Intro to menopause – Part 2: Managing symptoms with special guest Diana Alvarado

Join us for Part 2 of our Intro to Menopause series with Diana Alvarado, certified menopause coach and menopause yoga instructor. In Managing Symptoms, we’ll focus on building your wellness toolkit to help you feel your best. We’ll cover supportive nutrition, effective exercise, better sleep habits and practical stress management and mindfulness techniques.

We believe that healthy finances go hand in hand with mental and physical well-being. Join Fidelity’s Jessie Sarafian weekly for an engaging wellness series that will help you stay ahead by exploring topics like yoga, nutrition, meditation and much more.

Transcript

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Subtitles have been AI generated

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Hello, and welcome to Invested in Wellness.

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I'm Jessie Serapian, and I'm super excited for today's show as it's part

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two of our Intro to Menopause series.

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And we're joined by special guest, Diana Alvarado, certified menopause coach

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and menopausal yoga instructor.

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And today we will explore how to best manage your symptoms and building your

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wellness toolkit to help you feel your best.

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Diana, thank you so much for joining us today.

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Thank you for having me back. I can't wait to pick up where we left off

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Yes, looking forward to the conversation.

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So for those tuning in online, if you have any questions for Diana throughout

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the show, please type it in the Q and A box at the bottom of your screen.

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We really want this to be as interactive as possible.

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So Diana, in part one, we talked about what menopause is,

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what's really happening in our body, what were some of the main key takeaways.

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The big one was that menopause isn't just like a single event, right?

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It really is a transition.

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And so I'd like to refer to it as the midlife transition.

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And perimenopause can really last, you know, four to 10 years prior

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to actually hitting menopaus and postmenopause.

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So it really is the transition.

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And it's defined by our ovaries just becoming less consistent and

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producing oestrogen and progesterone.

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So it's more of like a roller coaster as opposed to like a smooth decline

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and that unpredictability is why we experience so many different

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symptoms and can really vary from woman to woman.

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They can be affected by your genetics, your health, your stress levels.

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They all really play a role in your experience.

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So there's really no one normal menopause experience is,

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which is why generic advice doesn't really always help everyone situation

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is so different.

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Yeah, and that's so important. Like you said, like every single woman is

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different and what they experience.

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So I really want to dive into nutrition because it's so importance.

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So how can nutrition really help manage the common symptoms of menopause?

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Like hot flashes, mood changes, you know, weight fluctuations

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and all that.

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Well, nutrition in of itself isn't going to eliminate the

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menopause symptoms, but it can be supportive by

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affecting how your body handles this transition.

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So when we're looking at hot flashes, some women find that things like

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alcohol, caffeine, or spicy foods are triggers for them

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and it's very individual.

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So tracking, which is what we also discussed last week, is also important

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to kind of note those changes.

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And then for weight changes, our metabolism doesn't

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slow down. A lot of people think that our metabolism slows down during

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midlife, and that's not really true. What happens is it shifts somewhat during

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that perimenoma stage as our oestrogen declines, and there's

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often a redistribution of fat towards the midsection.

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And even if the number on the scale isn't moving, you might notice that...

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Redirection of fat. So it's not just about, you know, eating clean,

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but it's more about our protein intake and our strength.

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So when we look at things like our energy and our mood, blood sugar

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stability is huge. So, when we have those, you knows, those big spikes

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and those crashes from like high sugar or low fibre meals,

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this can really worsen the fatigue or the irritability that you

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might feel. And then a lot of women are already having a hormonal

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fluctuation. So that just adds to it.

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So it's not so much about like restricting what you're eating, but it's just

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being more consistent and ensuring that you know, you're eating every three to

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four hours, you including that protein in your fibre at each meal, just to

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kind of keep things steady.

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So, it doesn't, you know fix your menopause symptoms, but definitely does

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support it.

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Okay, now that's super important.

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We have an audience question right away.

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So specifically about supplements.

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So there's so many supplements out there for women.

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Which supplements have the strongest evidence behind them and what should women

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be cautious about?

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So the supplement industry is huge, and I often

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get asked by women, just like this question, if they should be taking a

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particular supplement that they heard about from a friend, or they saw an ad

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for, and because women just want to feel better.

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And the supplement industry knows this, they kind of prey on it.

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So I really do love this question and would like to spend a little bit of time

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on this. So things that we have solid evidence for are things like

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our calcium and our vitamin D, particularly if you're not getting enough

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through food and sun.

