What does Liz Earle take for menopause – and can we have some of what she’s having? That’s what we’ve always thought when we see the vibrant and glowing wellbeing entrepreneur on any of her social channels. From her skin to her health and wellbeing routines, Liz Earle is our menopause poster girl. Check out her Instagram fitness routines and you’ll see what we mean.
First things first. Don’t confuse Liz Earle the woman, with Liz Earle Beauty (that of the fabulous Cleanse & Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser). Liz herself founded her beauty company in 1995, but the company was sold to Avon in 2010. These day, Liz Earle Beauty is no longer owned by Avon. It was sold to Walgreens Boots Alliance in 2015, with Liz remaining as a global ambassador until 2017.
Is Liz Earle on HRT?
Not only is Liz vocal about how her wellbeing has been helped by HRT, but she was one of the first women in the public eye to talk openly about the challenges of menopause. Long before the topic was front page news like it is these days, Liz was helping and educating women with her range of articles and e-books. From The Truth About HRT to Healthy Menopause, her e-books are packed with evidence-based information, and have played a huge part in debunking some of the many taboos around this topic. We all owe Liz a huge thank you for her menopause advocacy.
It’s just one way in which Liz is an energetic champion of women.
“50-plus women are often more agile and more adept at multitasking, because that’s what we have had to do over the last decades of our lives, juggling caring for older relatives with bringing up younger children,” she told The Guardian, in her role as a mentor for older entrepreneurs. “Home and work. It makes you nimble in your mindset. Nothing can replace experience, knowledge and wisdom, and you can’t buy them or study for them at university.”
You might not all want to set up our own business, but we do want to stay active and healthy. We want to Be More Liz! What better way to find our her menopause health and wellbeing swear-bys, than to ask the woman herself. What Liz Earle doesn’t know about menopause isn’t worth knowing. She is an authority on everything from HRT to wellbeing and nutrition, so when she shares her tips, we listen.
We asked her to share her personal menopause journey.
What are your thoughts on this time of a woman’s life and what more can we expect from the Liz Earle wellbeing empire?
It’s all about how to have a better second half of life, and I do believe the second half can be even better than the first. Personally, I feel there is much more to do and achieve with my magazine, Liz Earle Wellbeing. I’m truly excited to be able to spread such good news for all midlife women.
The vast majority of us will live for 30 to 40 years after the menopause. So, my advice is to see this time of life as a good moment to take stock and begin to appreciate who we have become and what we may still achieve and do – or even change!
What has been the most challenging thing to deal with?
That initial disturbed sleep. I’m 59 now, and with hindsight, my occasional severe headaches were also due to loss of oestrogen. All of that is thankfully no more since I started putting oestrogen back into my system.
Was disturbed sleep the main symptom for you?
Disturbed sleep was pretty much my only symptom, when I was around 50. That was the thing that sent me booking the doctor’s appointment. As a working mother of five, I can handle most of what life throws at me, but only if I get a good night’s sleep! When that started to go, I got help.
READ MORE HRT and sleep, does it help?
I think it’s fair to say that the perimenopause takes most of us by surprise. We may feel fabulous and in the peak of good health, only to become aware of niggling troublesome changes. These are caused by falling oestrogen levels. When it’s all pieced together like a jigsaw puzzle, it suddenly makes sense.
Have there been any positive symptoms?
No. I have yet to meet a woman who feels better during the menopause.
What are the things that are getting you through?
Daily exercise or movement of some kind is key. Plus, a strict seven and a half hours sleep routine, better gut health, high-fat low carb eating and, most obviously, taking HRT.
READ MORE HRT, is it safe? Everything you need to know.
What has made the biggest difference?
No question, HRT. As far as I’m concerned, HRT is simply topping up what my body is naturally lacking as I age. I thrive on it, with no more disturbed sleep, stronger bones, improved mood, memory and energy levels.
Did you seek any advice from experts, friends or family?
Like most women, I had no real concept of what the menopause would be like until I started to consider my own personal journey. I found it baffling that there was so little information available to me and the millions of others who were at a similar stage of life.
My GP knew very little and I found online advice was often muddled and contradictory (often trying to sell me something) rather than positive and practical. It’s why I decided to write The Good Menopause Guide and my follow up e-guide The Truth about HRT.
Is there anything you wish you’d known?
I would have found the information in The Good Menopause Guide and The Truth about HRT absolutely invaluable at the start of my journey if only I’d written the books earlier!
Also to avoid wasting time and money on expensive ‘bio identical’ unlicensed (compounded) hormones. All of which are potentially unsafe, unproven, unregulated and prey on vulnerable women for profit.
What has been the impact on your daily life?
The disturbed sleep was the most challenging thing. Since starting HRT I genuinely haven’t looked back.
It’s all about how to have a better second half of life, and I do believe the second half can be even better than the first.
Has there been an impact on your relationships?
It’s changed my relationship with close girlfriends and brought us closer together as we’ve shared our experiences. My sons are also much more aware of women’s health overall. It make us talk more openly as a family about female health issues, from menstruation to menopause.
Is there anything you’d do differently?
I would have started taking HRT on the NHS years earlier if only I’d known about it and how safe and effective the modern forms are. Studies clearly show we get more benefits the earlier we start taking it, so I wish someone had told me about it sooner.
What do you say to other women about the menopause?
I’ve long highlighted to my two daughters the importance of eating a well-balanced diet and doing weight-bearing exercise, to avoid ending up with crumbling bones later in life. I’ve reiterated this message to them further with my recent research.
READ MORE 11 ways to lose menopause belly fat.
From our late 20s onwards, we can’t build any more calcium into our bones, so it’s a matter of bone maintenance. We have to preserve what we have already got through diet and exercise. This is severely tested during the first five years of the menopause, when nearly 10 percent of our bone mass is lost.
Weight-bearing exercises (any upright movement so pressure flows through the spine, pelvis and legs) also play a key role in strengthening bones and keeping them strong. And be aware of all kinds of health niggles and changes that occur in your 40s. There are more than 45 perimenopausal symptoms, so many of these – from achey joints to tinnitus, to anxiety and migraines – are highly likely to be due to declining oestrogen.
Your menopause was…
A time for new opportunities and a chance to focus on how to be the best I can be.
You feel Hylda when...
I hear so many life-changing stories from women who have used my advice to literally transform their lives. It’s absolutely why I do what I do.
Read more from Liz Earle at Lizearlewellbeing.com and follow her on Instagram @lizearleme.
