Speaker 1: 0:06

Welcome to the Uncomplicated Perimenopause Podcast.

Speaker 2: 0:10

I'm Kate Grosvenor, your friendly perimenopause expert and life coach, and I'm Gabriella Kate's daughter, representing all the women who are nowhere near perimenopause but want to understand it better.

Speaker 1: 0:23

Whether you're just starting your perimenopause journey deep into it. Better, whether you're just starting your perimenopause journey deep into it or you're a loved one trying to support someone who is we've got you covered.

Speaker 2: 0:32

We'll be answering all of your burning questions, exploring the ups and downs and sharing expert advice and personal insights.

Speaker 1: 0:39

So grab a cup of tea, get comfy and let's dive into the wonderful, sometimes wild, world of perimenopause together.

Speaker 2: 0:47

And remember, no matter where you are on your journey, you are not alone.

Speaker 1: 0:51

Welcome to the Uncomplicated Perimenopause. Hello, my darlings, and welcome to episode one of season two. Just in case you're thinking, have we stepped back in time of the Uncomplicated Perimenopause Podcast? My name is Kate Grosvenor, I'm a perimenopause expert and life coach, and I'm Gabriello Gabriello that's a new one, huzzah.

Speaker 2: 1:16

Kate's daughter and I'm here. I don't know what to say now that's really put me off.

Speaker 1: 1:21

Bless your heart. And she didn't sleep very well actually.

Speaker 2: 1:23

I keep forgetting that I haven't slept.

Speaker 1: 1:26

Yeah, I know, bless you. So should we tell the listeners what you were up to yesterday? What were you up to Gabriella?

Speaker 2: 1:32

A lot. I did a lot. I had a weekend of organising, putting everything away, sorting bedroom out, sorting clothes out, just having a Dressing table.

Speaker 1: 1:42

Yeah, you did sorting clothes out, just having a dressing table.

Speaker 2: 1:43

yeah didn't you just everything?

Speaker 1: 1:44

and it feels great, it feels fabulous and your room looks amazing and you sorted life out, but then you deeped it and couldn't sleep.

Speaker 2: 1:51

I couldn't. I thought I'd go to sleep so well because I was so at peace and I'd worked really hard over the weekend and I deserved the sleep and couldn't sleep till half six.

Speaker 1: 2:01

I know, but sometimes, when life is great, you deep it, or like when life is changing a bit. Yeah, and you can deep it and then it's just like oh, I thought I was going to like. I thought they're like little fairies when they come and I was like oh, I thought so.

Speaker 2: 2:13

But I deep stuff from like eight years ago.

Speaker 1: 2:16

Oh, why, yeah, why, I don't know. Change. In general, people resist change, right? We, a lot of us, resist change because we think, um, our brains hold, this is the thing. Change can be good and change can out within our old, in within you, but our brains actually resist change because our brains suddenly think. But if you carry on doing the same you've always done, it'll keep you alive yeah so our brains suddenly think I don't want to try anything new, because that's really scary.

Speaker 1: 2:47

And what happens if suddenly, um, we step into the unknown, and then everything's going to be different, and, by the very nature, of everything's going to be different and I have to find out how everything works, and it's all going to be weird. And so I'd rather keep the old habits, even if they don't serve me. I'd rather keep the old habits, even if they don't serve me, I'd rather keep the old habits, because at least they're familiar and I know the rules.

Speaker 2: 3:07

Yeah.

Speaker 1: 3:08

Than try everything new, and I've got to figure it all out again. So that's probably what happened. Yeah, bless your heart. So if this podcast is a bit wonky, it's not me, it's her. Yeah, because it's usually me and my ADHD-ness.

Speaker 2: 3:20

Today it'll be me.

Speaker 1: 3:25

I'm is today. It'll be me. I'm okay with that. That's okay. Yeah, we don't mind. At least it's not me for a change.

Speaker 2: 3:29

Anyway, my lover my lovely little one what's the question, my lovely little puppet?

Speaker 1: 3:32

what's the question for today?