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Things like omega-3s, like that are in fatty fish, nuts and seeds and olive

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oil, they have good evidence for heart health and our brain health

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and mood support.

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Creatine monohydrate is another one that's kind of really gained a lot of

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traction over the last year or so, and it's one of the most well-researched

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supplements out there. And newer research, specifically in post-menopausal

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women, shows that it can support lean muscle mass and strength.

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But that's when it's paired with resistance training.

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So if you're not consistently strength training, some of those benefits aren't

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quite there. So I wouldn't take it if it's not part of your routine.

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There is some promising early evidence for cognitive function

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and brain fog with the creatine helping with that, but the research doesn't

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support taking it for that reason yet.

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So a typical dose is around three to five grammes a day, and that's

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considered very safe.

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You may have also heard things like black cohosh and

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soy isoflavones.

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Those are two of the most studied natural options for hot flashes, but

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the evidence is mixed again.

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So some women report relief, but it doesn't hold up consistently in

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trials. So it's not something that, you know, I'd say works for everyone.

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Another one that I hear often about is biotin.

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And that's also another one that's recommended for hair and nails and

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there's no real evidence that it works unless you actually have

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a biotin deficiency.

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So a lot of these supplements contain more than your body needs and

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it's just getting excreted through your urine ultimately.

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So one important thing I want to flag is you may

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have high levels of a certain supplement which means you know, you shouldn't be

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taking more of it, it can interfere with lab tests.

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Including your hormone levels like FSH and LH and thyroid.

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So it's really worth knowing and getting your blood work done

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ahead of time to kind of see where that's at.

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So I would just be cautious generally about the marketing

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around anything that they call hormone balancing, supplements or

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detox products aimed specifically for menopausal women because there

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really isn't a lot of evidence around that.

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And they could really interfere with any other medications that you're taking.

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Consult. Always talk to your doctor or registered dietitian before taking

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anything would be my suggestion.

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Yeah, for sure. That makes a lot of sense.

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And I've also added creatine to my diet daily.

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And so far, I feel good. I don't know if it's made a huge difference, but you

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know, I'm combining it with strength training.

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I'm feeling stronger. I think the brain fog has eliminated or

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subsided. So I think it's working.

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Yeah. Yeah, how long do you think when you're starting off on a new supplement

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in your regular routine or diet, how long does it normally take to see

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an effect?

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So if it's one that you know has been prescribed by your doctor because you're

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deficient in it, like I would give it about a month before you start noticing

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the effects of it. So it does take time for our body to adjust.

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The ones that aren't regulated by the FDA, there really is no clear

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guideline or protocol around you know how much to take or how long to take it

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or how long it's safe to take for.

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So those are the ones that I would be more weary about.

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Can you share some simple, realistic nutrition strategies that

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can help women really feel their best?

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Well, there isn't really like a special diet for menopausal women, but we

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do know that there are certain macros and nutrients that our bodies

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need. And it's much more about being consistent than

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trying to be perfect about exactly what we eat.

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So what I suggest to my clients is to start with protein first.

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So build your plate around a protein source and then add

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the rest around it. So that's where you would add your vegetables and your

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carbohydrates. So when we're looking at our plate.

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We're thinking that quarter of your plate is protein,

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half of your plate is vegetables, and then the other quarter are carbohydrates.

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So I don't want women to fear carbohydrates.

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Our bodies need complex carbohydrates for energy, but try not

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to have them on their own. So, for example, eating a plate of pasta will

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definitely cause the, you know, blood sugar spike.

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But if you're adding a protein or fibre with it, you'll avoid those blood sugar

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swings. Um, I also suggest to try and

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batch like one thing or one meal for the week.

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So this could be like a big batch of protein, like.

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You know, chicken, lentils, chickpeas, ground turkey,

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these can be used in so many dishes throughout the week and you have it readily

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available. So that's always a suggestion if you're

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not really big on meal planning or even just preparing the same breakfast

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for the next three days and having that ready to go so that when you are

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rushing out the door in the morning, you have that proper fuel for the day.

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And the last one would be hydration. And I don't think we drink.

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Enough water because we're usually busy running around and we're not really

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paying attention So try drinking water, you know before you

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assume that you're hungry Thirst sometimes gets mistaken for hunger

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and fatigue a lot of the time, especially with the hormonal shifts So

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when we think about how much water we're looking about half

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of our weight in ounces and then more, eight to 16 ounces,

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depending if you're exercising like 30 minutes or more.

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So that's what we're look at.

