Menstrual Cycle & Doshas
Let’s talk about the menstrual cycle and what a Vata imbalance might look like according to your cycle. So I track my cycle every month and now I am about a year and a half postpartum so my cycle is mostly starting to regulate again now I still breast-feed, but usually just right before I put my little one to bed. I did start noticing, my menstrual cycle length started to become quite short. Now my hormones are still balancing Postpartum.
Could I be in perimenopause or is it something else? My gut knew it was something else and most likely imbalance so what did that look like and how did I fix it?
My Story
Well for about 3 to 4 months my cycle length was anywhere between 24 and 25 days. I was having more intense cramping, I was coming off drinking in afternoon coffee as my little one just started to fall asleep through the night, I was waking up during the Vata hours at night between two and six regularly. I also just felt a little out of sorts and like swirling energy, feeling ungrounded, and none of my habits that I love were happening on the regular. This looks like regular workouts, meditation, my own yoga, practice, Castro packs, Yoni, steams, raspberry and oat straw infusions. I decided it was time to start to implement changes. Especially since we were leaving the summer months and coming into fall it felt like the perfect time to examine habits and to shift to what will work for me again.
Here are the practices that I implemented to start to balance my bat, which intern balanced my menstrual cycle:
-
Yoni steam
- Castor Oil Packs
-
Raspberry oatstraw infusion
-
Shower tonight
-
Yoga with syama in am
-
Empty presence meditation
-
Womb mediation
-
Yoga Nidra
-
Womb basti
-
Take my flower essence 3x a day
The Results
Now I started doing some of those changes in August and October. My cycle started to become more regular for me, which is closer to 27 to 28 days. And bleeding on the full moon.
When you are 40 and your cycle length starts to differ often, hormonal health perimenopause those things come to mind and sometimes it can be that and sometimes it can be just imbalance that you’ve had for several months. If you are in tune with your body, you will probably naturally know which camp it is and be able to fix it , I would start with the imbalance even in perimenopause as that is a time where you need to balance your do as well.
In a world that is full of take action, do more, it’s not OK to slow down. Vata is always to pay attention to and to examine.
Understanding Vata Dosha Menstrual Cycle
Signs of Imbalanced Vata:
- Dry skin and hair
- Feeling anxious or restless
- Irregular digestion and bloating
- Difficulty sleeping or light sleep
- Feeling cold more easily
- Short menstrual cycle
Vata Menstrual Cycle
-
Bring in more Warmth, Heavy, Nourishment & Stability
3 Tips of where to start
-
Bring in more healthy fats -Eat more warm foods, oily and mushy foods
-
Bring warmth to the pelvis (constriction from dryness and cold) - hot water bottle packs, ginger tea brings downward movement, warms the body and promotes grounding - start drinking 4 days before you bleed
-
Stability- Good Daily routine
My weekly challenge
Pay attention to your menstrual cycle. If you haven’t been already, how many days is it, do you have any symptoms, how many days do you typically bleed, do you have blood clots, do your breast feel enlarged, do you have water retention, or weight gain? All of these things tell you so much about your own health often we just need to slow down and listen to our inner wisdom.
Download your free Ayurvedic Perimenopause Guide!
Learn even more practices to help you find your inner balance.
St. Paul/Minneapolis Support
If you're in the St. Paul, Minneapolis Area and are looking for a postpartum doula support person. I do offer in-home support from 1-6 weeks in duration. You can find out more about my offers below.
view + leave comments . . .