Product Description

Dr Christiane Northrup is one of the world's most trusted medical advisers. In The Wisdom of Menopause, the bestselling author of Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom and Mother-Daughter Wisdom gives you all the medical and nutritional advice you need about the menopause. In particular, Dr Northrup examines the connection between the menopause and a woman's emotional and spiritual development during this important period of her life. Combining expert medical information and advice with mind-body healing, Dr Northrup explains: How to deal with the physical and emotional symptoms of the menopause; How to decide about HRT and alternative supplements; How to prevent long-term problems such as heart disease, hormone-related cancers, and memory loss; How the menopause can become a period of considerable personal empowerment.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #14201 in Books
• Published on: 2009-05-07
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 592 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
For women of a certain age, The Wisdom of Menopause could be just the book you've been waiting for. Menopause doesn't have to be a dreaded curse of ageing during which we can look forward only to hot flushes and hormonal mood swings. According to Christiane Northrup, MD (Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom), menopause often marks the beginning of a woman's most sexually passionate, creatively inspired, and professionally productive phase of life.

While this may sound like wishful thinking, Northrup backs up her good news with solid medical expertise. As an obstetrician and gynaecologist, Northrup has specialised in using a mind-body approach to women's health for decades, which means she doesn't just write about hormones, but also examines how a woman's lifestyle, emotions, and beliefs are affected by menopause. With the right diet, attitude, and perhaps some supplements along the way, women can actually look forward to a resurgence of energy and a revolutionary opportunity for personal growth--one that rivals the hormonally driven period of adolescence in its scope and urgency, she claims. And yes, at just under 500 pages, The Wisdom of Menopause does explain how to have a positive and healthy menopause in concise detail. Northrup has indeed "written the book" on menopause.

It helps that Northrup has been through menopause herself (she vowed she wouldn't write a book on it until she was on the other side). Readers have the sense that they are gleaning advice from a knowledgeable holistic doctor as well as a sage aunt whose life was radically altered by the "change of life" (Northrup divorced at the onset of menopause). After she shares her personal story of "the change," Northrup delves into a significant discussion on how self-sacrifice catches up with women in midlife. Suddenly, hormones are directing women out of the care-giver role and into an inwardly focused assessment of life and its meaning, she explains. Resentments (not hormones) are what spur the notorious surges of anger, as women re-examine the agreements surrounding their relationships with colleagues, friends, and family members.

From here, Northrup guides readers into a thorough section on menopausal hormone changes--a discussion that is scientifically informative, yet entirely accessible. While acknowledging the need for hormone-replacement therapy and the tremendous relief it can provide (helping to alleviate insomnia, hot flushes, and depression), Northrup encourages women to avoid synthetic hormones and instead consider "bioidentical" hormones (such as estradiol, estrone, and estriol). She also devotes an entire chapter to foods and supplements that support hormonal balance. By the way, she says to skip the wild Mexican yam creams: "they certainly don't provide the documented benefits of progesterone." Be warned: some readers may find the advice in The Wisdom of Menopause too alternative for their liking. For example, in her discussion on insomnia, one of Northrup's recommendations is to cover the mirror at night, following the ancient Asian design principles of feng shui. (Sceptics will find Northrup's medical assertions carefully cited and footnoted in the rear of her book.)

Northrup gives a solid and practical diet plan that supports hormonal balance while countering the weight gain that so frequently plagues menopausal women ("focus on portion size, not calories","eat protein at every meal" and cut down on refined and high-carbohydrate foods). Readers can also expect a thorough mind-body discussion in subsequent chapters that cover breast health, bone loss, and cultivating midlife beauty, along with chapters titled "Sex and Menopause: Myths and Reality" and "Creating Pelvic Health and Power".

