HOW TO OVERCOME STRESS AND ANXIETY DURING MENOPAUSE

Does it feel some days that your life is like running an everlasting marathon, one that is sometimes uphill, littered with obstacles, hurdles you have to jump over, a million and one people to please, a to do list as long as your arm, a household to maintain, people to feed, a dog to walk, decisions to make - its flipping exhausting isn’t it.

Add to this the mental energy we spend just thinking about stuff, kids, ageing parents, partners, replying to messages from school, appointments to remember, endless laundry.

I feel my stress and anxiety levels rising just writing this out! So I get it. Many of us women are in the same boat.

If you’re one of the lucky ones this may be “all '' that you’re dealing with, you may have some really big additional challenges happening at the moment - I mean seriously - is it some cruel twist of nature that this time of our life often coincides with also having to deal with the teenage years AND dealing with ageing parents (or is it just me!). Even if you know just how resilient you are and how you’ve been able to cope remarkably well with your “to do” list for as long as you can remember, even for you - this just all feels a bit much right now.

Now let’s add in a couple more things - hormonal changes - perimenopause and menopause symptoms. What on earth is going on there! Suddenly the marathon feels like you are running permanently uphill, in a fog with lead shoes on!

No wonder stress and anxiety are some of the most common symptoms of the menopause. When you finally manage to flop in bed at the end of the day, the chances are that every once in a while those thoughts often start racing and the mental juggle continues.

Add poor quality sleep onto everything else, this can magnify the stress and anxiety.

So we’ve identified the problem - so what’s the solution? How can we make the permanent marathon we’re running easier - how can we lift the fog, take off the lead shoes and maybe even turn that uphill gradient into a downhill one?

That’s my intention for you.

Firstly get a piece of paper and make a mental brain dump and write out all your random thoughts, your worries and your to do list. The act of getting all your thoughts out on paper is highly therapeutic and will make you feel lighter.

Next - From your big jumbled list, see if you can categorise into three separate lists - and title these, Do, Delegate and Dump.

In the Do list, put in this pile the things that you and only you can do - these are the most pressing items.

Next, in the Delegate list - write down items on your to do list that you can delegate - perhaps to your partner, your children, work colleagues, friends. We often feel as thought we have to tackle everything on our own, but the reality is that there are people in our lives who would love to and can help us, all we have to do is ask.

Lastly write out the Dump pile. Put on this list all the things  that aren’t urgent, that are out of your control, and also put on this list, your worries and random thoughts. Feel yourself intentionally letting go of these worries and thoughts and as you transfer this list from your mind onto paper.

Once you have done this - I’d love you to try some tapping, also known as Emotional Freedom Technique. I created one video at Christmas time a couple of years back - when this overwhelm feeling can be particularly heightened.

Check out the video here - https://youtu.be/mX37EM4EEfw 

I am thrilled to have partnered with the Pause and Unite team - where I go deeper on how to effectively deal with the racing mind and all the mental chatter in our heads so that we can feel calmer and more able to get on with our lives in a peaceful way. Check out all the details here

For more information relating to Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) and how it can support you on your Pausal Journey .. Click on the image below: