PMS Sucks! How to Treat it Naturally

September 18, 2017 Jacqueline Gabardy

While there are phases of the menstrual cycle when our hormones can leave us feel energized, confident, and cheerful, there are also phases of our cycles that may cause us feeling depleted, irritable, and self conscious. The premenstrual phase (the one and a half to two week period prior to bleeding) is most notorious for these feelings, the dreaded PMS.

Premenstrual Syndrome can look very different for different women, but the most common symptoms are emotional changes, mood swings, general irritability, anxiety, or sensitivity, breast tenderness, digestive upset, food cravings, headaches, or acne. While one woman may complain of one or two of these symptoms, some women can attest to nearly every annoying symptom on that list.

But PMS isn't something we're sentenced to as women, in fact there are a number of things you can do to balance your hormones naturally and start feeling better!

How to Survive your First Whole30

September 8, 2017 Jacqueline Gabardy

I recently did my first Whole30, which is eating strict paleo for 30 days - no dairy, no sugar, no grains or legumes, no alcohol. The focus is on whole, minimally processed foods, avoiding preservatives, additives, artificial colors and processed foods.

I found it to be a great experience to reset ingrained habits, take a hard look at everything I was eating, and to get creative in the kitchen. If you're thinking about trying a Whole30 yourself, I say GO FOR IT! You can read about all the rules of the program on their website.

I'm not an affiliate or anything, in fact, there's no membership, meetings, or club to join. Just read about the program rules and eat that way for 30 days, that's it. There are Whole30 approved brands, recipes, meal plans, and books that you can use if you wish, but you don't have to use any of those to do Whole30 all on your own.

I'm on TWO of my Favorite Podcasts!

August 28, 2017 Jacqueline Gabardy

I recently got to be a guest on two of my favorite podcasts, and they just so happened to come out within days of each other.

I had a blast chatting with Rebecca and Lindsay of the Boss Bitch podcast about fertility awareness, menstrual cycles, feminism, and business. I talk about the first time I got acupuncture, the process of starting my own practice, and I read both of their tongues - as Rebecca puts it, "the results are SHOCKING!"

I also laughed my ass off with Jackie Johnson of the Natch Beaut podcast. We talked about yin and yang (and how yang is actually pronounced,) how stress effects the body, and holistic skin care. She actually came into my office for the episode so we could do a consultation and acupuncture facial!

And while I'm at it, I might as well mention that earlier this year I was on the Keeping Shop podcast, which is all about owning a brick and mortar business. We discussed how I started my practice, what's involved in acupuncture treatment during IVF, and why bone broth is so good for you.

So go ahead, go crazy listening to me talk!

Intro to Basal Body Temperature Charting

August 22, 2017 Jacqueline Gabardy

Women's hormones change so significantly during the course of their cycles that just by looking at graphs of daily temperatures you can see when ovulation occurs, if implantation has taken place, or when the period is about to start. It can even spot subtle signs of hormone imbalance, for example, if enough there's not enough progesterone being produced to sustain pregnancy.

Not just any temperature though, specifically our basal body temperature (BBT) is what must be measured to better understand what our hormones are doing. Basal refers to the bottom, in this case it's the lowest our temperature gets each day. For most people, that happens to be when you first wake up in the morning, after your body and metabolism have been resting several hours.

I wrote earlier about the Fertility Awareness Method (FAM,) which uses temperature charting as a major component of tracking the menstrual cycle and determining a woman's fertile window. Click the link above to learn more about FAM and if it's right for you.

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That Sweet Life - Women's Health & Chinese Medicine

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