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So they don't really require special diet.

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It's just about making these small, repeatable habits and building from there.

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Okay, great. So now I wanna shift to exercise and movement, as you mentioned.

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So are there some types of exercises that you feel will provide

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great benefit during menopause?

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Well, you probably won't be surprised because we hear it all the time and

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everywhere strength training is the one that I would put at the top and

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it's backed by a lot of research.

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So because we lose muscle mass and bone density decreases

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with the declining levels of oestrogen, that resistance training two

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to three times a week is one of those most protective things that you can

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do for your muscle.

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Also for your bone density and your metabolism too.

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So the more muscle that you have, the more energy that you're burning even at

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rest. So if you're not one to use weights, you can do

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body weight exercises.

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You can even use like bands are very helpful.

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And with time though, you also, you want to make sure that you

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are making it more challenging over time.

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So over time, you wanna either start increasing the weight or you might wanna

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increase the reps so that you're seeing the most benefit.

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Um, in addition to the strength training, no, I know there's been a lot

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of, um, information out there that we no longer need the cardiovascular or

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the walking is not as important, but it really is.

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So. We're looking at the cardiovascular because it's important

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for our heart health, which becomes so important post menopause

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and things like yoga and mobility work.

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They support our joint health and our stress regulation.

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So the best exercise plan really does blend the cardio.

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It blends a strength training, but it also blends in the flexibility.

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So rather than just picking just one.

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Now that makes a lot of sense and you know, women experience like the low

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fatigue, the lack of motivation during menopause.

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What advice do you have for someone you know that is experiencing the fatigue,

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the joint pain or just lacking motivation in general to start?

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Yeah, I, you know, I really want women just to start being

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compassionate with themselves, joint aches and pains and fatigue.

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They're all part of that transition and they're real and they are hormonally

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driven. So it's not a sign that, you're out of shape or that you're something

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wrong or that you're being lazy.

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So what I would say is just start smaller than you

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think you need to. So maybe it's, you know, 10 minutes of walking or

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you're doing low impact strength training, like body weight or the like, the

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light resistance bands. Um, that's much more sustainable on

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your achy joints, especially have the joint aches and pains than doing

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something like high impact cardio.

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And motivation almost always follows action.

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It's not the other way around. So the goal is just to start moving,

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even if it's briefly, and then let consistency build from there.

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Also think about just doing something that you enjoy.

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If you enjoy doing what you're doing, you're gonna be more consistent with it,

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and consistency is much more important than intensity.

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Maybe it's a social activity. Maybe it is something that, you know, you try

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dance class with a friend that you do once a week, and you have that

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accountability partner. Whatever that you can do that's consistent and

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enjoyable, again, is much important than the intensity of it all.

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So listen to your body for sure.

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Yes, I completely agree with that.

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And obviously, I love doing yoga.

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Specifically, well, now, when I do yoga, I'm already internally hot.

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So when I hot yoga, that just intensifies to an

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extreme. So do you advise against hot yoga when women are

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experiencing the symptoms of paramenopause and menopause?

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I do, I do. I mean, especially if you're affected by it, like if you are not

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affected by it then by all means.

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But if you notice that change, because depending on the yoga class

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you're taking, you can be moving from up to down, you know, racing

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forward, all different kind of movements and that movement of itself,

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if you already hot, you start to get dizzy and

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really start feeling faintish.

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So I would just avoid it. There are so many other yoga, You know.

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That you can do without the heat for sure.

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Okay, sounds good. So now I want to shift to sleep.

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Again, another important topic.

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So why does menopause affect sleep so significantly?

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Well, there's a few things that are happening at once, which is why

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it affects your sleep so much.

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We have declining and fluctuating oestrogen levels, and

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that affects our body's temperature regulation.

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So that's why women may experience the night sweats or the hot flashes.

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And the dress room, which also provides that calming, that

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sleep-promoting effect, is also dropping.

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So you might find it harder to fall than stay asleep.

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And beyond that, beyond hormones in general, we

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start to experience more anxiety during this stage, mood changes,

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increased stress during midlife. So that in and of itself can make it harder to

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fall and stay asleep. So there's a lot kind of happening that really makes

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sleep difficult during mental.

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Yeah, definitely. We have another audience question.

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So how important are consistent bedtimes, screen habits,

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and sleep environment?

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They really are important, and I know, you know, we think about it,

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yeah, I know. I know I should be doing that, but you know we really don't, but

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they really are important and this is kind of one area where

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the basics really do work.