Speaker 2: 3:33

so this is from our latest new country, so I'm really excited about this, because I track these countries you do, I love it, I love it. So she. This is from fatima in saudi hi.

Speaker 1: 3:43

Oh hello, new country, it is a new country. It is a new country for us. We've had a few people. I love it, I love it. So this is from Fatima in Saudi. Hi, fatima, hi, oh, hello, it is a new country.

Speaker 2: 3:48

It is a new country for us. We've had a few people I think it was four people in Saudi listen and Fatima's one of them. Hi, fatima, so Fatima's also turning 50 next week. Happy early birthday.

Speaker 2: 3:57

Mm-hmm, the 50s, I love 50s 50 is a fabulous age that's one of the reasons I picked it, because I'm like we'll make it special for her, yay, um. So fatima has been experiencing severe sensitivity to smells lately oh, bless your heart, yeah perfumes that she's worn for years and even foods that she loves make her nauseous. Is this linked to perimenopause, and what can she do about it?

Speaker 1: 4:20

yes, it is linked to perimenopause. It's like being pregnant in the first bit, all over again, okay. So, first of all, happy early birthday. 50, god love 50, it's a brilliant age. Thanks for sharing your questions and this is this is a great one, because it's going to resonate with so many women, because we don't and I, I jokingly say it's like being in early pregnancy again, but it really really is um, because I remember actually with you were the pregnant with you was the worst and and the random thing is I can for some reason, when I was pregnant in the first stages of pregnancy with you, I uh was really sensitive to smells and right.

Speaker 1: 4:57

So in your brain, your sense of smell is right next to in the limbic system, right next to where you form new memories. So your sense of smell goes into your brain in a different part of your brain than all your other senses. All of your other senses are processed in one part of your brain and your sense of smell is processed through your olfactory nerve, which is in the limbic system, and right next to that is the hippocampus, which is where I've always thought of a little hippo going to camp yeah.

Speaker 1: 5:25

And it's got his new memories on his back. You know, off to camp. That's cute, that's cute, and so memory and smell is very closely formed. When you've smelt something and you form a memory of it, it's really ingrained. So I have and I have so, for example, your first boyfriend's aftershave. If you smell it, you'll go straight yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, for me, 1980, whatever, um you could still remember the smell from the 80s.

Speaker 1: 5:52

Oh my, god, yes you, what you wore and what he smelled like. Yes, yes and yes, you remember I bought that perfume the other day yeah, no, but that was your perfume yes, but you can also remember their smell, yeah. So if you smell, I think, think jazz or kouros or yeah, the air freshener that you've put in the bathroom.

Speaker 2: 6:09

I walked in the other day and I was like this smells like every man that's ever broken my heart. And Scott was just like what yeah?

Speaker 1: 6:15

so really it's a smell, or you remember if you smell.

Speaker 2: 6:23

So when I make lasagna.

Speaker 1: 6:25

So you remember smells, they're very, they're very evocative of memories. So I remember, um, when I was pregnant with you, I had really I mean, the first pregnancy is like horrific, not gonna lie and I remember listening to jerry halliwell's first album and feeling really nice. Yeah right, she released her first solo album when I was pregnant with you, in in 1999, and, um, if I listen to it now I get nauseous. No way, way.

Speaker 1: 6:50

So look at me, no, don't, you'll throw up it makes me feel really unwell, so I didn't know sounds and honestly everything that's linked. So smell is the most evocative of all the senses and we really process memories with it.

Speaker 1: 7:07

But smell is very, very sensitive to a lot of things in our brain and it really is affected by perimenopause. And there's a number of reasons for it. You know there's number one. It's linked to perimenopause because of the fluctuating hormones, particularly estrogen. It impacts smell and taste, and smell and taste are very closely linked as well. When we go through perimenopause, anything that's this is going to sound really rude and it's a word that you hate Moist. This is how well I know my daughter. She hates the word moist. It's vile. Anywho, we don't have as much saliva in our mouths during perimenopause, so we don't produce as much saliva, so we get dry mouth, we get burning mouth, we get itchy eyes, we get other places that aren't as moist that's not funny, but the way you said it was really good a little bit dry down there.

