When I was studying Chinese medicine, I had quite a few aha moments. But one of the bigger ones was understanding menopause and its symptoms in a completely different way.
Chinese medicine sees this time in your life as the “second spring”—and honestly, I love that name because it completely reframes what’s happening. It’s not your body breaking down or something that needs to be “fixed.”
Patients come in thinking they’re a hot mess with menopause symptoms. This reframe allows them to understand they’re not falling apart. Rather, their body is making a really intelligent decision to stop spending its vital energy (we call it jing) on fertility and redirect it toward keeping them healthy and vibrant for the long haul. That’s an explanation you don’t hear much in western medicine, but it’s an incredible way to recognize that our bodies change and that this change is normal, healthy, and expected.
Here’s how it works from a Chinese medicine perspective. We’re all born with a certain amount of kidney essence (jing) that governs growth, reproduction, and aging. Throughout your reproductive years, you’ve been using that essence every month through menstruation and through childbirth if you’ve had kids. As you hit your late forties and early fifties, your body decides, “Okay, we’re done with the baby-making phase. Let’s use this energy for something else now.” It’s not about malfunction—it’s about your body being smart.
Now, the symptoms of menopause—the hot flashes that make you want to stick your head in the freezer, the night sweats that have you changing your sheets at 3am, the insomnia, the mood swings that have you crying at commercials, the vaginal dryness—none of that is random. Your body is trying to tell you something is out of balance.
Most commonly, these symptoms come from kidney yin deficiency. The kidneys (in the Chinese medicine sense) are like your body’s cooling system. As women age, that yin gets depleted. Your body can’t cool itself properly anymore, and you get this “empty heat” rising up. That’s a hot flash. That’s your night sweat. It’s not a thermostat malfunction—it’s a cooling system that needs support.
This also explains why some women feel anxious or get heart palpitations. The heart and kidneys are connected in Chinese medicine, so when the kidney yin can’t do its job of keeping things calm and anchored, your heart gets a little fluttery and your emotions get harder to manage. Everything’s connected.
But here’s the really important part: your menopause isn’t going to look like your friend’s menopause. Some women come in absolutely irritable, with sore breasts and massive mood swings—that’s usually liver qi stagnation from stress. Others are exhausted, gaining weight, and their digestion is a mess—that’s more spleen qi deficiency. This is why those one-size-fits-all approaches don’t work.
When you come to see me, I’m checking your pulse, looking at your tongue, asking you questions about what you’re experiencing. Then we figure out what’s actually going on with your body and create a treatment plan that makes sense for you—acupuncture, herbs tailored to your needs, dietary tweaks, lifestyle adjustments. We’re not just slapping a band-aid on symptoms. We’re helping your body find its balance again.
Menopause is a big deal. It’s a major life transition. You shouldn’t have to suffer through it, and you definitely don’t have to just “tough it out.” Chinese medicine can help you move through this time feeling more like yourself—less uncomfortable, more balanced, and actually trusting that your body knows what it’s doing. It’s not my job to fix you but to help you get through this transition more easily.
Going through menopause and looking for relief that goes beyond just managing symptoms? Let’s talk about what’s actually happening in your body and how we can help you feel better.
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