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So having that consistent wake time really helps regulate that

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circadian rhythm as well as getting morning light.

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You know, there's a lot of research around that.

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Getting morning light as soon as you wake up even for five minutes, even if

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it's cloudy outside.

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Um, the habits that we start with as soon as we wake

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up really do affect our nighttime sleep.

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So it's not just, you know, our nighttime habits, it's what are we doing first

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thing as we make up, um, things like reducing our screens that are before

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bed helps because the blue light from the screen suppresses melatonin,

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which we really need for that calming and sleep, um

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to really kick in, right?

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Not to mention what we're consuming, can really linger in our thoughts

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and may wind us up more than wind us down.

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So these are all things that we can do.

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Having a cool, dark room can really help deal with night sweats

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or hot flashes.

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So again, these are things that we have control over that increase

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our chances of getting a better night's sleep.

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I'm not going to say that your sleep will be perfect and never be interrupted.

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But if you do some of these things, it can increase the likelihood of

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that nighttime rest.

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I totally agree. I started sleeping with a sleep mask and it's helped

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tremendously, like over a month now.

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Yeah, that's a great suggestion.

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Yeah, the sleep mask is a good one.

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Or dark, yeah, the dark blinds so that you're not getting that light in.

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Yeah.

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And a cool room too helps for sure.

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It definitely does. So now I wanna pivot to

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stress management. So what are some simple stress management techniques people

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can use every day?

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For me, and what I recommend to a lot of my clients

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is just moving daily, even if it's briefly, it's one of

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the most effective stress regulators that we have.

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So taking short, um, mindfulness breaks, I find really

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helps as well. So it doesn't have to be like a traditional meditation session.

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It could literally just be sitting and doing nothing for five minutes or

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spending time outdoors, just enjoying the fresh air and focusing

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your attention on the nature that's around you.

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Um, even just taking just a few deep breaths throughout the day, those little

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micro mini breaks and.

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I know for me sometimes just listening to like uplifting music or

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just start dancing and moving my body, like it switches things and

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it really helps reduce the stress that I'm feeling in that moment.

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Talk to a friend also.

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So you know social connection is so important and just having someone just

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listen can be so helpful and regulating our stress levels too.

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Just knowing that we're heard can really make a difference.

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And also just like naming what it is that you're feeling.

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I think we're just so used to like pushing through and

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ignoring what we're feeling, and I think, we just need to take

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a minute just to kind of stop and think, well, this is what it that I'm feeling

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right now and just kind of sit with that and not keep

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pushing through it and ignoring it, right?

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And then we can kind of get on with our day.

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Yeah, I completely agree.

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You know, pausing, taking the time to acknowledge how you're feeling, really

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listening to your body and just taking those moments to decompress

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and breathe. So speaking about breathing, are there any breathing

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techniques or exercises that you recommend for women

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to start, like just in the moment?

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Yeah, there, you know, there are a few methods like the four, seven, eight

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method. We know when you're breathing in for four, you're holding for seven,

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you're exhaling for eight.

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Um, there's one that I do, um, in some of my yoga practises and it's

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called, uh, the Satali breath, but ultimately it doesn't have to

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be complicated. Um, just try slow paced breathing

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where you're inhaling for about four and then you're exhaling for six

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for eight Um, six to eight.

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So those longer exhales is what activates your parasympathetic nervous

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system. And it can really help take that edge off for both, you know, anxiety

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and the intensity of a hot flash in that moment.

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It won't stop the hot flash from happening, but it'll kind of help you ride it

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out with less stress and stress in of itself can

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really amplify the hot flashes and increase the frequency.

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So if you're taking those slow paced breathing, um,

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through it can, really help manage it.

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I love that. And I'm all about, you know, just simple, counting the

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breath, so effective.

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I want to talk about, the three habits.

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So if there's, if someone can focus on just three habits that would have the

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biggest impact during this experience, what would they be?

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I would say if you were to narrow it down to three, number one is the strength

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training.

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Sure, prioritising things like protein and fibre, and protecting

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your sleep. Those three touch every symptom

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that we've talked about today, like our energy, our mood,

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things like our weight, our bone health, and just how well we handle stress.

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So those would be the three things that I would focus on for sure.

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That's great. And what advice would you have for women who are, you know,

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experiencing, you know, discomfort or they're discouraged or frustrated

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during this time?

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Well, the frustration is valid, right?