Speaker 1: 8:00

so our mouths become drier and that affects the way that we taste things. But fluctuating hormones change the way that we smell things as well, and we notice that scents that we used to love suddenly can become really overwhelming or even nauseating Because of the memories. No, right now Sorry, that was a side note, but this is like this can be things like migraines that you can get. So I'm not talking sense, I'll backtrack Because all hormones fluctuate in perimenopause. We can get reactions like migraines, heightened anxiety. They can make us very, very sensitive to our environment. Smells can become overwhelming because of other symptoms that are created by fluctuating oestrogen. That's number one. We're very sensitive to our environments in general that's number two. We have less saliva, which is number three, which makes us sensitive to taste. We can have burning mouth because of this saliva, which is number four. We have weird memories that can pop up because of our heightened sensitivity to things in general, which is number five. If you mix all these things together, our body and our mind combined is like an oversensitized trigger. So, while the sensitivity can be really unsettling, there are a few things that you can do.

Speaker 1: 9:32

The good news is there is something you can do about it. First of all, it's very normal, fatima. So you're not on your own, sweetheart, you just have to. I always say this, and I say I always say this every episode and I will say it again every episode, because I'd never want a woman to sit there and think that she is on her own in this because you're not. This is a very normal symptom. Um, it doesn't mean every woman gets it, but if you do get this, it is very normal, I think. First of all, identify your triggers. So there are some foods that I didn't necessarily like before I was in perimenopause, and now that I'm in perimenopause, they make me feel physically ill. Fish is the number one.

Speaker 2: 10:13

But you had a problem with fish. When you were pregnant I had a problem with fish when I was pregnant.

Speaker 1: 10:17

I didn't have a massive problem with fish before I was pregnant. I developed a problem with fish when I was pregnant. It lessened off when I wasn't pregnant and now I'm in perimenopause it makes me physically ill.

Speaker 2: 10:27

Worse than when you were pregnant.

Speaker 1: 10:37

Worse ill, worse than when you were pregnant, worse than when I was pregnant. I can't stand, is it? Do you think the memories of smelling it then? So this is what I'm saying to you oh wow. So this is why I'm saying to you it's, it's a connection between smell, memory, lack of estrogen, heightened sensitivity. You can't separate all these different things out, so it's a combination of things. So number one is just figure out what your triggers are, all right. So, for example, scott, being scottish, loves salmon and prawn, and I'm not going to discuss that because I will offend those people. So find out what your triggers are, write them down and navigate them. So if scott's going to salmon, which he is very much entitled to do and he loves fish, he knows to eat it downstairs and to make sure I'm not around. Yeah, because I really feel really nauseated about the smell. There's certain we have many a cat.

Speaker 2: 11:29

One too many or four too many?

Speaker 1: 11:35

That's fine, but they are hunters. We live in the middle of nowhere and they are hunters, so you can't find us.

Speaker 2: 11:38

Yeah, you said that we live in the middle of nowhere. Yes, no one would hear you scream. True story actually. Yeah, I know that's really scary actually thinking about it.

Speaker 1: 11:45

No one would hear me scream well they would, because we live with lots of each other. We live with a lot of each other. Yes, live with a lot of each other. Yes, there's a lot of us, but the thing is that our cats are hunters. Let's just put it this way. We don't have a rodent problem, other than sometimes the rodents are brought to us as gifts and laid and displayed In many parts. Sometimes yes, not necessarily whole ones, and not necessarily they're not necessarily been unalived a long time ago.

Speaker 1: 12:13

Un necessary they're not necessarily been unalived a long time ago unalived. Keeping it safe. Keeping it safe so we don't get cancelled, and the smell of the unaliveness I can't deal with makes me want to unalive myself, or just makes me want to go.

