you to educate you about Chinese medicine in your diet, lifestyle, and supplements and as a self-help tool for your own use. It is not personalized health advice. This information is to be used at your own risk based on your own judgment.  For my full Disclaimer, please go to https://danalavoielac.com/disclaimer-2/

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