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We're going through a lot of changes and they really do

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affect how we feel. So this transition is real and

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dismissing it and just, you know, calling it it's just ageing really does women

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a disservice. So I'd also like to say you're not powerless

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in it. There are things that you can do each day,

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these small consistent habits that compound over I'm and

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understanding what's happening in your body, it takes away a lot of the fear

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and that makes the stage to just feel so much harder.

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So yes, it's valid.

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It's, you know, not just ageing.

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It's there are things that we can do that we have control over that

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we do to make us feel better.

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I love that. And are there any resources or apps or

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tools that you recommend for tracking our symptoms?

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I know in part one we did talk about tracking the

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symptoms when you're going to your doctor and letting them know, but are there

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resources that you'd recommend to support?

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I always point people towards reputable,

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evidence-based menopause books and resources as a starting point.

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So, people that I personally I like to follow are Dr. Jen Gunter,

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and she's the author of the Menopause Manifesto.

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For exercise, I like follow Dr. Lauren Colenso Semple in

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the fitness field, the brain docs.

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They do a lot of research in cognitive health and dementia.

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They really do cut through the noise in a way that's simple to

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understand. I would also suggest visiting the

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North American Menopause Society website for the most up-to-date

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information, as well as the American College of Obstetricians

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and Gynaecologists.

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Those are great places to start.

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And beyond that, you don't need an app per se.

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You can just use a simple symptom tracker or even just the notes

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app in your phone to just log things like your energy, your sleep and

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00:23:52,531 --> 00:23:57,002

your mood from day to day so that it helps you spot those patterns.

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The Menopause Foundation of Canada, they have a really good symptom

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tracker that you can download off their website.

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I also have a very simple one on my website that's free to download as well.

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So it really doesn't have to be complicated.

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Just look for real reputable evidence-based information

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where you don't, it's not leading fear.

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00:24:17,088 --> 00:24:17,689

Mm-hmm.

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00:24:17,689 --> 00:24:20,258

And they're not leading with that fear-mongering.

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You really wanna look at the science behind things.

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I love that. And for our viewers that want more information about you, where

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can they go?

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They can find me on Instagram.

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My handle is The Empowered, underscore with Diana.

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Or you can visit my website and that's dianainpowered.ca.

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Those are two places that I'm at the most.

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Wonderful. So we're almost at time, but I want to just chat about,

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you know, we had such a great conversation about nutrition, exercise, movement,

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stress, sleep.

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What, what advice would you give to women going through menopause

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00:24:58,296 --> 00:25:02,734

today? Like, well, what do you, what would be your, your

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advice to them?

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00:25:04,703 --> 00:25:08,740

I would say that managing menopause symptoms, it doesn't have

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to be complicated. I think we make it more complicated than it needs to be.

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We can easily be influenced by what we see

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or what we hear or so many companies trying to make money off

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00:25:21,987 --> 00:25:26,258

of women in this stage because we just want to feel better, right?

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But living that healthy lifestyle, that balanced nutrition, that movement,

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that stress management sleep.

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They're all the cornerstone to not just this transition phase,

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but for all the years following menopause.

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So talk to your doctor before they bring it up, ask for what you need,

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whether that's a referral, whether that is blood work, whether that just a

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conversation about options.

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And if you feel like you're not being taken seriously, then look for

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a certified menopausal practitioner that you can find on

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00:25:58,990 --> 00:26:02,627

a menopause or site.

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And one last point, just you don't have to keep pushing through this phase and

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00:26:07,566 --> 00:26:11,303

you know we were taught to kind of grip and bear it and just go through it.

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00:26:11,303 --> 00:26:15,373

Yes, it's a normal transition, but it doesn't mean that we have to suffer

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00:26:15,373 --> 00:26:19,678

through it either. So this really is the time to really start advocating

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for yourself and for your kids.

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00:26:22,814 --> 00:26:24,616

I love that. That's so, so important.

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00:26:24,616 --> 00:26:28,119

Well, thank you so much for your time. And I'm really looking forward to part

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00:26:28,119 --> 00:26:32,524

three where we're going to shift our attention to the power of support

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00:26:32,524 --> 00:26:35,760

and connection along with a guided meditation by you.

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00:26:35,760 --> 00:26:38,396

So thank you. So much for joining us today.

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00:26:38,396 --> 00:26:39,731

Thank you for having me.

443

00:26:57,349 --> 00:27:01,753

Thanks for listening to, or watching, Fidelity Canada's The Upside Podcast.

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Intro to menopause – Part 2: Managing symptoms with special guest Diana Alvarado

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