Speaker 1: 12:21

So the thing is that scott knows that and the rules are clean it up before I come downstairs, because I can't bear the smell. So anything that's been unalived I don't deal with can't do that one. So again, I know that's a trigger for me. So it's knowing what your triggers are and explaining them to people. Communicate communication is key. Another thing artificial smells will not do you any good. I've talked about xenobestrogens before. What kind of artificial, artificial air fresheners? Oh, like hemorrhoid. So if you're in the car don't be trapped in an enclosed space with a really chemical artificial. So you know the ones that you get from the like car cleaning companies. That cost like two pence eight.

Speaker 2: 13:00

They you know they're really, really cheaper ones.

Speaker 1: 13:02

Really avoid, really, really avoid. Um, have the glade plug in things that pump out artificial. I don't know if you know them. Do you know the ones that you plug into a, into a socket, and they pump out artificial? I don't know if you know them. Do you know the ones that you plug into a cut?

Speaker 2: 13:15

into a socket and they pump out artificial. Yes, like febreze, have them.

Speaker 1: 13:17

Yeah, yeah, yeah yeah, really not health helpful or healthy for you in perimenopause.

Speaker 1: 13:21

They contain lots of artificial chemicals that create some like a xenoestrogen type effect in your body that will help create nausea, because that artificial chemical is not healthy for us. So try and switch to mildly scented, no scented or things that are scented naturally, so aromatherapy oils. You know I'm big on this. Anyway, it was one of the reasons I created the lifestyle brand um, so that we have everything. Everything that I clean with is centered with natural products, aromatherapy products. I don't use any artificial chemicals. I don't use bleach, everything is like soda, baking soda and vinegar and stuff, because your body can't handle the toxins anymore, so really work hard and trying to bin those artificial chemicals because they will be making you feel unwell.

Speaker 1: 14:13

What about perfumes? That's the tricky one I mean okay, here's my take on it. You know, you can stop smelling your own perfume after a while use the one that you can't smell. Okay, so other people can smell you and you can't smell it so like other toilets instead of other platforms yeah, or just ones that you don't smell yourself.

Speaker 1: 14:31

So I I use a perfume that I've used for many years. I can't smell it myself. Everyone else can still smell it. We're all good. Okay, use um natural deodorants. So there's a lot of companies out there wild fussy, all these companies that have a natural deodorant you don't want to be using, like the shaw sprays it's really going to make you choke and gag at this point and even things like food seasonings.

Speaker 1: 14:54

You don't have to be using chemical food seasons you can create your own food seasonings from like onion seasonings. Just dry out a load of onion peels.

Speaker 2: 15:04

She lives in saudi. They've got seasoning, they've got seasons. She'll be okay, they know what they're doing with food.

Speaker 1: 15:10

But for for the other listeners, try and use more gentle things you can use. The less your body has to cope with, the less you're going to feel nauseated by because nausea is created. Why? Because your body just can't deal with the amount of toxin. Okay, another thing is looking after your gut.

Speaker 1: 15:28

I talk about this yeah, I was gonna say I I'm really sorry I bang on about it, but the two things that you have to do to help yourself in perimenopause one is manage your stress. Two is manage your gut. The the more your gut is is happy, the less nausea it's gonna have. So nausea linked to smell sensitivity can also point to gut imbalance. So eating a well-balanced diet, staying hydrated and incorporating gut supporting foods you know I'm going to say greek yogurt. I eat greek yogurt every single day. My favorite, as always, marx and spencer's 10 and let's change the world with greek yogurt hey, listen, when I don't eat greek yogurt, what happens?

Speaker 2: 16:05

yeah, you were. You didn't eat it for a few days and I didn't feel good, a few days, because we were snowed in.

Speaker 1: 16:10

Yeah, so we were snowed in and we live. We live in yorkshire. I was going to do a broad yorkshire accent and I thought I'd probably get into trouble, but I am actually born in yorkshire and why would? You get in trouble because people think I'm taking the piss because I do all these accents. But I I think it is right if I'm going to say scotland, I'm going to say scotland with a scotland but you're also a northern lass. I am a northern lass.

Speaker 2: 16:30

You can be really northern, it's okay.

