Beyond Hot Flashes | Navigating Menopause

Transcript

Rita De Michele:

Welcome to another episode of Beyond Diagnosis.

If your hormones feel out of balance, or you want more energy and vitality in your day, then listen up. Today, you have an appointment with one of the best integrative health practitioners, who will be sharing specific and actionable steps to help you take control of your health.

Jessica Green is an Integrative Health Practitioner and Health Coach who helps women over 40 rebalance their hormones naturally.

Hello and welcome to Beyond Diagnosis, a podcast created to raise your awareness, decisions, and voice around alternative practices, so you can take back control of your health.

I’m Rita De Michele, your host, mindset and empowerment coach, and founder of the Onus platform. Join me each week so you can create the health of your dreams.

Jessica Green is an Integrative Health Practitioner and Health Coach helping women over 40 rebalance their hormones naturally, so they can move through perimenopause and menopause with more ease.

Jessica uses functional medicine lab testing in her group programs and private coaching to create a targeted approach for each client. She also has a background in sustainable building and environmental toxins, and brings her knowledge of toxin exposure into her coaching practice.

Welcome, Jessica, to the show.

Jessica Green:

Thank you so much for having me, Rita.

Rita De Michele:

It is such a pleasure. It really is. It is so good to speak with you about this and educate people about functional medicine, because I still feel like it is emerging. A lot of people still do not know much about it.

What Is Functional Medicine?

Rita De Michele:

Let’s start at ground zero for listeners who have never heard of functional medicine.

This is a three-part question. What is it? How is it different? And why should people care?

Jessica Green:

That is such a great question.

Functional medicine, at its core, focuses on getting to the root cause of any symptom someone may be experiencing. It also looks at the whole body as an integrated system, rather than separating it into individual parts.

That is one of the biggest differences between conventional medicine and functional medicine.

Conventional medicine often separates everything and focuses on treating symptoms. Functional medicine takes a more holistic approach. It looks at what could be driving those symptoms and how the body is interconnected.

Rita De Michele:

Absolutely. That is what I love about it. I love the whole-person, targeted approach.

It is so individualised. You do not compartmentalise the body. It is not, “You have a problem with your liver, so it is only your liver’s problem.”

Functional medicine considers the whole mind-body connection. To me, functional medicine feels like a discovery model. It asks, “What is the why behind those symptoms?”

Understanding Perimenopause and Menopause

Rita De Michele:

For women listening, can you explain what perimenopause is and when it can begin?

Jessica Green:

Perimenopause can start in the late 30s to early 40s.

Early symptoms may not be obvious. It may simply begin with a dip in progesterone. One sign could be difficulty getting pregnant at that age.

Someone may go to their doctor, and they may be prescribed progesterone to support pregnancy and help maintain pregnancy.

Rita De Michele:

So, when women describe feeling like a “hot mess,” with unregulated body temperature, fatigue, mood swings, and the rest of it, is that perimenopause?

Jessica Green:

Yes. Perimenopause can last for years. Some women may experience it for a long time before menopause.

Menopause itself is technically one day. It is the anniversary of 12 months without a menstrual period. After that, you are postmenopausal.

At that point, the ovaries have essentially shut down that stage of reproductive function.

Common Hormonal Symptoms Women May Notice

Jessica Green:

There is often a trajectory.

The first stage can include estrogen dominance. Then, later, estrogen begins to drop as well.

At that point, women may experience more hot flashes, mood swings, anger, brain fog, changes in skin, more wrinkles, drier skin, less fullness in the breasts, and more fat accumulation around the middle.

Some symptoms can also resemble hypothyroid symptoms, because the thyroid may start functioning differently.

Women may also notice that their usual diet no longer works the same way.

Rita De Michele:

I have been with friends where suddenly their whole face goes red, then it calms down, and then it happens again. It can look like this continuous wave of symptoms.

Is that because something else is happening behind the scenes?

Hormones influence so much. They influence the thyroid, but do they also influence digestion, heart rate, and other systems?

The Liver, Detoxification, and Hormone Processing

Jessica Green:

Yes. The liver plays a major role.

If the liver is sluggish, estrogen may not be processed and cleared properly.

If someone drinks a lot of alcohol, does not have regular bowel movements, is not staying hydrated, or is exposed to a lot of toxins, the liver may become sluggish. That can contribute to symptoms.

Supporting liver detoxification can be really important.

Rita De Michele:

If someone booked in with you and said, “I have these symptoms,” what would be the first thing you would look at?

Where to Start: Lifestyle, Liver, and Gut Health

Jessica Green:

The first step is often helping women make themselves a priority.

If someone is ready for the next step, we may look at liver detoxification, bowel movements, and gut health.

The gut microbiome is very important for how the body processes hormones.

Rita De Michele:

Can you explain that connection?

Jessica Green:

The gut microbiome needs to be balanced. There should not be an overgrowth of harmful bacteria. Ideally, there should be primarily beneficial bacteria.

The gut microbiome is very important. Liver detoxification is also very important.

