Hormone Harbour

26/02/2025

Imagine having more energy - no more caffeine crashes, no more dragging through the day. Instead, you’re sailing through work, enjoying your hobbies, showing up for loved ones, and most importantly having time for yourself.

What if I told you that just a few small tweaks can help you notice a difference?

When our hormones shift in perimenopause, we need energy-boosting habits that actually work.

But let’s be honest, it’s hard to make changes alone! That’s why I’ve created a 5-day free challenge to help you build simple, powerful habits that give you lasting energy.

⚡ What? Free 5-day challenge led by nutritionist & coach Minna Holi
📅 When? March 10th-14th, 12:30-1:15 pm CET
👭 Where? Live on Zoom (recordings available), group support in a private Facebook group
💃 For? Women 35+ at any stage of perimenopause or recently reached menopause
📩 How to join? Comment below or join the group directly via the link in the comments

Ready to regain your energy? Let’s do this together!

20/02/2025

🤷‍♀️ While the awareness of transition to menopause has increased by leaps and bounds in the last few years, the messaging is still a bit unclear.

Perimenopause is often simplified as a phase in a woman's life when oestrogen steadily declines making our menstrual cycle unpredictable and causing unpleasant symptoms.

🌪 Various symptoms are often lumped together without explaining the characteristics of this long and eventful hormonal transition.

Media also forgets to highlight that perimenopause starts much earlier than we think. You can be in your mid to late-30s, or you’ve just had the first child in your 40s when you notice the first signs.

🛣 While the timing and symptoms of perimenopause are different for every woman there are some commonly recognised phases that apply to the majority of us. They work as very helpful signposts along our journey to menopause (and beyond) – making it much easier to navigate.

The early stage of perimenopause is the first part of hormonal transition to menopause. Since there is a common misconception that qualifying for perimenopause requires a very irregular menstrual cycle (it can come much later!), this is an often overlooked phase.

1️⃣ The First Signs of Perimenopause

Your cycle might get a bit shorter but only by a couple of days.
You might notice symptoms such as:

🥺 Tender breasts or tenderness lasts longer than before
🥺 PMS moods get stronger - especially anxiety and irritability
🥺 Sleep troubles before your period
🥺 Night sweats before/during the period
🥺 Headaches or migraines increase
🥺 Periods become heavy and miserable
🥺 Overall tiredness

Why Is This Happening?

📉 Progesterone levels drop - meaning you lose its calming and soothing effects on your mood and body.
📈 Oestrogen is higher than before, leading to more intense symptoms.

First Things to Check:

✔️ Is your thyroid working optimally?
✔️ Are you deficient in iron?
✔️ Is your vitamin D at optimal levels?
✔️ What about your B12 and folates?
✔️ How's your gut health - any constipation or bloating?
✔️ How are you managing your stress?

Are you aware of which phase of perimenopause you might be experiencing?

17/02/2025

You can’t possibly imagine how many times I’ve heard this statement. I always like to explain how perimenopause starts much earlier than we think, and it's highly unlikely hot flushes are the first symptoms.

There are some key reasons to why it’s always better to get on top of things and take the first steps in putting your health first instead of waiting for too long.

💛 Prevention is better than cure.

Building stress recovery techniques like yoga, meditation and breathwork, or finding activities and hobbies that act as breathers and restorers, and adding regular physical activity into your daily routine before any symptoms appear puts you well ahead of the curve.

💛 Change doesn’t happen overnight.

It takes practice and energy to make new habits stick. The earlier in perimenopause you set yourself in the right course with a hormone-friendly diet and lifestyle, the sooner you will see some progress.

💛 Perimenopause may exacerbate hormonal issues.

Whatever hormonal issues you are experiencing in your menstrual cycle will likely become worse during perimenopause. Early changes can help maintain hormonal balance, reducing the severity of perimenopausal symptoms.

💛 Subconscious behavioural patterns can cause your stress bucket to overflow.

Any unaddressed subconscious behavioural patterns, such as a perfectionist that dreads failure, people pleaser that makes you ignore your own needs, an imposter that keeps you stuck in a job you hate and overgiver that leaves you feeling depleted after always putting others first, have significant impacts on your body and affect negatively every area of your health – including your hormones.

I can guarantee prioritising your needs will pay off in the long run. Chances are also high that it makes your transition to menopause easier.

14/01/2025

In my previous post I asked if you know what your values are.

The usual ones such as family, relationships, career, and wealth might pop into your mind first. But what's underneath them?

For instance, family gives you security, a job allows you to use your creativity - or allow to have a certain lifestyle - friendships satisfy your need for connection.

The questions below can help you identify your values:

🌟 What motivated you to take up your current job?

🌟 What is the most important thing in your social relations or in your intimate relationship?

🌟 What do you consider to be particularly valuable in your life?

Courage, curiosity, autonomy, health, integrity – what did you get?

08/01/2025

✨ Do you make new year’s resolutions?

✨ Have you been successful with changing a behaviour for a little while until life's got in the way and you’ve fallen back into your old habits?

✨ Have you blamed yourself for being lazy or not having enough willpower?

✨ Have you ever thought if there's something else at play?

Values are the foundation for our behaviours and inner motivators. At the end of the day, they – instead of our willpower – determine whether we make progress towards our goals and results we want to accomplish.

If you want to change your behaviour, but have values that contradict the desired behaviour, you will not be able to maintain your new behaviour for long.

But if your values support your behaviour, it'll be much easier to make permanent changes.

🤔Do you know what your values are?

