The development of this content is based on CBT (cognitive behavioral therapy), a therapy with over 30 years of scientific evidence that has helped thousands of patients over time. Of course, each woman will experience symptoms differently, or not at all, so one technique may work better than another. Our recommendation is that you test them and invest in the one that makes the most sense for your situation.
Hot flashes, also known as hot flushes, usually come accompanied by night sweats, palpitations, and sometimes even chills, causing embarrassment, anxiety, discomfort, and nighttime awakenings that disrupt your sleep. Let's take a look at how to manage these symptoms:
Breathe
Hot flashes are directly related to your stress levels, meaning the more stressed you are, the greater the chances of your "temperature rising."
To reverse this situation, we'll use the deep breathing technique:
- Keep your shoulders and chest still and inhale, pushing your stomach outward, slowly and deeply.
- Place your right hand over your heart and your left hand on your stomach while doing the technique—this will help you get used to this breathing rhythm. The hand on your chest should stay very still, and the hand on your stomach should rise and fall as you breathe. Tip: it may be easier to practice while lying down at first.
- Do this breathing for a few minutes when you wake up and repeat whenever you feel it's necessary throughout the day.
Cool down
- Even if it's a bit cold, wear thin layers of clothing, preferring lightweight fabrics like cotton, so you can quickly cool your body when hot flashes occur.
- Always keep a water bottle nearby to stay hydrated throughout the day.
- A glass of cold water next to the bed (tip: use a thermos bottle) and a fan/air conditioner will be your main allies for a more peaceful night's sleep.
Challenge your catastrophic thoughts
You've probably experienced this. We all have. Catastrophic thoughts are false thoughts we assume about ourselves and the world around us. They are irrational thoughts and beliefs that we unknowingly reinforce over time.
Because they are regular everyday thoughts, they are quite difficult to recognize and deal with. Furthermore, they often appear in our minds without us thinking about them. Let's look at some examples:
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During a sudden hot flash in a work meeting, some women may feel embarrassed and have thoughts like: "Everyone is looking at me" or "I look terrible".
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This type of thinking can also lead women to believe they are not in control of their own bodies: "This is out of control", "I can't handle this", "I'll never be able to sleep through the night again".
It may seem silly, but this pattern of thinking can significantly worsen a situation without you even realizing it. The good news is that there's a solution:
- The first step is to recognize these thoughts, and to do this you need to identify whether what you're thinking is a **fact** or an **opinion**. A fact is something that has already happened—we can't change it. Opinions are more dangerous because they can be exaggerated. And it's these opinions that we need to recognize.
- Fact:
You'll see! After practicing for a few days, you will have actually trained your brain to process such thoughts, and suddenly you'll be able to deal with them much faster.
Train your brain
An important CBT technique that can help you is what we call autogenic training. In this training, you teach your body to respond to your verbal commands. These commands "tell" your body to relax and control breathing, blood pressure, heart rate, and body temperature.
- Get into a comfortable position—you can lie down or sit with your spine straight.
- Practice two to three cycles of deep breathing.
- Relax your shoulders, keep your breathing calm, and then focus your attention on your right arm.
- Imagine that your right arm is heavy and that there is an object on top of it.
- Repeat 5 to 8 times to yourself, mentally, the words
This is a training that requires persistence to work. Do it twice a day, every day, right after waking up and before going to sleep.
Observe
As we mentioned at the beginning, women are different from one another, and you may have a specific trigger that causes hot flashes, so you need to observe your body:
- Keep a notepad on your phone to make recording easier
- Every time you feel a hot flash, record the day, time, and what you were doing minutes before it happened.
This will help you map these triggers and then, by making small practical changes, you can gain some control over them.
Also remember our agreement about balanced nutrition and physical exercise to manage climacteric/post-menopause symptoms. These lifestyle changes are just as important as the techniques above—we wouldn't have created a separate session for them for no reason, right? Haha... 😉
- https://www.vigilantesdosono.com/artigo/pensamentos-catastroficos/↩
- womens-health-concern.org/help-and-advice/factsheets/cognitive-behaviour-therapy-cbt-menopausal-symptoms/↩