Supporting Shen (Mind & Spirit), Especially in Perimenopause
In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), food choices play an important role in treating the body, mind, and spirit with the TCM concept of Shen encompassing both mind and spirit. Additionally, in TCM, seasonal changes influence not only how mood issues manifest but also the dietary recommendations used in managing them.
In general, late summer is notable for flaring tempers and increased irritability. No surprise, hot flashes also increase during this time, intensifying any perimenopausal mood issues. With summer heat potentially pushing you off the deep end, late summer requires focused attention on your Shen.
Lack of sleep, pain, chaos, drama, home or job stress, suppressed frustration, loneliness, negative people, and toxic environments (emotional and chemical) are all able to disturb Shen. As you might imagine, supporting Shen year-round is important, more so if you have a very high baseline stress level, experience chronic PTSD symptoms, or are a highly sensitive person.
Shen disharmony can be manifest by nervous energy, a high startle reaction, anxiety, feelings of disquiet or overwhelm, forgetfulness, insomnia, depression, distorted reality, and if severe, madness. Hot flashes are just the “icing on the cake,” amplifying these symptoms.
According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), two opposing forces—Yin and Yang—are at play in life, and when present equally in your body, there is balance and harmony. Yin exhibits the qualities of stillness, coolness, moisture, and the feminine, while conversely, Yang represents activity, heat, dryness, and the masculine. Both excess Yang and insufficient Yin are thought to be behind Shen disharmony, especially when complicated by menopause-related hot flashes.
Healing disturbed Shen starts by decreasing or avoiding some or all Yang energizers like coffee, cola, alcohol, energy drinks, dark chocolate, “hot” spices, tobacco, and stimulant drugs, all of which can exhaust Yin. And summer heat only intensifies their excitatory effects.
Eating “cooler” or “neutral” Yin-supporting foods (bigger list below) boosts Yin while subduing Yang. “Cool” or “cold” foods such as clams, crab, yogurt, barley, whole grain wheat, tofu, seaweed, asparagus, avocado, tomatoes, bananas, oranges, and mangos are supportive of Yin and capable of subduing Yang. Some “neutral” foods like pork, oysters, sardines, scallops, eggs, cow’s milk, peas, green beans, sweet potatoes, white potatoes, and plums are also good choices to bolster Yin. Predictably, water is also supportive of Yin.
In TCM, the Heart is the organ associated with the mind, and when Yang dominates, Heart Fire can develop and complicate Shen disharmony. With Heart Fire, one might display symptoms of hyperarousal: difficulty relaxing, increased mental and physical restlessness, irritability, insomnia, and heightened sensory sensitivity to light, sounds, smells, and certainly, temperature. Physical manifestations of Heart Fire manifest as palpitations, burning mouth or tongue ulcers, and cold hands and/or feet (high sympathetic nervous system tone). No surprise, increased vasomotor instability with hot flashes and night sweats is part of this picture.
Heart Fire symptoms predominate in the heat of late summer, but summertime fruits and vegetables can be the antidote. “Cool” foods like celery, chicory, dandelion greens, endive, frisée, watercress, and rhubarb specifically target Heart Fire. Other foods in the “cold” to “neutral” range that support the Heart are cabbage, cucumbers, tomatoes, apples, pears, persimmons, red grapes, watermelon, bulgur wheat, coconut milk, mint, marjoram, green and lemon balm teas. You know how beans are supposedly good for the heart? Well, peas, kidney beans, and mung beans are especially Heart-helpful legumes.
In addition to foods that subdue Yang, support Yin and quell Heart Fire, there are foods that specifically shore up Shen. These calming foods include whole grain wheat, hops, celery, lettuce, mulberries, warm milk, lavender, and teas including green, chamomile, lemon balm, and peppermint varieties. Eating much less at mealtime or performing short fasts also calm Shen.
