In February this year I was diagnosed with stage 3 Lobular Breast cancer.  After weeks of tests and scans ( so many scans !!) I then embarked on my treatment plan. For me this involved a double mastectomy and reconstruction, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. 

As a menopause specialist I knew the medical menopause was going to be part of the challenge I faced. So I have spent the entire time during my treatment researching, speaking to experts, reading clinical trials on a huge range of topics from hormones, neurology, mycology ( gut health)  and put together a huge range of strategies for my Rebalance Menopause Toolkit to support my body my medically induced menopause.

This has kept me really busy, I was surprised by the lack of information for women just like me who face medically induced menopause at a time of huge stress and emotions and wanted to take a holistic approach. The key to a successful approach is flexibility, a toolkit that allows you to change and manage your symptoms depending on your symptoms rather than a fixed approach. We can't just change one thing, it's all about building a toolkit that works for you and your life. 

Here's a few things that I feel every women facing this may find useful to add to your Rebalance Menopause Toolkit.  

 

GUT HEALTH

For me this was my No.1 priority during treatment I did everything I could to restore this after each chemotherapy round and found that for me recovery was quick and by the time I had my next chemotherapy I felt almost back to normal health. This continued throughout my entire treatment.  My research into this has just reinforced to me the huge role this plays in our physical, mental and emotional health. 

 

ACUPUNCTURE

It will come as no surprise that this was 100% part of my toolkit. I had regular acupuncture both at home and in a local clinic throughout my treatment.  After each treatment not only did I feel less anxious and more balanced but noticed a reduction in many of my symptoms. Sleep improved,  sickness reduced, night sweats were far less frequent and energy levels increased. 

EXERCISE

Getting out the house every single day was a key pat of my toolkit. Even if I could only make it to the end of my road I went out for a walk each and every single day. Research shows us the importance of movements during cancer treatment. It's not about going for a run or to the gym, it's just about moving your body.

I always say

"when there is movement there is healing."

REBALANCE DIET APPROACH

In my clinic I share with my patients this method its all about simple effective changes that fit in with your life. There are so many factors to this so below I have just included a few. I don't advocate extreme diets ( lets be honest we have all tried them and they simply don't work) During treatment there are days when you just need to eat whatever you can face but on the days when you are feeling more human you can add a few things into to your diet to support your body.  This is not a time to try to change hugely your diet either but I did find the below helped me.   Please note this really is not a to do all list but, a few things you might want to try and see if they help you. 

Small meals often rather than a big meal -  I tended to graze and have a few small meals, sometimes every few hours. 

Protein is a priority -  good clean protein is key to rebuilding your body during chemotherapy. This helps you maintain a healthy weight but also helps to maintain that all important muscles mass for healing and strength.

Fasting in a morning -  I always woke up feeling quite sick and so tended to skip breakfast to allow my gut to heal. 

Pulses are your friend - No matter how sick I was beans and pulses always seemed to settle on my stomach. 

Steer clear of sugar -  not only does this feed the 'bad' microbiome at at time when we need to be restoring our gut microbiome, it also made me feel really sick and led to sugar craving for the rest of the day. Then my night sweats always got worse and sleep was impaired. 

Electrolytes - I took these during my treatment and I honestly believe they helped me a lot. I found on the days I took them I felt clearer in my mind and, aches and pains seemed less.

Epsom Salts -  an absolute MUST ! 2 huge handfuls in your bath at night and soak for 20 minutes. These really helped my restless legs and aches and pains when taking the GCSF injections to boost my white blood cells. Many of my menopause patients also swear by this. 

SUPPLEMENTS

Not knowing what you can and can't take during active treatment can be really challenging. There is an app on the world leading cancer site Kettering Sloan you can download and it tells you what supplements you can and can't take during your treatment.  Anything I took I spoke to my oncologist and consultant pharmacist about prior taking and would absolutely recommend you do the same as everyone treatment plan and the drug they give you is different.  Once I gave them the safety data sheet plus the app almost everything I wanted to take was approved.  

The key is for us to feel we have tools to help us manage our journey. I know it gave me not only health benefits and really fell like it has expedited my recovery but also it gave me a positive focus. I have listened so closely to what my body was telling me and know I will continue to use these strategies and build more into my Rebalance Menopause Toolkit in the future.