Menopause presents a condition for women that can be treated very successfully with Chinese and Wholistic Medicine. The common symptoms include hot flashes, night sweats, insomnia, depression, fatigue, panic attacks, mood swings, joint pain (especially hip and heel) and many more, including increased GI disturbance (colitis, Crohn’s disease).
First, the practitioner diagnoses their condition by looking at the 12 pulses on the wrist representing the 12 energy channels in the body called meridians. These include the lung, large intestine, stomach, spleen, heart, small intestine, kidney, bladder, liver, gall bladder, triple heater and pericardium meridians. The practitioner looks for energy imbalances of excess or deficient energy in these meridians which then correspond to physiological, hormonal, or biochemical imbalances in the body.
Frequently, the disorders of menopause show up in a hyperactive liver and heart meridian , and depressed kidney or spleen. However, each individual has different combinations of types of imbalances and each case is treated differently.
Many herbal formulas are used to treat menopause disorders, including bupleurum and peony combo, rheumannia 6 combo, are the most common. They are given in combination so the herbs work synergistically together and work on 2 or 3 meridians at a time.
Acupuncture is also used successfully for menopausal symptoms. The treatments for both acupuncture and herbs are aimed at decongesting the liver, nurturing the heart and spirit, strengthening the kidney and spleen, with varying degrees for each individual.
Many other nutritional and homeopathic remedies may also be used such as evening primrose oil, vitamin E, calcium, magnesium supplements, and natural hormones. The natural hormone creams may be used and they are made from the wild yam (progesterone) or the soybean plant (estrogen) . These hormone creams are biochemically very different from the drugs premarin and provera. Hence they have little side effects and do not cause cancer. In fact, natural progesterone has been shown to increase bone mass by 15% in 70 year old women. Some women may choose to add natural progesterone to their current estrogen replacement therapy (ERT) regime, and get better results; and others may choose to completely switch over from their ERT to completely natural therapies. In the case of women with breast cancer, liver disease or blood clots, natural hormone therapy is ideal for them as ERT cannot be used.
Thus, wholistic medicine is extremely effective in treating all menopausal symptoms completely, without the side effects of causing cancer, or breast tenderness, or bleeding that some of the western drug therapies may cause.