Hello everyone, yesterday I wrote about the results of the tests and conversation I had with my naturopath and I wrote about Maca, specifically a blend for post menopausal women called MacaPause. I thought I'd pull out that topic and create a separate post with more information on it.
My blood test showed very, very low estrodiol (estrogen). My doctor suggested trying Maca, an adaptogen, or else hormone replacement therapy. Femmenessence is the company he recommended for Maca. I decided to give it a go and since I've learned a bit more since yesterday, I thought it best to start a new conversation.
Maca is a root vegetable that's grown in the mountains of Peru and is filled with many healing properties. There are many "colors" of Maca; Femmenessence has worked up a very precise formula that you take in capsule form.
I've found Dr. Christianne Northrup to be a wonderful resource for women's health issues. She wrote a book called "The Wisdom of Menopause." Adaptogens work differently from hormone replacement; Dr. Northrup wrote this article that helped me understand the difference between them:
You can order MacaPause from the website or find it at an integrative pharmacy or I think Whole Foods.
The recommended dose is 2 caps in the morning and 2 caps in the early afternoon. I started with half that, but then decided to try 2 caps 2X a day. I'm very unusual, I know, cause I'm so sensitive. I could feel the difference within a day. Better mood, definitely more energy, not really even thinking about my heart in that habitual AFib way it sort of takes over your life.
Yesterday I decided to try 2 in the morning and 1 in the afternoon, and I felt awful in the afternoon, didn't sleep well, and woke in AF. There was an unusual stressor in the afternoon, but my body didn't feel as good with the lower dose. Even that was interesting in that the episode was much more tolerable and the Maca seemed to help me pop back to normal after the Flecainide brought me back to NSR. The Flec seems to work more quickly, too, and the micronutrients I've been taking have been helping.
Today I called the support phone number that's on the pamphlet in the box of MacaPause. A nice customer service agent took down lots of details about my situation to pass on to the doctor, who called me within a couple of hours. It was helpful to talk to her. I'm amazed that they offer this kind of support; they have a staff of medical personnel to answer support questions. She said the CEO is committed to offering excellent support.
I asked why cardiologists don't look into hormone issues when AF is diagnosed and she said that in their training, the cardiac system is seen as separate and distinct from the hormonal system. If the hormones are balanced, it certainly makes sense to me, and is what I have been feeling the past few days, that the stress on the body in general is reduced. How can this not be good for the heart?
By the way, I don't own stock in the company, 😊 but am happy to share about a product and company that I am finding so far to be positive and helpful.
If I had discovered this a year ago, I could have been spared an awful lot of stress and physical discomfort. It's like a switch has been flipped. I don't feel the anxiety that was present in some form for many months.
Some forum friends shared in the other thread that they're going to look into it. Please let me know if you decide to try it and how it works for you.
Hi Nella, thanks for sharing, I will look into your links with interest and ask my doctors here.
Just a note of caution for others - Nella has been prescribed a specific form after testing - its not a great idea to just go out and buy these products without professional advice and testing.
I take Maca in powder form - the white form - sometimes as a drink and sometimes in a smoothie. The root does need to be processed as in a raw form it is a poison, not that I have ever seen it in the UK but just a cautionary note.
I can appreciate your desire to express caution but I'd like to clarify a couple of things.
I had the blood test to check hormone levels. Given what I've experienced in terms of the positive impact of the MacaPause so far, early on in the process of using it, I would encourage others to have this test done.
Cardios and EPs will not normally request this test; as I mentioned above (and as many of us have experienced!), their training is rather narrowly focused on the cardiac system and there are factors that keep many of them from thinking more holistically.
If I'd known about this test 2 years ago, I would've asked my Primary Care Doc to order it. I wanted to make the point that exploring this option could really help those who feel a lot of anxiety and/or depression about having AF. It's so hard to deal with!
My experience these past weeks has been that these particular physiological issues that I've been nourishing with supplements (out-of-balance hormones + micronutrients to nourish the heart cells) have had quite a dramatic impact. Night and day. If I were just getting an AF diagnosis now and had enough of my wits about me with this info, I'd ask to have these tests done at the outset to help support my body. If I had it to do over, I'd have looked for a naturopath much earlier in tandem with the cardio/EP team.
It's not quite accurate to say I was "prescribed" MacaPause. One doesn't need a prescription to buy it, which I think is important to know. I don't think of it as much different from other supplements, in that I wouldn't just randomly start taking any supplement without doing research on dosage, timing, and interactions.
