bio identical hormones

[Bethanie]

Is there something better to take after going through menopause?

[RawKnitster]

Why take any? Menopause is a time of change, growth, and dealing with the problems that are causing emotional issues. Problems we may not even be aware of without experiencing this time naturally. Taking hormones is a band-aid on all that. By dealing with it we will come out better on the other side. Just my opinion. :)

[Bethanie]

They are having a meeting tomorrow on them and i just wanted to know if anyone was on them or thought they were necessary:)
B.

[busybees]

I always recommend Susun Weed's book "Wise Woman Herbal through the Menopause Years" (or something to that effect!) ... it really gets into the hormonal changes and how to support your body through the changes. Of course a raw diet tends to help a lot as well according to those that have been raw while going through menopause... haven't been there myself to say for sure!

I'll tell you this though, I already know I will not be taking hormones. I already know that my body does not handle hormones outside of what my own body is or is not producing (see my post in the birth control thread to understand more). It's just like I know the exact raw regimen I will follow should I ever develop cancer. I personally do not believe them to be necessary. There are plenty of women outside of the western world that do not take hormones or anything during this time and have no issues. It's been interesting to study the variances of cultural outlooks on things like menopause in my psychology class.

[Revvell]

Ditto RawKnitster and who are "they"?

I take no drugs, no hormones, nothing except natural food, rest, movement. That's what I "take".

[margoss]

I will be 47 soon and imo, have no signs. People ask me about 'things', I say no. I think the raw helps but also bc I've been a veggie for 17yrs with minimal dairy. I feel that if I continue this way, keep up the maca and do not fall into the 'it's going to happen to me' mode..I'll be fine.

[rawlight]

I do not understand "hormone replacement therapy." Replace? But your body is natural letting them go....that is the way it should be. Sure you can look at menopausal 'symptoms' as inconvenient and they sometimes are, but what's a little sweat?!!

I took/take nothing either and feel just fine. The only thing I 'took' was a natural herb, tincture of black cohosh. That totally helped my night sweats. And I love that Susun Weed's book!

[cara4art]

I went with Chinese medicine myself, which has a whole different view of women and menopause. In TCM, menopause is regarded as a transition, not an illness the way it tends to be in Western medicine. There are a few good herbal formulas that really do help with transitional symptoms and aid in general health, but one also has to be on a good eating and fitness lifestyle too for it to do any good. But being raw really helps, first by way of avoiding all the foods that tend to be problematic for menopausal and post-menopausal women, (most notably most starches, alcohol, sugar, meat and dairy), and a great increase in mineral-rich foods like greens which benefit bones(along with strength-training)far better than Rx drugs and calcium pills ever would. The calcium is fine, but that's not the whole story if one does some investigating. Bones need a full complement of nutrients, best found in plants because they are already in balance with all the co-factors that we don't even know about, but they're there. Of course, two words come to mind - Green Smoothies, just like veganforlife used to say here!
As far as hormones, bio-identical or not, I avoided them like the plague, since my mother died of breast cancer while I was still relatively young - so no hormones for me. As a young one, I did not react well to birth control pills, so I wasn't about to introduce any other hormones later in life either.

[snoops]

I am not all raw but in stopping dairy and grains I have eliminated my hot flashes along with heartburn and weight!!!!!

Menopause is a breeze so far for me. Its all a state of mind. Because I have known all my life I would breeze through it. Not sure why I have always thought that, but it is coming true!!

If you think it will, it will. If you think it won't, it won't. Or something to that effect:)