Growing up my mom would never take us to the hospital.
She always taught us that food is medicine. You are what you eat. If you eat right it's rare you would get sick. She is right because we never did go to the hospital. Every meal she would go on and tell us the benefits of each
vegetables in our meals. Living a holistic lifestyle runs in our blood, my great grandfather was also an Ayurvedic doctor, now my middle sister is also a nutritionist. When something is off with my body I have learnt to go to the root cause of the problem not a quick fix by popping a pill. I only turn to western medicines as a last resort. Being a reiki master myself i always check in with my emotions and food I'm eating first.
I started incorporating plant based diet more into my daily routine as your body always give you a message.
For me it all started with hor
monal imbalance 10 years ago while living in England as i moved there my body went into shock, i arrived England at the end of Autumn, gloomy and wet. My period cycle instantly stopped for 4 months. I have never had problems with my cycle before thinking I was low in iron. I started to eat more chicken (i don’t eat red meat) this didn’t help me either. It was during my 4th month of living there I met an angel in disguise on the bus this old lady called Linda that had no family to visit her. She got really chatty with me and invited me to her house for dinner. As i was home sick and didn’t realise the seasonal depression had hit me(never knew about seasonal depression either growing up in Thailand ) being in her cozy home and sharing my feelings with her made me feel at home, i ended sleeping over at her house that night. I also mentioned to her that my period has stopped, she said she will take me to the doctor the next morning.
Next morning like magic my period came, I screamed like in a horror movie seeing blood from the toilet. But it was a happy scream. It was then i realised it's all psychological. My body went through stress from sudden change in weather, location also i had zero friends and family there. Doing my master degree there means I also spent most of my time alone in the library self studying and research.
Anyhow after my master degree i backpacked around Europe again not being able to sleep on time, change in timings, not eating on time, my body stops functioning normally. After my trip I moved back to Bangkok and visited a gynecologist. It was then when she told me I had hormonal imbalance and prescribed me on birth control for 3 years. After 3 years I started to question myself why do I need to rely on this? Because when i stop, i would again breakout and gain weight. It's then i started to educate myself and just like the law of attraction whatever i started reading also started manifesting in real life. Universe was sending signs to me through other people. I met a lovely lady in Queensland, Australia at the farmers market selling handmade soap. At that point I was really testing and trying everything that would help with my acne. She told me she used to have the same problem once she stopped eating gluten bread and cow’s milk she stopped breaking out. Cow’s milk is full of hormones because it's taken from pregnant cows and their milk is actually for their calves not us!
I also then went to consult an Ayurvedic doctor and started doing HIIT workout 30 mins and Yoga alternatively. Back then I lost 7 kg and since I turned 30 I've gained back 3 kgs. I still workout, I realized with age your metabolism slows down and for women after the age of 30 your progesterone hormones decrease. With a lot of frustrations still working out and eating less than before i am still not losing the weight. So I am now back to my Ayurvedic doctor. According to Ayurveda I'm a Vata and Kapha dosha we are all a mix of different elements and one of them is usually dominant. For example for me I need warm, cooked food, eating raw salad for dinner would actually make me constipated and bloating. Now if you were fire element your metabolism is already working well for such people salad, green juice works as they are cooling for your body and helps balance you from within.
Now you may wonder what's progesterone to do with weight ? Why do you need progesterone?
Progesterone is a hormone in both men and women. It plays a greater role for women, though, as it’s related to menopause, pregnancy, and overall health. You may be interested in increasing your progesterone levels if you’re a woman looking to get pregnant. Low progesterone levels can cause:
infertility or miscarriages
uterine bleeding or irregular periods and spotting
sex drive
weight gain
A doctor may prescribe various forms of progesterone. Synthetic forms, also known as progestins, are available, but they’re also associated with an increased risk for breast cancer. Read on to learn more about where to find natural progesterone, benefits, risks, and more.
Natural progesterone foods
While foods don’t necessarily contain progesterone, some foods may help stimulate the body’s production of progesterone includes:
beans
broccoli
Brussels sprouts
cabbage
cauliflower
kale
nuts
pumpkin
spinach
whole grains
Source: https://www.healthline.com/health/natural-progesterone#foods
Finally here is the recipe for immune boosting and happy balanced hormones
Mix cauliflower, pumpkin, carrots with olive oil or pure olive butter mix spices like cumin, turmeric, salt, cayenne pepper, black pepper well together. scatter them in the oven evenly and bake at 200 degree Celsius.
Then I topped it with fresh cilantro, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds(high in magnesium, zinc), garlic, boiled corns alphapha sprouts, spicy cashew cheese that I got from Barefood Bangkok and last but not the least squeeze a whole lime on it. YUMMY!
I was going to add pomegranate which is also really good for female hormones but its not in the season and folks please only eat food and fruits that are in the season it's healthier otherwise you know they are growing it with some chemicals.
We know that killing and eating animals, especially in unsanitary ways, exacerbate the spread of disease. Factory farms, and slaughterhouses, live markets and wet markets. Remember swine flu, mad cow disease, Ebola, Sars all from the same cause. These spaces help epidemic thrives. With the whole corona virus spreading, it's important we eat food that boosts our immune system and keep our mind positive by meditating, reading, exercising, dancing, and doing whatever makes you happy and sleep well.
I hope you enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed sharing. After trying the recipe above yourself please let me know how you liked it and if you made a twist out of it and how did that turn out? I am always open to trying new healthy easy to make dish.
Last but not the least a little reminder in such times
Breathe deep…
Do not let the worries of the world dull your shine.
This too, shall pass.
With love and gratitude
Areena