Speaker 1: 16:32

Yes, so anyway, we live in Yorkshire. I was born in York and I was raised in Yorkshire, but I was made where I don't know anymore. It's really confusing, anyway. So we got properly snowed in, didn't we? We? Did get snowed in we got snow, snow in Yorkshire this week and I didn't get my Greek yogurt and I my gut was properly out of balance for about four days, bloated, really uncomfortable yeah, because I didn't. I didn't have my Greek yogurt for about four days we just it was.

Speaker 2: 17:02

Do you think it's because you've looked after your gut that well that your body's like where, where is it? I just what happened?

Speaker 1: 17:08

well, I have to be fair. I have gallstones that came from the sheer volume of medicine issues from when I was poorly with my neuralgia which you need to sort, which I need to sort, I know so, but anyway, greek yogurt what gift from the gods and fermented foods. So Greek yogurt is probiotic. Fermented foods like kimchi, sauerkraut, all those kind of foods are pre prebiotics. Do like kimchi, very, very good for your blood. Ron likes kimchi as well. She always has some in her fridge she does.

Speaker 1: 17:39

Yeah, when I visited she always has kimchi in her fridge and other things. When you're, when you feel nauseous, deep breathing techniques really, really helpful. I have, um, a deep breathing technique called Coco Breaths. It's on my YouTube. So I invented this technique called Coco Breaths, which is really really I can't really show you on a podcast. If you go to my YouTube channel and look up Coco Breaths, my YouTube channel is just Kate Grosvenor, life Coach, and don't forget the S in Grosvenor. It's a very, very strange spelling, I know, but Kate Grosvenor, life Coach on YouTube, look up Coco Breaths. I think it's one of the most popular videos and it's very, very easy to do the deep breathing technique. But just in general, when you, when you're exposed to an overwhelming smell, try deep breathing technique to calm your body's immediate reaction and the easiest way is just inhale, inhale through your nose for four counts, hold for four and exhale for four.

Speaker 1: 18:34

that's your body will just focus on that and relax its focus on the on the nausea and if you do that a few times, your body should just forget about almost like just forget about the nausea. And if you do that a few times, your body should just forget about almost like just forget about the nausea. So deep breathing techniques, really, really help.

Speaker 2: 18:48

I've got a question actually for you, as obviously I'm not in perimenopause, but as someone who has endometriosis, I do feel nauseous every day and I do want to vomit. I don't think what would help me, would help them, but I don't know. Now that you've said all these things, is it even helping me?

Speaker 1: 19:03

Yes, it will help anybody. The thing is deep breathing will help everybody with nausea.

Speaker 2: 19:08

But what I do usually is I tend to find gum or something just to chew, because it's distracting your mind.

Speaker 1: 19:15

So, instead of going for gum, try deep breathing, because deep breathing does two things it distracts your mind, but it relaxes your body as well. So what happens in nausea is you focus on the nausea, your, your stomach starts to tense and it starts to send that reaction to your brain, saying I need to expel, okay. So if you start to debrief, what you're doing is you're activating your parasympathetic nervous system. So you're putting the sprinklers on. You're saying and relax, okay, you're getting more oxygen flooding through your, through your brain through your Gum might make it worse actually thinking about it.

Speaker 1: 19:45

Well, what gum does is the only thing that gum does is it provides the distraction. Okay, it doesn't do the rest. So try the deep breathing. Go and have a look at the channel.

Speaker 2: 19:56

Yeah, we'll do, actually as soon as we're done.

Speaker 1: 19:58

Yeah, and just deep breathing does several things. Again, it provides more oxygen to you, to your whole system, which is very. Everybody needs more oxygen. Yeah right, it's a really really good thing. Um, it helps to promoting oxygen no, it's a really big shameless plug we don't. Yeah, you can buy it on the website. No, you can't, but it it. It helps us massively to to relax our brain, relax our body.

Speaker 1: 20:22

So if you've got any anxiety in your system, because anxiety is the difference in worry and anxiety is worry is when you're in your head yeah, so it's a worrying thought.

