The Best Natural Remedies For After A Hysterectomy

In today's video I'll show you the different types of hysterectomies and how to care for your hormones after each one with natural remedies.

Before we begin - I just want to say talking about surgery can be a bit disturbing and scary.

But instead of thinking of it that way, I'd love for you to think of it as empowering.   Because knowing the facts and what to do in each scenario can help you embrace whatever path you're on and feel great while on it.

What to expect in this blog post

There are three parts to this post about natural remedies for your hormones after a hysterectomy

In the first part I'm going to go into some of the facts about the different types of surgeries - it's not that fun but it's short and useful so stick with me - because then we'll get into some of the wonderful natural remedies you can use to help nurture, support and enrich your hormones after surgery. 

In the second part of this blog we'll cover the different focus you want to have with your natural remedies depending on which type of surgery you've had.

And in the third part I'll show you how to use those natural remedies.

Lets dive in:

First let's talk about the different types of surgery that are all referred to as "a hysterectomy." 

A partial hysterectomy means the upper part of your uterus is removed and the lower part with the cervix is left intact

A complete hysterectomy means the entire uterus including the cervix is removed. 

But what makes more of a difference for your hormones after surgery is whether or not your ovaries were removed. If your ovaries are removed it's called a hysterectomy with an oophorectomy

Here's where it gets interesting because your ovaries make most of your female hormones

If your ovaries are removed - the surgery will put you into what is called surgical menopause.  So yes - if you have this surgery you will be in menopause afterward.

If your ovaries are left in - you will no longer have your period - but you are not in menopause!  Your ovaries will continue to make hormones just like anyone elses. You will go into menopause naturally at whatever age is normal for you.  The average age is around 51.

Removing the ovaries and going into menopause early means your hormone levels decrease suddenly, and this can lead to hot flashes and other symptoms of menopause.  It may also increase your risk of heart disease and osteoporosis - because lower hormone levels at a younger age may cause these increased risks. 

You can learn more about the details of the different types of surgery in this article from the University of Michigan medical school or in this one from the mayo clinic.

So that's the first part of the video with the facts about the different types of surgery and how they affect your hormones - that's our starting point for knowing how to nurture and care for your hormones.

Now for the second part of this video let's talk about why you need to take different approaches to caring for your hormones depending on which surgery you've had.

If your ovaries were left intact you won't need HRT or special remedies for your hormones, and you won't go into menopause right away. 

However, in this scenario, as a Chinese medicine practitioner, one of the things I recommend is helping your body build and balance hormones efficiently in all the years of your 30's and 40's to prepare for an easier menopause.  So this is a great time to do that!  I'll talk about the details of how to do that in in the next part of this blog. 

But what if your ovaries were removed?  You're immediately put into surgical menopause, and your body experiences a sudden drop in hormone levels. Because it's much less gradual than if you went through natural menopause, it can be very intense and uncomfortable with sudden intense hot flashes, insomnia, mood swings, and other menopause symptoms.

Once your body adjusts to the lower hormone levels, hopefully the hot flashes and other symptoms will subside (however they may stick around for quite a while,) and because your hormone levels dropped lower at an earlier age than they would have naturally, you may have an increased risk for things like heart disease or osteoporosis or even changes in brain health.

So in this situation your focus in caring for your hormones is to help keep your hormone levels as high as possible using natural remedies or consider using HRT to keep them from being too low for too long.

The natural remedies you'd use after this type of hysterectomy, a hysterectomy with oophorectomy are partly to help control the hot flashes and other discomforts, and partly to help your body transition into making hormones as much as possible from places other than your ovaries!

This is what all women focus on in all the years post menopause.  And if it's safe for you you can also use herbs that are rich in plant estrogens and other hormone building blocks to help your body build up your hormone levels - almost like a replacement for HRT.  You can learn more about how your body can keep your hormone levels high enough without relying on your ovaries in this blog post

In this case you also want a hormone friendly diet and lifestyle, because they'll help your body maximize every bit of hormones it's able to make - or to better balance and manage side effects of any hormones you're taking.

That's the second part of this blog - the different focus you want to have in caring for your hormones with natural remedies depending on which type of surgery you've had.

Now for the third part of this blog I'm going to get you started on how to use natural remedies to support your hormones in different ways:

So how do you support your hormones after a hysterectomy?

A hormone-friendly diet

A hormone-friendly diet means including the basic hormonal building blocks and most important hormonal detox nutrients in your diet every day. We're talking the right percentage of vegetables, healthy fats, protein, and menopause superfoods. You can get the details of this basic hormone-friendly diet  with this smoothie guide:

A hormone-friendly lifestyle

A hormone friendly lifestyle means your managing your stress hormone levels, blood sugar hormone levels, and avoiding the worst of the hormone-disrupting chemicals we're often exposed to in our environment - in our food, water, personal care, and cleaning products.  Browse my blogs on a hormone-friendly lifestyle here.

Hormone-supportive supplements

In terms of supplements there are a few basic supplements I recommend all women consider, like Vitamin D and magnesium, you can learn about them in this blog post.

But my favorite supplements to use for women to help their hormones are Chinese herbs, because they can be customized to give more support to whatever aspect of your hormones need it.

And I'll tell you right now - the beauty and the frustration of using Chinese Herbs is that they're not a one-size-fits all solution.  And that if you get the herbs properly customized for you at each stage of your menopausal transition - the amount of relief and the changes you can see - can go through the roof.

Here's how it works.

If you're preparing for an easy menopause you want to make sure
1. Your hormones aren't dropping too low before menopause.  You want to replenish and get all your hormone levels as robust as possible before they start to decline during menopause. For some women this is the primary type of support their hormones need.

2. For other women stress hormones are interfering with their hormonal balance.  Stress can even decrease progesterone levels which can mean peri-menopause starts sooner and lasts longer with more severe discomforts.  But there are Chinese herbs that can address this pattern both helping the body regulate stress hormones and build progesterone levels.

3. And for other women inefficient liver function or even constipation are keeping their bodies from detoxifying hormones well. This can cause a lot of weight gain that's really hard to lose, tender, swollen, bloated breasts, and intense PMS-like discomforts.  And there are other Chinese herbs that can support the body in this situation - helping with detoxifying hormones more efficiently.

The key is to make sure your body is doing all these things - building, balancing, and detoxifying hormones well.  And you want to give it help in all of these areas as needed.  For some women it's 90% help building hormones, for other women they need help with all 3 areas equally, etc.

So the herbs you're using need to be customized for your body and your hormones at a particular point in time.  Then the herbs need to be updated every few months to adjust for the way your body and your hormones have changed over time. 

Ready to learn more? 

 I don't recommend just grabbing an herb off the shelf and giving it a try.  Cookie cutter remedies generally don't work for hormones, and it's worth it to get customized herbs that are updated every few months as your body and your hormones are change.  

Become an insider with this guide, then watch your email for an exclusive invitation to my next free online class on natural herbal remedies. 

Thank you so much for joining me today! 

I'd love to hear from you.  Do you have questions?  Put them in the comments below or get in touch.