Herbal "brew" for perimenopause

Herbs – Perimenopausal                  ©Gloria Rohlfs 2008

The following is what I found worked for me during the perimenopausal stage, when my moods began to rage & my menstrual cycle became irregular.  This “brew” is intended to support the normal menstrual cycle & provide hormonal and emotional stability, promote strong bones, etc.  & is helpful to drink daily until menopause has occurred & moods have stabilized.  It can also be helpful after menopause.

I obtained this information from Susan Weed’s book Menopausal Years, from Our Bodies Ourselves, and from the German Commission E guide to herbs.

Herbs should be stored away from light & preferably in a tin or jar.  That's especially important for storing oatstraw, as mice love it.

Make the infusions* (strong teas) using a large tea pot (not metal) or large glass jar (like a canning jar – with a lid). Preferably make enough for 2 days at a time maximum, as it loses potency after that (and can begin to taste a little strong).  (but if you can only make it twice per week, that’s better than not drinking it - double the amount below).   If you make it daily, use half of the amount given below.

 For enough for 2 days, I used 1 heaping tablespoon of each herb (unless otherwise noted).  Then add 4 cups boiling water (that's just started to boil) & let it steep for approx. 2 hours.  Strain.  Store unused portion in the refrigerator.  Drink half of this each day.  One can drink it warm or cold, add more water to it if it’s too strong and/or add honey to it.

First day of period through day 13 (or thru day 16):

Oatstraw, Nettle, Sage, and

Horsetail or Red Clover

Someone taking medication to "thin their blood" (for high blood pressure) should talk with their doctor and/or proceed cautiously with taking red clover, as it lowers blood pressure & can increase bleeding in interaction with these meds - but it also may help prevent cancer.  Horsetail helps prevent osteoporosis & helps strengthen bones (p. 173- Weed book).  Oatstraw also promotes strong bones & reduces night sweats (p. 175 – Weed book).  Nettle decreases anxiety & other perimenopausal symptoms, is a source of calcium.  (p. 177 Weed book).  Sage may relieve depression & reduce night sweats.

Days 14 through 25: (or 17-28)

Oatstraw, Nettle, Sage, and

Yarrow

            Yarrow helps create a natural progesterone-like effect, remedies bladder infections, incontinence & flooding (but may increase sweating with hot flashes).

Take a break from the sage for a couple days each cycle - & occasionally maybe from all the herbs for 1 cycle/year,  except the oatstraw and nettle.

If not having periods, you might prefer just the oatstraw, nettle  - & possibly sage –plus the other herbs on a rotating basis.

Research(clinical trials in Turkey ca. 2010) showed that acupuncture twice weekly for 10 weeks reduced menopausal  symptoms of hot flashes and mood swings.

Other herbal information:

Hormone-balancing herbs that promote your natural estrogen production are:  red clover flowers/leaves, black cohosh root, licorice root (this contains a lot of estrogen, so use carefully), sage leaves, alfalfa, any herb containing flavonoids (such as horsetail).  Hormone-balancing herbs that promote your natural progesterone production are:  chaste tree/vitex berries, wild yam root, yarrow flowers/leaves. 

None of these introduce artificial estrogen or progesterone into the body.

Evening primrose oil has many helpful attributes.  It’s an essential fatty acid & a source of magnesium (necessary to absorb calcium)  – oatstraw, nettle, horsetail, sage, red clover are also sources of magnesium.  It may help decrease severity of hot flashes, strengthen bones, calm nerves, decrease anxiety.  Some have found this to help with PMS.  This comes in gel-caps.  Most women need to take at least 2 caps/day when perimenopausal.

Black cohosh tinture can be useful, especially beginning a week before the period begins & taken for a couple weeks, ½ dropperful a day, in balancing hormones/emotions. For hot flashes take daily: 10-15 drops (or 30-60 drops) 1x or 2x per day.  Also helps calm the nerves & bring sleep (for some people).  Do not take if you have menstrual flooding or if you experience agitation from it.  

Chaste tree (vitex) berry reduces fibroids and is helpful for relieving PMS symptoms, for irregular cycles, to calm emotions, protect against osteroperosis & reduce hot flashes & dizziness.  (it can take a couple months before effects are noted).  20 drops of tinture 1x or 2x per day.   The German Commission E monograph recommends a daily intake of 30–40 mg of the dried herb—in capsules or in liquid preparations.  I found no record of interactions with meds or of side effects with Vitex.

Vitamin E also helps reduce hot flashes and helps decrease heart disease as well.  Doses recommended by S. Weed are 200-600 IU daily (but not over 100 IU if you have diabetes, high blood pressure or rheumatic heart conditions, are taking digitalis or anti-coagulants).  Keep gel caps (evening primrose oil, Vit. E, etc.) in the refrigerator, as hot weather destabilizes them.

Oatstraw helps reduce night sweats, as does Motherwort (10-25 drops of tinture up to 3x per day & upon awakening – takes 2-4 weeks to feel the effects)

*regarding Infusions:  technically, infusions should be infused for different time periods, depending on which herb’s being infused, as follows (per Susun Weed, Menopausal Years) (but I didn’t follow this specific table; I infused all of them about 2 hours & received benefits):

Plant Part	Amount	Water Amount	How long to infuse
Roots/bark	1 oz./30 g.	Pint/500 ml.	8 hours minimum
Leaves	1 oz./30 g.	Quart/liter	4 hours minimum
Flowers	1 oz./30 g.	Quart/liter	2 hours maximum
Seeds/berries	1 oz./30 g.	Pint/500 ml.	30 minutes maximum

Local sources of herbs:  University Herbs on 40^th. St. near

Chestnut St.

& at Temple Univ.

            In bulk (1 lb. bags) from Frontier Herbs in Norway, Iowa – www.frontiercoop.com (may be cheaper per oz. – calculate including shipping charges)