I would definitely not encourage anyone to purchase any random brand or type of Maca. That's why I only referred to this particular product. The company doc told me that there are so many "colors" of Maca that it's easy to not know what you're getting. Femmenessence has the blend down to a science and has done studies to ensure its success. I've never seen the level of support this company provides. One can live chat or call them up to ask any questions. They will really get into the details of your symptoms and concerns and work with you to find the right dosage. Anyone can get this help.
Adaptogens respond to what's going on in the body. They are different from Hormone Replacement Therapy, which, of course, must be monitored quite closely. MacaPause was suggested as an option to explore if I want to; it wasn't formally prescribed to me.
Hope that helps!
Also, it's worth saying that I know I'm unusual in that I'm so sensitive. I guess it often takes weeks for effects to be felt. My enthusiasm comes from feeling better so soon in the process. After many months of a lot of miserable times, it feels like a blessing to just be able to function normally. I've appreciated the people who've shared about things that've helped them that then helped me, so if this can help others, that would be another blessing. 😊
Thanks Nella - please know it was a caution for others - in no way a critique of your post which I found very interesting. It really is very personal. Having used adaptagens for many years I do understand how they work.
In the UK people are very unused to paying for testing - which is more about my comment
- Just a note of caution for others - Nella has been prescribed a specific form after testing - its not a great idea to just go out and buy these products without professional advice and testing.
- and very few have health insurance so are therefore reliant upon the NHS - who wouldn’t pay for this type of testing and even if they did - would only ever prescribe treatments approved by NICE. We would very much like it to be different and I think it will be the future of medicine but until then I think we are on our own.
It's always interesting to learn about the NHS, since our health care systems are so different. Still, there's really no reason for anyone not to be able to access MacaPause or to be concerned.
Again, I have no vested in interest in selling products or trying to convince anyone to make the same choices I've made. Really, the point of my post was in large part to simply celebrate finding something that has made me feel so much better!!! 😂
But it is important for me that the information related to the product I've shared about be accurate so that people can make a well-informed decision.
Since I had a follow-up question for the Symphony Health (that's the company that makes it) doc I spoke to the other day, I spoke to Cheryl, the lovely customer service agent, to clarify a few additional things.
MacaPause is a supplement. You don't have to have lab tests to take it; plenty of women take this and the other Maca products they sell to keep things in harmony, much like folks take other supplements.
My naturopath tested me for many things, one of which was hormones. Given the results, he suggested this product as one way to address the low estrogen issue.
It has not been a matter of my taking a highly specialized test and being prescribed something that only certain people should take. He has worked with the product and has seen good results, plain and simple. My integrative pharmacy manager thinks the company is great, too.
Today I received an email from the CEO of the company to thank me for contacting the medical team.
This is what he said,
"Our focus is to support you through excellent customer service and a Medical Team that is empathetic and empowering. So, I wanted to check in with you to ensure we met those standards."
What a novel concept in heath care!!! 😂
Then he included his email address in case I want to contact him. Wow.
Here's the link to published articles on studies related to MacaPause:
Anyone can reach out to Customer Service with questions and they will be contacted by a doctor on the Medical Team. My response was within a few hours. I was impressed by the level of detail the doc got into regarding AFib, etc.
There is a money-back guarantee if you're not happy after giving it some time to work.
I also learned that there are 13 different kinds of Maca. Personally, I'm much more comfortable working with a company that grows their own product, has thoroughly tested it and done studies, supports the customer so well, and will give you your money back if you're not happy.
I trust my doc and the others I've spoken to about the product more than I would trust buying another Maca product off the shelf. There is a huge variety in forms of Maca, production, quality control, etc.
So there you have it! Go for it or not, whatever you want to do. But, really, there's nothing any different for women in the UK or Australia or other countries that would stand in the way of at least checking it out if it sounds interesting to you. They ship to other countries and I believe that the Medical Team will respond to UK inquiries.
That's what I wanted to clarify. For now, it's helping and I like the support. Here's how to contact them:
I had read that but thanks for posting. I am coming to the conclusion that most of these substances are useful and certainly we should look at the ancient wisdom for guidance on the usefulness of these as foods - I am more hesitant about concentrating the substance into a capsule so that you can take much larger quantities than one might consume through food - without the science.
Local store - Waitrose now does but had to look in my fridge & the current one is Naturya which is organic. Expensive but a pack keeps in fridge for a good 3-6 months. Best before date on this one is June 20. I only put a teaspoon at a time 2-3 times a week in veg smoothie or on breakfast mixed into homemade coconut kefir yogurt - oh is that delicious!
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