That is in addition to the basics: sleeping well, eating whole foods, eating enough protein, moving your body, and sweating.

It all builds from there.

Symptoms Women May Not Realise Are Hormonal

Rita De Michele:

Some women may go to a specialist because they have heart palpitations and feel scared. Yet it may be connected to hormones.

If they had more comprehensive testing, they might understand what is happening.

What are some symptoms women may be able to identify for themselves?

Jessica Green:

Great question.

Two of the biggest symptoms I see are sleep issues and difficulty staying asleep. A woman may wake in the middle of the night and not be able to fall back asleep.

Another pattern I see relates to estrogen dominance.

When women start supporting the liver and helping the body clear excess estrogen, they may become happier and less anxious.

That may sound like a small shift, but when clients say people around them are noticing they look happier, that is meaningful.

Nutrition, Protein, and Rebuilding Energy

Rita De Michele:

You mentioned women feeling exhausted. When someone comes home from work exhausted, the last thing they want to do is cook. It becomes easy to order takeaway.

Jessica Green:

Yes. But food matters deeply.

For example, the thyroid needs zinc. Zinc is important for many bodily functions. When you start rebuilding nutrient levels, it can be life-changing.

One of the first things I recommend women eat enough of, especially as they get older, is protein.

Women need more protein as they age because the body does not process and assimilate essential amino acids as efficiently as it once did.

Antioxidants and polyphenols are also important.

I also recommend a simple morning drink: half a lemon juiced into warm or hot water with a pinch of salt. It acts like a natural electrolyte drink and can support the adrenals.

You can have it in the morning within 30 minutes of waking.

Anxiety, Hormones, and the Chain Reaction

Rita De Michele:

So, do you really have anxiety, or is it a chain reaction?

It sounds like we need to look at everything: food, lifestyle, stress, liver function, hormones, and supplementation.

Would you usually test before recommending supplements, or do you suggest basic support like magnesium and a B complex depending on symptoms?

Jessica Green:

That is a really good question.

I do run tests when needed. Testing helps identify what someone may actually need.

That said, nutrient depletion is common. Food today is not necessarily as nutrient-dense as it was decades ago.

Also, more people are moving toward plant-based diets and away from animal proteins.

Animal proteins, especially foods like liver, can be very nutrient-dense. Chicken liver pâté, for example, is packed with nutrients.

Rita De Michele:

I am with you. I love it.

Jessica Green:

It is very nutrient-dense, ounce for ounce.

Listening to the Body

Rita De Michele:

What I hear is that people often lose trust in their own intuition. They lose that knowing of their body.

If you give the body what it needs, it can heal itself. But so often, people do not stop to think about the food they are eating or the stress they are living under.

Sometimes, you can look around and realise, “My stress level is incredibly high.”

Environmental Toxins and Hormone Disruptors

Rita De Michele:

You also talk about environmental toxins. One thing I have never thought much about is receipts.

That is new for people listening.

I do not like hand sanitiser because we need good bacteria and exposure to healthy microbes. But receipts are a new one for me.

Jessica Green:

When it comes to endocrine disruptors, some of the biggest exposures come from plastics.

Anything plastic can expose you to endocrine-disrupting chemicals, especially if it is heated.

Bath and body products can also contain endocrine disruptors.

I recommend using an app like Think Dirty, where you can check the toxicity rating of products.

The Environmental Working Group also has databases for cleaning products and bath and body products. You can look up products or individual ingredients to see whether they may disrupt hormones or liver function.

Sweating, Saunas, and Detox Support

Jessica Green:

Some wellness centres have infrared saunas, and you can often buy a punch card.

You can also get sauna blankets for home. They are more cost-effective than a full sauna, and you can roll them up and put them away.

Another option is simply moving your body and sweating through exercise. At least then, you are helping the body release some of what may otherwise accumulate.

Tracking Food, Mood, and Symptoms

Jessica Green:

Everyone will be different, so I want people to explore and pay attention.

Write things down in a journal. Use a food and mood journal. You can also use an app like MyFitnessPal to track food and how you feel.

Start by implementing one change and tracking how your body responds.

Jessica’s Why

Rita De Michele:

Tell me, what is your why for doing this work?

Jessica Green:

I want to help women become the best version of themselves.

This stage of life is so transitional, and it can cause many issues. I want women to move through it without feeling overwhelmed by symptoms.

I want them to feel in charge of their health, clear-minded, and energetic, so they can accomplish the wonderful things they want to do.

Three Simple Starting Points

Rita De Michele:

What are three simple things listeners can start doing?

Jessica Green:

Eat really well.

Supplement where needed.

Drink more water and eat fresh food.

That is the foundation.

Rita De Michele:

So, the foundation is eating well, drinking enough water, eating fresh food, and supporting the body.

Then, if someone still feels they need to move the needle on their health, that is where functional practitioners come in.

That is where someone like you can support a more comprehensive understanding through testing and discovery.

Jessica Green:

Exactly.

Rita De Michele:

Jessica, it has been such a pleasure.