You are not going crazy but I know it feels like it. Research tells us that the brain has to do a huge amount of rewiring through-out perimenopause and even for a few years post-menopause. It’s time to give yourself a break because all that brain fog, low mood, anxiety, mood swings, memory loss, fatigue, headaches, poor sleep and even hot flushes are associated with this immense change. Up until the beginning of perimenopause, your brain has been receiving a cyclical flow of estrogen and progesterone.
One relationship with pre-menstrual syndrome and mood disorders is the drop in these hormones before your period. During your menopausal journey, these drops and rises can become chaotic and deeper as your estrogen and progesterone receptors in your brain and nervous system continue to fire, seeking these hormones to do their job.
You will experience a slow decline of progesterone production throughout your journey. Progesterone has a calming effect on your neurons and your hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. It also stimulates a compound called brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) which promotes the development of new nerve cells. Losing this progesterone is the beginning of this great change.
Furthermore, your brain has become dependent on estrogen for its amazing ability to promote serotonin levels (a much-needed neurotransmitter that is made in your gut and is required to feel calm and happy). Estrogen also is an amazing anti-inflammatory so imagine what happens with any underlying inflammatory conditions as you go through menopause. It also regulates your circadian rhythm. So if you have been under stress and not sleeping well, this will become exacerbated during menopause.
Not sleeping, of course, leads to all kinds of chaos at this time. One other vital role of estrogen in the brain is that it facilitates the use of glucose for energy by increasing insulin sensitivity so glucose can easily get into the cells and power your brain. Estrogen, as a promoter of growth hormone (GH), is responsible for stimulation of mitochondria which power every cell in your body, including cells in your brain and nervous system. This lower estrogen situation leaves your brain with a kind of energy deprivation. Your situation will be made worse if you underwent surgical menopause as you won’t have the ovaries to help provide estrogen and other precursors.
The good news is that it is most often not permanent. It is just a major readjustment that is temporary until the recalibration is complete. Your brain energy will be restored, and you can hopefully enjoy a healthy brain and nervous system into your golden years. It is however, a precipice of brain and neuronal health. If your brain does not recalibrate in a healthy and timely manner, this could lead to chronic neurological conditions such a dementia, chronic depression, chronic sleep disorders, etc. As stated in Lara Briden’s, amazing book, Hormone Repair Manual, “successful recalibration of your brain energy is all to do with cultivating metabolic flexibility, which is your cell’s ability to shift between glucose and ketones for energy”.
Some major influences on your metabolic flexibility are;
- Your level of inflammation that is already present.
- Whether you have insulin resistance.
- The type of diet that you have been consuming throughout your life and when you eat.
- The amount of physical, emotional and psychological stress you have been under in your lifetime..
- The health of your gut, liver and microbiome.
- The level of toxicity that your nervous system is carrying.
- Your ability to replenish your mitochondria – the powerhouse of every cell.
Being insulin resistant means that your body has less ability to burn fat and so less ability to provide ketones to the brain. If you suffer from brain fog, memory loss, poor sleep, fatigue, migraines or any other related symptoms getting tested for insulin resistance is advisable.
There are many lifestyle, nutritional and herbal strategies to assist with insulin resistance. These include exercise, avoiding refined, processed sugars and carbohydrates, intermittent fasting, ensuring that your gut microbiome is healthy and herbal combinations that work on promoting healthy estrogen production via estrogen receptor modification.
Besides identifying and reversing insulin resistance it is important that your nervous system and adrenals are supported. There are numerous herbal combinations that can do this along with nutrients such as magnesium glycinate or threonate, taurine, activated B vitamins, zinc and vitamin D3.
Also stop or reduce alcohol. This is easier said than done for many women. We live in a culture where alcohol has become a crutch for feeling relaxed after a stressful day or if going through stressful events. The reality is that it not only is a brain toxin but it also decreases your adenosine levels which will disrupt your sleep and lead to more stress on your system.
My experience with alcohol throughout my menopausal journey was that it no longer seemed to have the positive or relaxing affect on me but rather a numbing affect where it causes a kind of cloudiness to reside over my brain. It also affects my moods in a negative way and definitely affects my sleep now. I do still have a drink here and there but seeing the effects it has on my nervous system and, also my liver health in regards to potential weight gain, I have been able to make the choice to mostly avoid it. Many women need support in this area as it has often become an addiction and a way to cope with life, like many things can become.
Moving your body and building muscle will also reverse insulin resistance. The type of cardio and strength training you do is completely dependent on your level of inflammation, whether you are sleeping and how fatigued you are.
Often reversing insulin resistance requires some radical dietary changes which will often lead to having to face the dreaded sugar cravings. For some women these are too much to bear with quite severe withdrawal symptoms. This is where you need a supported program and strategies in place to help you along the way.
The importance of reversing insulin resistance and looking at other factors that are contributing to your brain health cannot be underestimated if you desire to live a long and healthy life. This includes healthy weight, avoidance of neurodegenerative conditions such as dementia and markedly decreasing your risk of cardiovascular disease and bone degeneration.
Working 1 on 1 with an experienced health practitioner and menopause transformation coach can ensure that your particular history and circumstances are always taken into consideration when planning and implementing treatment protocols. This makes it specific to you. Know that I have an am going through this with you.
References:
L. Briden. Hormone Repair Manual. Pan Macmillan Aust. P/L. NSW, Australia, 2023.
P.M. Maki, R.C. Thurston. Menopause and Brain Health: Hormonal Changes Are Only Part of the Story.
Published online 2020 Sep 23. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2020.562275
S. Whitcroft, A.Herriot, et al. Insulin resistance and management of the menopause: a clinical hypothesis in practice. Sage Journals, 2011. Vol, 17, Issue 1.
M.D. Paoli , A. Zakharia , G.H. Werstuck, The Role of Estrogen in Insulin Resistance: A Review of Clinical and Preclinical Data. American Journal of Pathology, 2021 Sep;191(9):1490-1498.
T.R. Silva, K. Oppermann, F.M. Reis, P.M. Spritzer. Nutrition in Menopausal Women: A Narrative Review. National Library of Medicine, 2021 Jul; 13(7): 2149. Published online 2021 Jun 23. doi: 10.3390/nu13072149