She concludes with a list of mail-order and online resources, such as retailers for bioidentical hormones, progesterone cream, Chinese herbs, soy products, weight-loss audiocassettes, lubricants, and Kegel weights. Northrup takes a truly comprehensive approach to all the effective treatments of menopausal symptoms so that women can make their own highly informed and wise choices. --Gail Hudson

Review
'I recommend this book to all women.' --Deepak Chopra

'Dr Chris Northrup's book is an outstanding collection of information and case histories that will benefit everyone who reads it.' --Bernie Segal- author of 'Life, Medicine and Miracles'

'If you can't have Dr Northrup for your doctor, read her book.' --Larry Dossey MD, author of 'Healing Breakthroughs'

About the Author
Dr Northrup has been a practising holistic physician for over twenty years, and is the former Assistant Clinical Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Maine Medical Center. Along with three other practitioners, Christiane founded the Women to Women clinic in Yarmouth, Maine.

Customer Reviews

excellent
I read a review of this book in the Telegraph and subsequently bought it. I did not realise how many questions I had wanted to ask my doctor. This book answered everything I had been wondering and gave me much much more information.

Christiane Northrup is a doctor and has worked with women for many years. She shows how orthodox and complementary medicine can be considered when deciding what is best to do for oneself. I had some symptoms which I did not realise were related to the menopause and to find that out was very reassuring. I now realise that what is affecting me is common to many women.

The book has been anglicised and the information is right for the UK market. I also liked the personal details. It felt like the author was talking to me directly.

I am ordering two copies of this book for friends of mine and highly recommend it.

Not What I Expected, But Still an Excellent Book
I do understand why some people at the U.S. Amazon site have rated this book only one star. The book gets into a lot of areas outside of mainstream medicine. However, I felt most of what she had to say was medically sound. If you are looking for a book that gives only AMA-approved advice, this is NOT the book for you.

I think this book is actually quite valuable. Who would benefit from it most are people who want BOTH AMA-approved advice, AND who want to consider things like herbal remedies, acupuncture, and other natural treatments. These discussions are particularly valuable for anyone who cannot take traditional hormone treatments for various reasons--such as if you have deep vein thrombosis (which I do). She covers alternative therapies very well, in depth, and from the perspective of a physician who has had many years experience in trying these natural therapies with patients, and with herself. So, here you can get a POSITIVE physician's viewpoint on alternative therapies. Yes, it's true she discusses her personal life, and I personally enjoyed those parts. It's also true that she sometimes gets readings from Tarot cards, but if something comes out of them, she always checks into those areas which have come up in the readings with traditional medical tests and treatments. If you're not into "nurturing your fibroid," or tarot cards, just ignore those parts of the book. Ignoring these parts was not a problem for me. The important thing is, this book is NOT trying to convert people to new-age treatments. It is seriously discussing a number of alternative therapies, from a medical standpoint, that MANY people have already been using on their own for many years--but these people can't find any doctor who will seriously discuss the merits and demerits of any of these treatments. Furthermore, she DOESN'T concentrate ONLY on these alternative therapies--she discusses all the traditional therapies very well.

Should you buy this book? If you are the type of person who is only comfortable with traditional medical advice, you will NOT like this book. Buy another one. If you are someone who is looking for a SERIOUS discussion of alternative therapies, you will think this book is wonderful. I fall primarily in the former camp, but am also open to the latter camp for consideration. I found the book very useful, and felt it was well worth the money I spent on it. The main reason being that it discussed SO MANY MORE aspects of menopause than I ever would have dreamed of thinking about!! It is not a book you can sit down and read cover-to-cover. It has to be read slowly, and digested. After reading this book and another one, I went to see my doctor with a list of pre-prepared questions, and he said I was the best-informed patient he had ever had (here in Morocco). I suggest that you DO buy this book, but you might want one or two other books which cover different aspects of the menopause transition. The other book I chose was a paperback called "The Silent Passage," and between the two books, I feel very satisfied.

2 Extraordinary Books for Mid-Lifers
I have been educating myself about menopause since I hit 40. This book covers everything I discovered plus gives a spiritual side that medical literature never covers. It is full of excellent practical advice. Dr. Northrup combines traditional medicine with other "medicines" in a nice balance. "THE WISDOM OF MENOPAUSE" and Understanding: Train of Thought are life changing books. I can't recommend them too highly!