May 4th, 2011 | Posted in Female Problems
Menopause:
ACCORDING TO CHINESE MEDICAL THEORY, menopause occurs when a woman’s body begins to preserve blood and energy in order to sustain her vitality and allow for the maximum available nourishment for her body, especially her kidneys. The kidney is the organ Chinese Medicine sees as the root of life and longevity. Therefore, the body, in its wisdom, reserves the flow of a channel in the center of the body which sends blood and energy down to the uterus. Instead, blood and essence from the kidneys are conserved and cycled through the body to nourish the woman’s spirit and extend her longevity. Thus, in the Chinese Medicine, menopause is seen as true change in life from mother to enlightened and wise being.
ACUPUNCTURE TREATMENT includes balancing the endocrine system and treating the individual symptoms. It provides a feeling of improved vitality and well-being while encouraging the body to balance and heal itself. Besides releasing energy blocks and rechannelling energy, the needles can also stimulate the release of pain relieving endorphins by the body, the natural analgesics found in the spinal cord, brain and pituitary gland.
It can alleviate many menopausal symptoms especially headaches and migraines, hot flushing, heavy flooding periods, back pain and sagging skin tone by rebalancing the hormonal system. Heavy and erratic menstrual bleeding in perimenopausal women can be relieved by this technique. It also relieves the pain and headache associated with menstruation and has positive effects on insomnia and stress. Treatment can also improve the mobilization of Qi (life energy) to the nervous system to aid poor memory and concentration.
Traditional societies see menopause as a great spiritual awakening. The Earth’s force is stopping and Heaven’s force dominates. Often women become oracle readers and the clarity of their dreams is very sharp.
Menopause doesn’t have to be a dreaded curse of aging during which we can look forward only to hot flushes and whacked-out hormonal mood swings. Menopause often marks the beginning of a woman’s most sexually passionate, creatively inspired, and professionally productive phase of life. While this may sound like wishful thinking, examine how a woman’s lifestyle, emotions, and beliefs are affected by menopause. With the right diet, attitude, and Oriental Medicine, women can actually look forward to a resurgence of energy and a revolutionary opportunity for personal growth—one that rivals the hormonally driven period of adolescence.
In conventional medical terms, menopause is part of the normal life cycle of women. When a woman has passed through menopause, her monthly periods end, and she no longer can get pregnant naturally. Many women welcome the new kind of life that menopause brings, with freedom from pregnancy and child-raising responsibilities. Menopause generally occurs between the ages of 45 and 55 although, as with people in general, there are always exceptions.
The changes of menopause begin when your ovaries, the organs that form eggs, no longer produce eggs, and their production of female hormones decreases. Hormones are chemicals that are formed in glands and move through the blood to cause effects on other body organs. Two hormones made in the ovaries, estrogen and progesterone, help to keep a woman’s monthly period going in a regular cycle. When you approach mid-life, estrogen begins to drop to low levels. The reproductive organs gradually shut down, just as they gradually became active during puberty. Eventually your periods will end.The menopausal transition may take from one to 10 years, and during that time hormone levels can be higher and lower than normal. Some months you may have a period and in others you may not. During this time, you may still be able to get pregnant. Menopause usually happens naturally as women age. Menopause also can occur for other reasons, including removal of both ovaries, radiation or chemotherapy, gland disorders, or very poor health.
