How important is it to avoid caffeine during menopause?

Well just like everything else having to do with menopause, there's no one size fits all answer to this question.

So in this video I'll break it down for you:

When caffeine is likely NOT upsetting your hormones and...

The THREE SITUATIONS in which to consider avoiding caffeine at least temporarily, and how to get back to enjoying it agin. 

When coffee is not upsetting your hormones during menopause

If your hormones are supported and balanced and you're symptom free, your energy reserves are replenished, and you're feeling great...  Plus your resilience is up and you have a moderate amount of caffeine like one cup of coffee or tea in the morning....

Then you're probably doing fine and it's not causing your hormones any upset.

The THREE times to consider avoiding caffeine during menopause are:

#1 Consider avoiding caffeine If you're not sleeping well

The first one is if you're not sleeping sleep is really important for your overall health, overall health, avoiding diseases of aging, not gaining weight. So many things, if you're not sleeping, it needs to be a priority to get to where you are sleeping again.

And caffeine can have a huge effect on your ability to sleep even a half a cup of caffeine early in the morning. Can affect your sleep at three am so until the sleep is under good control, I would say, consider avoiding caffeine just until then.

#2 Consider avoiding caffeine during menopause If your stress is out of control

The second one is if you are having trouble with your stress response, if you're feeling stressed or anxious, too often, if the littlest things set you off, right. If your stress response is on a hair trigger and it's just getting turned on way too much of the time and that's not uncommon.

We become more sensitive to stress and menopause. So it really is something that needs to go through a process of re-regulation if yours is a bit out of control, then I would urge you to consider avoiding caffeine until you get that back under really good control because caffeine basically triggers that stress response, that adrenaline energy.

So avoiding that until your stress response is really well regulated again, might be a good idea.

#3 Consider avoiding caffeine If you're having headaches

And the third one is if you're having headaches, it's not unusual to get increased headaches or migraines, it can be uh a p ms type migraine and perimenopause or it can kind of move from there into being headaches all the time.

If you're having trouble getting any headaches under control, then that would be a good time to consider avoiding caffeine until those headaches are under good control because caffeine can affect the expansion or contraction of the blood vessels that lead to your brain. It's why cetera can help with migraines.

So it has a very direct relationship ship to headaches, especially migraine type headaches so if you're not sleeping stress is out of control or headaches are out of control, that might be a good time to consider completely avoiding caffeine for 1 to 3 months or as long as it takes to get that symptom under good control.

So the good news is: 

But when you're not having any of those symptoms and you're feeling really good. Do you need caffeine? No you don't need caffeine. But if you really, really love it and you love to drink tea or coffee and you're just drinking a moderate amount, then there's no particular reason why it's contraindicated during menopause.

My vision of menopause is that if your hormones are supported and balanced, and you're going through menopause the way your body was designed to which is pretty easily with very minimal, if any, symptoms.

You can handle pretty much anything.  If you get covid, if something stressful happens in your life, if you have coffee, caffeine. a giant piece of cake... Whatever it is, your body is just going to be able to handle it.

So my goal is always to increase energy reserves, increase gut health, make the immune system better regulated have stress under really good control.  Have the liver working really well when your systems in great place, you can do almost anything and still feel pretty good.

And so that's the vision. 

Maybe you need to limit caffeine or completely avoid caffeine until something comes under control.  

But then the idea is:

• To make your body stronger. 
• Have your hormones be more supported
• Have your life expanding. 

I think a lot of women in menopause find that there are more foods they can't eat and more things that they can't do...

And it feels like life is getting smaller.

But that is just a sign of your body and your hormones kind of crying out for help saying, "we need a little help and support to get back to where we really want to be."

Because Chinese medicine also says that menopause is called the Second Spring.

It's a time when those ideas that you've had in the back of your head about a second career or writing a book or being a mentor or taking on a leadership position somewhere or doing some great piece of art.. 

Any sort of creative outlet that expresses the wisdom you've accumulated over your life and is of great value to society...

This is the time when you get to do that.

There's a good chance that kids and family are taking up a little bit less of your time. You have a little more time for yourself and your own pursuits. And the idea is that you feel overflowing with creativity and excitement about your life and your future.

Menopause is a wonderful time to do some of the things you've always dreamed of doing, but only if you're feeling well enough.

So the idea is you're feeling great you're traveling, you're drinking coffee in Paris and eating gluten in Italy - whatever it is - your body can handle it.

If you'd like to know more about how to get on that track of supporting your hormones to expand your life during menopause, uh, in addition to controlling menopause symptoms and setting up for the slowest healthiest aging after menopause.

Be sure and connect with me.

My name is Dana LaVoie, an Acupuncturist and Herbalist and the founder of making menopause is easy.

I have been specializing in women's health and menopause for over 20 years.

And I have a free recorded master class that is available right now.

You can go watch it and learn all about my approach and how I work.

And there's even a special invitation at the end of the class to set up a one on one call with me because, like I said, there's no one size fits all solution for menopause.

And we together can figure out what would work for you and your hormones and your body and the fastest way to get to where you want to go.

I am here to help. I would love to hear from you.  If you have a question, don't hesitate to get in touch with me.

Be sure to check out that free masterclass, and I'll see you soon.