Redefining The Narrative Around Menopause
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We are joined by Hannah Charman, who is a natural menopause specialist for menopause after cancer and more. As a consultant medical herbalist, Hannah helps women to navigate the menopause without HRT with herbal remedies for the menopause, offering safe HRT alternatives for anxiety, hot flushes, fatigue and other symptoms, as well as offering hypnotherapy.
REDEFINING THE NARRATIVE AROUND MENOPAUSE
Hannah shares with us her own 30-year journey with her health, which took a turn one day at age 14 when she suddenly couldn’t move. After many visits to the doctor and her and her parents being told it was psychological, Hannah was eventually diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue. She finally found help with homeopathic medicine, where she was listened to and taken seriously. The homeopathic treatment worked, and Hannah resolved to help others as she had been helped.
She also talks about her experience visiting a Hypnotherapist – which had such a positive effect on her health that both Hannah’s parents decided to change careers and train as hypnotherapists themselves! Hannah provided Reiki at her parents practice when she was just 16 and has been qualified in Western Herbal Medicine for 25 years, so her holistic therapy journey has been nearly lifelong.
Later on, Hannah also trained as a Hypnotherapist and experienced many syncronicities along her journey which helped to confirm her choices. The Universe seemed to have plans for her that were not quite what she imagined them to be. Hannah says we need to let it carry us sometimes and trust it will all work out.
We also discuss the idea of having a ritual around Menopause which should recognise the challenge of it, the struggle and then the reward afterwards when you emerge wiser and stronger. Hannah points out that we could never have come this far in humanity without menopause because in the past we needed elders in the tribe to look after children, to teach and to pass on natural wisdom. We should be fed more positive messages about menopause, so that we feel empowered not fearful.
This leads us on to talk about the archetypes of the Hag and Crone, and Hannah reminds us that the word crone stems from ‘crown’. We agree that in our society we don’t look after our elders, and they no longer feel part of our community. We should be celebrating ageing because it means we are still here! Hannah believes that the last taboo is in fact death, not the menopause. She believes if you can conquer your fear of death, you can conquer menopause, ageing and anything else in your way.
Can the menopause in fact lead us to think more deeply about our ancestors and the meaning behind things? We share some of our own experiences and likened the menopause to feeling like being the ‘mush’ in the cocoon before emerging as the butterfly. It can feel like you are losing yourself or your sense of identity during the menopause. Hannah shares her own experience of this and describes this as one of the spiritual symptoms of the menopause: things like losing your emotional connection to loved ones, feeling like a robot, a flat feeling rather than a depressive state.
Hannah explains that her own journey of the peri-menopause began after the birth of her second child, so she used her knowledge of herbs to treat her symptoms. She began to treat her friends of the same age and found herself mainly treating women going through the menopause. She believes herbs are as good if not better than HRT for the menopause, and we talk about the future of healthcare as taking the best bits of what is on offer to help us feel better.
Sally mentions our immune systems, and how we need to look at supporting those in order to prevent rather than to cure. The body is actually designed to heal, but this isn’t in the mainstream narrative. Hannah points out the basic stuff such as sleep, having social connections, and exercising as vital for good health. As an example, she mentions studies that show exercising 30 minutes a day can dramatically lower the risk of Alzheimers and highlights the incredible research of Dr Dale Bredeson in reference to Alzheimers.
We discuss the various roles of our hormones and Hannah provides us with fascinating insights into how oestrogen gives us the qualities we need to raise children, and how the level drops because we no longer need those in such large quantities, therefore HRT is not necessarily the answer for everyone. We need to respect the changes that take place within our natural cycles and adjust our activities accordingly.
Sally asks about the role of progesterone, and how it helps to promote the health of other hormones. Hannah describes it as the calmer, more sensible sister of oestrogen. Most of us are oestrogen dominant by the time we reach the peri-menopause, which is why we carry more weight on our tummy, bottom and thighs. Due to the use of contraceptives and HRT, we are all consuming more oestrogen because it makes its way into our tap water and it can be found in certain food types. Hannah points out that its during peri-menopause that many women are put on HRT which adds even more oestrogen into the mix! Using herbal medicine can help the body to find a natural balance again. Her strong belief is that if you give the body the right resources, it can right itself. Hannah uses a full medical history to build a picture of each individual client, bringing in all aspects of their life and also their menopause symptoms, prescribing her herbs accordingly. This is not a replacement, but it provides your body with what it needs to reach equilibrium.
We touch on how certain types of cancer are treated by lowering oestrogen levels, which can throw you into an early menopause and the symptoms may be much more severe than in natural menopause. This is why Hannah also works with women who have gone through cancer treatments. In Hannah’s experience, for many women in this position, the menopause has been the worst part of the experience, more so than the cancer. More and more women are looking for natural alternatives to HRT after cancer treatment. They need a safe way to alleviate their menopause symptoms that won’t interfere with their medication. Hannah specialises in providing this sort of help.
If you would like to connect with Hannah or take advantage of her free Menopause Toolkit, you can visit her website: https://physichealth.uk or find her on Instagram: @physichealthconsulting.