I have friends who suffer extreme PMT, others who struggle to regulate serotonin levels and feel continually foggy and sad and yet others with disturbed sleep. Then, later in life, there are all the challenges that comes with the menopause. From our skin to our sleep, our moods to our energy levels, hormones rule.

Naturally, when we are living good, healthy, calm lives, our endocrine system is able to produce all the hormones we need, in the right quantities. But in today’s fast-paced world, where we work longer hours, sleep less, switch off rarely and eat less natural, unprocessed food, our endocrine systems are unable to do the crucial work that they need to do.

To balance hormones, the simplest changes have the biggest impact. A balanced diet with plenty of healthy fats, oils, protein and complex carbohydrates, is key. Studies have also shown that consuming healthy fat at every meal triggers the release of the ‘satiety hormones’ that help you feel full and satisfied (rather than empty and still craving sugar) – think avocado, olive oil, nuts, seeds and oily fish.

High stress levels are perhaps the biggest impactor upon our health. Cortisol, the ‘stress hormone’, has a big knock-on effect on oestrogen and progesterone production. You need a good level of progesterone to balance out the effects of oestrogen – and because cortisol and progesterone are made from the same mother hormone pregnenolone, when you are extremely stressed (so producing a lot of cortisol) your body sacrifices its progesterone production. 

These higher levels of oestrogen in the body cause a raft of very familiar symptoms – PMS, bloating, breast tenderness, heavy/painful periods – but if oestrogen levels remain elevated over a long period of time, they also put women at an increased risk of fibroids, endometriosis and breast/ovarian cancer.

There is also a tricky vicious cycle in regard to sleep. When we are menstruating, pregnant or post-partum, or in menopause, our hormone levels are more likely to be imbalanced (with oestrogen spiking or falling), which makes us more prone to interrupted sleep. And, interrupted sleep also causes our hormones to imbalance further.

By doing all that we can to establish a good sleep routine – getting into bed at the same time each night and rising at the same time each morning – we stand a better chance of supporting our hormonal production to click back into a healthy groove.

Early lights out, screens off, hot baths and plenty of time away from work and tech, every evening, is vital. And we need to incorporate ample stress relief – yoga, walking, time in nature, and time away from screens – into our everyday lives.

And plenty of self-care! A recent review of multiple studies found that, on average, massage therapy not only reduced cortisol levels by an average of 31%, but also increased levels of the mood-boosting hormone serotonin by 28% and dopamine by 31% – a wonderful reason to book in for a treatment, or to warm some oil and massage your own feet, hands, arms, legs and torso, with firm, soothing strokes.

Given the seriousness of certain conditions associated with chronic hormonal imbalance I would urge all of us to put our hormonal health at the very tops of our lists. I’ve also found books on the subject – from Henrietta Norton’s Take Control of Your Endometriosis, Christiane Northrup’s Women’s Bodies Women’s Wisdom, and Lucy H Pearce’s Moon Time – extremely helpful in deepening my understanding of our bodies, cycles and needs.

This month Eminé is trying a Daily Walk

Even when I am up against deadlines, I cannot stress the importance of getting out for a spring stroll. It doesn’t matter how many things need to be done, I’ve learned that once I take the time to fill up my lungs, stretch my legs and oxygenate my brain, the work then comes together far more efficiently. I love the Rye Harbour Nature Reserve and we often take weekend trips down to the sea with the children.