No one has all the answers on menopause

However convincingly they say they do

As we head into 2023 the menopause world feels like it has never been more polarised. It was something I talked about with my son over Christmas. Though he is only 25 he has an old head on young shoulders. He summed it up perfectly ‘everyone wants a quick solution so making things black or white work - no one is interested in the reality that is grey’.

The recent debates on menopause, HRT and issues like dementia and insomnia bear witness to this even when the scientific evidence just isn’t there to support a straightforward story or there are multifactorial interacting dimensions that can’t be solved by a pill and few twiddles in lifestyle. Advocates of the quick fix and their vocal social media supporters will go on the attack and those with other things to say often back off which means in the end the loser is the client/patient.

But for me, it is in the grey that the real solutions lie even if it takes longer and requires more input from the therapist, clinician and client/patient. Always good to remember we are going to live 30+ years postmenopause and there is time for solutions to be worked through and for their effect to be felt. And sorry/not sorry I don’t fully buy that taking a supplement or HRT for a week turns you around physiologically (I am willing to be proven wrong). Though I do think the fact that your concerns have been heard and a solution has been presented can have a significant effect on your mindset and the mind is a powerful component in our health and well-being.

My hope lies in the wonderful conversations and teachers that I had at the back end of 2022 including those with Dr Ginger Garner and Dr John Neustadt and will continue to have through 2023.

In Chinese medicine, the ‘way’ which encapsulates the profound, timeless and universal teaching from Lao Tzu’s Tao Te Ching and provides a guide to the art of living and if applied in our modern world affords an openness to embracing all possibilities simply by renouncing preconceived judgments, relentless desires and the obsessiveness that modern life so often fuels.

Increasingly many practitioners are beginning to acknowledge the remarkable synergies between Oriental and Western medicine and that all too often perceived incompatibility may be the exception rather than the rule. In my own small way, my recent and ongoing studies under Dr Lisa Lee (microbiome and TCM food therapy) and Dr Peter Larkin (neuroscience and medical qigong) reflect this and leave me excited about how ancient traditions can be brought into the modern world to help my clients become healthier, happier and stronger people.

If you are interested in hearing more about this Path to Harmony as an approach to health and wellness then I would love you to join me on Wednesday 18th January at 20.00 CET in the first of my monthly workshop series Live Longer Well: Women’s Health and Longevity that will be running on the 3rd Wednesday of every month.

We all have a powerful capacity for healing and presence within. My work is intended to help you access this wisdom and vitality, and develop true self-care.

There are many ways to work with me and learn more including a whole host of new online courses available starting later in Q1. I am returning in 2023 to one-to-one consultations post Covid, my husband’s bipolar meltdown and a massive house reno. I have missed client personal contact more than I was willing to admit.

If you're interested in working with me one to one. I do see clients at an acupuncture clinic in Uddevalla(probably not relevant for many of you), or through zoom consultations online.

Online health consultations can include TCM nutrition advice, movement suggestions, and mindfulness. I also offer private qigong sessions which are collaborative and include a personalized sequence you can follow at home after the call. If you're interested in booking a consultation of any type please reach out via my updated website https://clarissakristjansson.com/contact

Speak soon

C x