Unfortunately, many people gravitate toward sweet, starchy “comfort foods” when they are stressed, most of which are not the best choices for your body. In fact, ultra-processed foods (UPFs) with their refined starches, sugar, and worrisome omega-6fatty acids (found in oils most used in UPFs) are linked with feeling crummy only a few hours later—due to remorse and sometimes, physiologically.
In fact, foods with a high sugar and/or refined white starch content can precipitate reactive hypoglycemia which occurs a few hours after eating. Perhaps you’ve noticed its Heart-Fire-like symptoms that include sudden exhaustion accompanied by a rapid pulse, irritability, “hangry” feelings, and (surprise!) hot flashes and sweating. Eating more of the same foods provides quick relief but sets the stage for recurrences. (If this is a problem, consultation with a health care practitioner is recommended.)
Improving diet is not the only way of strengthening Shen. Other methods include meditation, moderate exercise, walking in natural surroundings (“forest bathing”), prayer, writing affirmations, and getting more daytime light exposure. Other adjunct therapies to help calm Shen include acupuncture, massage therapy, energy work, and yoga.
You can also reduce Shen depletion by cutting down or avoiding a constant barrage of disturbing images, news, TV, movies, social media, or video games. Everyone has their own unique sensitivity to this kind of exposure and how it is parceled out with sound volume, time of day, and total exposure.
As you can see, supporting Shen is important year-round, and especially in the late summer or if highly stressed. Certainly, if depression or other mood disorders are sneaking up on you, seeking mental health care should be the primary treatment. Nonetheless, healthy dietary habits play a significant supporting role, from both the TCM and the gut-brain axis standpoints.
Here are 2 lists for guidance:
“HOT” YANG FOODS TO AVOID
MEATS & SEAFOOD: Ham, Lamb, Smoked Salmon, Trout
VEGETABLES: Spicy hot peppers
BEVERAGES: Alcoholic spirits (like bourbon, brandy, liqueurs, rum, scotch, tequila, vodka, whiskey), Red wine, Energy drinks
CONDIMENTS: Cottonseed oil, Mustard, Palm oil (refined), Wasabi
HERBS & SPICES: Cayenne, Chili peppers, Cinnamon, Filé powder, Galangal, Garlic (dry), Ginger (dry), Horseradish, MSG, Mustard (dry), Pepper (black, green, red, & white)
“COOLING” AND “NEUTRAL” FOODS TO SUPPORT YIN & SHEN*
MEATS: Duck, Pork, Rabbit
SEAFOOD/AQUATIC: Caviar, Clams, Crab, Mullet, Octopus, Oysters, Sardines, Scallops
DAIRY: Cow’s Milk Cheese, Eggs (chicken and duck), Warm Cow’s Milk*, Yogurt
NUTS & SEEDS: Chia seeds, Flax seeds, Hemp seeds, Sesame seeds
GRAINS: Barley, Bulgur wheat*, Farro* (wheat berries), Millet, Teff, Wheat germ
BEANS: Peas, Lima Beans, Mung beans, Soybeans, Tofu
VEGETABLES: Asparagus, Avocado, Broccoli raab, Celery*, Chicory, Chinese yam (nagaimo), Cucumber, Dandelion greens, Endive, Escarole, Frisée, Green Beans, Lettuce*, Mung bean sprouts, Summer squash, Sweet potatoes, Tomatoes, Water chestnuts, White potatoes, Watercress
FRUITS: Apple, Banana, Mandarin orange, Mango, Mulberries*, Orange, Pear, Persimmon, Pineapple, Plum Pomegranate, Starfruit, Strawberries
BEVERAGES: Chamomile Tea*, Green Tea*, Lemon Balm Tea*, Non-alcoholic Beer, Non-alcoholic hoppy beverages, Peppermint Tea*, Water
CONDIMENTS: Honey, Sesame oil
HERBS: Hops*, Lavender*, Lemon balm*, Marjoram, Nettle
SEAWEEDS: Kelp, Nori, Wakame
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