Speaker 1: 20:32

Anxiety is when your body joins in with your brain. That's the, that's the difference. So anxiety is when you start to get increased heart rate, your stomach starts to get nervous, your palm starts to get sweaty, your brain gets shallow. If it's just in your head, it's a worrying thought and that's not as bad. That's easier to cope with. So if you can calm your body down, then it's just in your head and then we can deal with it. Then it becomes an intrusive thought, a worrying thought. We have lots of techniques journaling, venting, whatever. We have lots of techniques that we can do brain dumping, things that you can see. We have lots of different ways to deal with that.

Speaker 1: 21:12

When it's just in your thought, if your body joins in that becomes anxiety right, and that's a different type of problem okay so, whatever it is, getting your body to calm down is always a good idea. The number one easiest way to get your body to calm down is always going to be deep breathing, and the sooner you do that, the easier it's going to be um so it's really really good, and parasympathetic nervous system is the easiest way to do it yeah um other thing is, if you can't, if the nausea continues, I would say discuss with a health care provider.

Speaker 1: 21:39

So your doctor, your nurse, because if the sensitivity, if the sensitivity is severe and it's interfering with that, with your daily life, like if it's constant, they might be able to explore. Are you having migraines? Migraines actually quite common, and what we call cluster migraines. Um so, migraines because your migraines can be estrogen sensitive. So if your estrogen is fluctuating all over the place, maybe you're not on hrt or maybe you're having estrogen sensitive migraines. Maybe they need to do something about that or give you some kind of help. They could be, it could be related to migraines, it could be related to anxiety or other perimenopause related changes. So they need to have a look at that. Um, other things you could try is, um, things like ginger.

Speaker 2: 22:22

Ginger is really good for nausea Other things you could try is things like ginger Ginger's really good for nausea Helps me.

Speaker 1: 22:26

Yeah, peppermint tea could help as well, but I think the main thing is just to realise that you're not on your own again. Yeah, it's not a fun symptom, the peppermint pause. We're not having it's not like yay.

Speaker 1: 22:36

But the good news is it will settle. It's another one of those that doesn't. This one doesn't carry on as when, once your hormones are settled, it's one of those that will fade. So once hormones settle, it really, really will fade, and it won't once the hormones are at a manageable, when they are nice and peaceful. I mean, fatima, she's nearly 50. I presume because she's only 50. Yeah, I presume because she's nearly 50. I presume she's going through perimenopause. I mean she's, she's on the way to.

Speaker 1: 23:10

She must have started perimenopause quite late, and so she's almost at the point where she will be towards the end presumably, so this will be towards the end of that as well, so it shouldn't be long way. Lovely, hopefully for you, um, and I hope that helps give us some practical yeah and have a great birthday, have a fabulous birthday wish happy birthday in arabic close.

Speaker 1: 23:37

I was close, um, and let us know what you do for your birthday. We want to know. All right, my darlings have a fabulous week, as always. If you have any questions for us, we're now in season two and we want to say thank you for helping us get here yeah we really appreciate all of you listening in every week and any questions, do send us a whatsapp or ask us in the group.

Speaker 1: 24:00

The group is on Facebook and it is Prayer and Buzze with Kate Grosvenor. We put a post in every Tuesday, friday, friday Friday Close At noon. Friday at noon GMT, greenwich Mean Time. We put a post in and you are welcome to ask us any questions. All right, my darlings, take care and we will see you next week. Thanks for joining us today on the uncomplicated perimenopause podcast. We hope you found this episode helpful and inspiring.

Speaker 2: 24:39

Don't forget if you have any questions or topics you'd like us to cover, you can reach out through our perimenopause group or on WhatsApp.

Speaker 1: 24:46

For more information on my coaching, perimenopause supplements, books or upcoming events, please visit wwwkategrovernercom.

Speaker 2: 24:55

And if you've enjoyed today's episode, please subscribe, rate and review our podcast. It really helps us reach more listeners, just like you. Until next time.

Speaker 1: 25:07

Remember, perimenopause doesn't have to be complicated. We're here to help you every step of the way.

Speaker 2: 25:10

Stay uncomplicated, thank you,