Have you ever had a hot flush at just the wrong moment?

Maybe you were having coffee with a work colleague and all of a sudden you burst into a flash of heat and sweat.  It can be strange, uncomfortable and extremely embarrassing!  Don't worry, you're not alone!  Many women experience hot flushes during peri-menopause and menopause.  However, this doesn't make it any less embarrassing.

For most women, signs of menopause, such as hot flashes will last between 6 months and 2 years, but they can hang around for up to 15 years.

So, What is the Science Behind Hot Flushes?

As we enter our 40s and 50s, our oestrogen levels plummet.  This drop is believed to affect the hypothalamus, an area of the brain that regulates temperature.  The lack of oestrogen tells your brain that you are overheated, causing your heart to work faster, the blood vessels in your skin to swell and your sweat glands pour out enough sweat to make it look like you've just completed a Bikram Yoga class (Hot Yoga).  Every woman will experience different symptoms and recognising how hot flashes affect you as an individual is a good start towards finding relief.

Some hot flashes are a sudden rush of heat - your face may become visibly flushed but this may subside quickly.  Others can be an all-day sweat session.  Some women only have hot flush symptoms in their upper body, while others, like me, may also experience them in their lower body.  Some women experience hot flushes daily, while others go weeks at a time without one or only experience night sweats, which can disturb sleep.

Thankfully, these sweaty episodes typically decrease as you go through peri-menopause and into menopause.  There are, however, a few hot flush triggers that can affect their intensity, frequency and duration:

  • Try reducing your caffeine intake, particularly before bed
  • Alcohol is another trigger.  However, not everyone is affected by alcohol
  • Anything that is hot - showers, weather, spicy food and overheated bedrooms are commons triggers
  • The more refined sugar menopausal women consume, the more hot flushes they will have
  • Now is a good time to quit smoking
  • Hot flushes go hand in hand with stress and anxiety

If you feel like you're living in your own private sauna, do something about those pesky menopause symptoms.  Hot flushes may feel like an unstoppable force of nature but if you make some simple lifestyle changes you can free yourself of those hot flushes in no time.

Whether you flash, flush or sweat, it doesn't mean you should suffer in silence.  Recognising your own symptoms is the first step to feeling better.  If you need some help in figuring out what works best for you, book your FREE 30 minute Discovery Call and let's get things rolling.