Learning Midlife

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Gratitude

Learning Gratitude For me, gratitude has been a developing skill that's taken me conscious effort to adopt. I truly believe that reaching my midlife years has allowed me the head space to be more considered about the everyday things that we generally take for granted. There's no question that I've been grateful for so many things, throughout my whole life but when I was younger, the things that I caught myself being grateful for, where generally quite significant things. For instance, generous gifts or major events that brought me joy. I was totally blind to the joy and gratitude that can be seen in every moment. Those moments are there, if we are open, conscious and willing to see them. However, this takes patience and regular practice. Perceptions of Gratitude Life circumstances and experiences shape our 'openness' in being able to recognise all the magnificent things we have in our lives. So, it is not without context for each person. Each of us will arrive at

Introverted

Personality Traits I've known that I am introverted for as long as I've known the word. What I've come to better understand as I've aged, is that there's so much misconception about this personality type. For some reason in our western culture, being introverted is somehow perceived as a negative trait. With a biased assumption of extroverts being more outgoing, sociable and ultimately 'successful'. I would argue, as with most things, there's pro's and cons, to both these personality types. Equally, the perception of positive and negative traits will be highly dependent on our individual values. Additionally, many individuals may exhibit a mixture of these traits, so things aren't quite as clear cut as the 'label's' suggest. Introverted Personality Introverted and extroverted are more like a spectrum of traits. For me, its' very clear cut where my personality type lies. I would describe myself as a 'typical' introvert. I

Acceptance in Midlife

Embracing Your Uniqueness Recognising and accepting who we are as unique individuals, will be a very different experience and journey, for us all. If 'at all', for some people! What I do know from personal experience, is that some of my own acceptances have come from intentional work that I've embarked on, along with some developed 'wisdom' that has come with age. Both of these routes for self-acceptance are an evolving journey that I continue to 'allow' to support my health and wellness. Recognising My Uniqueness For me, my first step in accepting 'me' and my life's journey so far, has been to stop and intentionally recognise myself. As an individual being, I sit within a broad and complex matrix of people, cultures, societies, beliefs and values. All of these things shape who we are and influence our identity and sense of belonging. At times these factors can directly challenge our 'natural' way of being and push the boundaries of what

Weight Gain in Midlife

Hormones and Weight During peri-menopause, our fluctuating and declining estrogen plays havoc with trying to maintain our baseline weight. This is because it effects the way our bodies store fat. Other reasons are also related to decrease in muscle mass, meaning that our bodies require less calories than before. For some people, this is a time of life when we become less physically active, which will also impact on our weight. Our blood sugars can also be affected as we journey through menopause because hormone changes make our cells more insulin resistant, so it's equally important to consider our sugar intake (as in refined sugar) when exploring dietary needs during this phase of life. It's not uncommon for ladies who are experiencing hormone imbalances, to suddenly start to notice weight gain but without the joy of all those delicious goodies to show for it. This can be very disheartening and lead women to resort to various 'fad' diets, in a quest to keep weight sta

Perimenopause and starting HRT

Perimenopause Symptoms So, for me personally, I believe that my perimenopause symptoms started in my early 40's. This is when I started to notice some subtle changes in my body. My menstrual cycle started to change a little but it wasn't too significant to warrant any concerns at that stage. Even at these early stages I just 'felt' different. As the years progressed, other symptoms developed and at the time, I didn't link it to perimenopause because I didn't really know much about the wide range of symptoms (other than the traditional hot flushes and changes to menstrual cycle). My symptoms included: ringing in my ears, heart palpitations, brain fog, anxiety, joint pain, low libido, random crying, hair loss, sudden onset of odd allergies and of course changes in menstrual cycle - being irregular and unpredictable. I did actually approach my GP many years ago and questioned if any of my symptoms were related to hormone imbalance but I was told I was too young (b

Spiritual Journey in Midlife

Discovering My Spiritual Self I've always considered myself a spiritual person, not in the sense of 'religious' but rather having a deeper sense of something 'bigger' than we can comprehend with our human logical brains. It's only been since my children have grown and I'm no longer preoccupied with the day to day parenting responsibilities, that I've rekindled my curiosity of spirituality and what it means for me now. I started meditating and practicing yoga around 6 years ago and I had some really profound experiences when meditating that triggered a feeling of there being something else, greater than what modern day science could capture. This led me to reading lots of books from renowned individuals that were trying to bridge the gap between science and spirituality. My favourite authors have been: Deepak Chopra, Eckhart Tolle, Dr Joe Dispenza, Michael Singer and Daniel J Seigel. All of whom, have written and discussed in great detail, concepts relati

Exercising in Midlife

Why keeping fit in our Midlife is so important It's no surprise that to hear that exercise is important at any age. However, for us ladies going through peri/menopause, the need to exercise becomes greater. This is because of hormone changes that we are experiencing, that directly impact on our physical health. Estrogen, is required for preserving bone density, so is basically a key regulator in maintaining bone metabolism. Bones are a living, growing tissue in the body and to enable their continued healthy functioning, they require Estrogen. During peri/menopause, we produce less Estrogen resulting in increased risk of bone density and risk of developing osteoporosis. Women going through peri/menopause may also experience muscle loss and general joint pain and stiffness, all due to these hormone changes. Although peri/menopause is an inevitable process that all women will go through, there's step we can take to maintain our bone health. Ensuring a well balance diet with high

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