04/01/2025

How has your January started? Are you trying any of the 31-day challenges such as Veganuary, Reganuary, Dry January or Sugar-free January this year?

There’s no shortage of health promoting bandwagons to hop onto.

Eating more healthily alongside serious intentions to get fitter are the most typical new year’s resolutions.

Unlike the rapid weight loss promoting fad diets, these challenges have good and health promoting intentions. Increasing the vegetable intake, ditching alcohol and sugar altogether, and sticking to sustainable, locally produced meat in January have inarguably loads of positive impacts on health.

🤔But why do these well-meaning challenges rarely lead into long-lasting behavioural changes?

🤔 Is there a possibility that our goals don’t come from the right place?

🤔 Can a goal that improves your health come from the wrong place?

06/11/2024

Intermittent fasting and time-restricted eating are trending, especially among perimenopausal women looking to lose weight.
I often come across the belief that “the longer you go without eating, the better.”

Unfortunately, erratic eating patterns can lead to some unpleasant side effects like:

⚡ Energy crashes
🤕 Headaches
😖 Increased stress
😩 Digestive issues
😴 Sleep disturbances
🤯 Hormonal imbalances
⁉️ And often - weight gain!

Many women are surprised to learn that our bodies thrive on regularity.

If you’re trying to lose weight or just feel better overall, regular and balanced meals are what your body needs. Relying on coffee to prolong the gap between meals is not the answer.

If you notice your eating habits are a bit off, take a moment to reflect.

Ask yourself:

🤔 Where does this belief come from?
🤔 Do you have evidence that it’s actually working for you?
🤔 What underlying fears or external pressures might be driving this pattern?
🤔 What would be a more suitable new belief that could help you move forward?

Your body deserves care 💚

06/06/2024

There's more to weight management than dieting 🩷

24/05/2024

When you think about the word ‘menopause’, what’s the first thing that comes to mind?

Extra kilos? Osteoporosis? Mood swings? Sleepless nights? Hot flushes? Grey hair? Fatigue?

But what if we told you…

❤️ Perimenopause - the transition to menopause - can already begin in our mid to late 30s.
❤️ The transition affects our body and mind in their entirety – not just the ovaries.
❤️ Investing in brain health can have a huge impact on our wellbeing.
❤️ Increased self-awareness correlates with improved mental health.
❤️ Perimenopause presents a unique opportunity for significant personal growth.

Perimenopause: The Second Puberty – a thought-provoking, interactive event hosted by the founder of the Perimenopause Berlin Facebook group and ESL teacher Alexandra Kitching and presented by nutritionist and perimenopause coach Minna Holi – offers a fresh, holistic take on one of the most significant passages in a woman’s life.

You will get answers to questions such as:

😮 How come your diet suddenly makes you feel sluggish?
😮 What is causing your sleep to stop at 3am?
😮 Why do you struggle to keep up with multitasking at work?
😮 Has your confidence been replaced by a niggling self-doubt?
😮 Is pleasing others becoming a burden for your wellbeing?

Perimenopause: The Second Puberty is a perfect fit for women in their 30s-50s who are:

- Experiencing regular symptoms likely to be hormone-related
- Interested in improving hormonal health
- Curious to find out what all the fuss is about
- Convinced none of the above are applicable (yet…)

Come and join us to connect and share stories with others in the same boat.

Book your ticket:

A thought-provoking, interactive event offering a fresh and holistic take on one of the most significant passages in a woman’s life.

09/04/2024

📈 Fluctuations of female hormones not only make it easier to gain weight but it can also impact the production of the other ones: insulin, thyroid hormones, and – most notably – our stress hormone cortisol.

🏃‍♀️ Regardless of the types of your daily responsibilities, they often involve managing unrealistic expectations and dysfunctional relationships while keeping constant frustration at bay.

🤯 It’s possible that your autonomic nervous system stays in the fight-and-flight mode for the best part of a weekday - to the extent it has difficulties telling whether you’re actually at work or home.

📉 From as early as the mid 30s, progesterone’s calming effect starts to wear off allowing higher levels of oestrogen. This makes way for chronically elevated cortisol levels.

📯 It’s a signal to our body to start putting fat aside for the future. Chronically high cortisol is one key reason for the weight gain or why it refuses to budge.

👎That’s why setting boundaries with a pushy boss, clingy friend, or needy partner and learning to say ‘no’ is a must.

💚 By setting boundaries your entire nervous system - and eventually your family and friends - will be eternally grateful.

🩷 Not just that - it makes weight maintenance much easier.

06/04/2024

🌞 Days are getting longer. Nature is awakening after the winter. Sunlight feels brighter and warmer.
💃 Spring can make us feel full of excitement, optimism and hope.
🙇‍♀️ But what if it has an opposite effect on you, and all of a sudden you feel more exhausted, agitated and anxious?

Reverse SAD - also known as springtime SAD (or summer depression) - is the opposite of winter-time seasonal affective disorder.

Reverse SAD is much less well-known than its counterpart. It's been estimated that 1 in 10 winter-time SAD sufferers get symptoms also in spring and summer.

Why does reverse SAD happen?

During spring, changes in the amount of sunlight disrupt our melatonin-serotonin balance. This happens as a result of our bodies reacting to an increase of daylight by ramping up serotonin production and decreasing melatonin.

These effects are further amplified by the daylight saving that can throw off our sleep cycles.

Do you or someone you know suffer from reverse SAD?

Help your body get through the seasonal transition with these easy morning and evening routines.