Overindulged? How to reset without guilt, shame, or skipping meals

Do you feel guilty after indulging?
If you’ve ever woken up after a big meal or event feeling bloated, sluggish, or beating yourself up for eating too much, you’re not alone. But what if you didn’t need to fix anything? What if guilt and restriction were keeping you stuck?

In this episode, I’m cutting through the diet myths and all-or-nothing thinking to share how you can recover after overindulging without punishing yourself. Learn simple, practical steps to feel better fast and move forward with confidence.

Key Takeaways:
• Let go of guilt and move forward: Discover why overindulgence isn’t a failure and how to break the cycle of guilt, shame, and restriction.
• Practical recovery tips that work: Learn how to use hydration, balanced meals, and gentle movement to reset and feel good again—without skipping meals or cutting calories.
• The power of reflection: Find out how to turn indulgence into an opportunity for learning and growth, so you can feel more in control next time.

Sneak Peek:
“Think of guilt as quicksand - the more you struggle in it, the deeper you sink. Instead, pause, take a breath, and focus on what serves your body right now.”

Overindulging isn’t just a holiday problem - it’s something most women struggle with at some point. In this episode, I’ll show you how to reframe indulgences, take care of your body, and move forward without the guilt or endless cycle of restriction.

Listen to the full episode for actionable steps to reset with kindness, intention, and strategies you can start using today.

Links & Resources Mentioned in the Episode:
• Blog: Hydration
• Blog: The Perimenopause Diet
• Episode 54: How to Support Your Liver During Perimenopause
• Episode 29: The Lymphatic System with Chelsey Jean

Find out more about Sarah, her services and the Freebies mentioned in this episode at https://www.ThePerimenopauseNaturopath.com.au

• PerimenoGO (because who wants to pause anyway?!) Discover how to use food as your most powerful medicine, smoothing hormonal fluctuations and easing perimenopause symptoms naturally. (Yes, you have more options than hormone therapy!) Say goodbye to feeling out of control and hello to feeling more like your old self every day.
• The Perimenopause Decoder is the ultimate guide to understanding if perimenopause hormone fluctuations are behind your changing mood, metabolism and energy after 40, what phase of perimenopause you're in, and how much longer you may be on this roller coaster for.
• For more, follow on Instagram at @theperimenopausenaturopath.

Transcript

Hello, and welcome to the Chaos to Calm podcast episode number 73. I'm Sarah, The Perimenopause Naturopath, your guide through the journey of perimenopause. So if you're over 40 and feeling like your changing hormones are hijacking your mood, energy, and weight, and you want to change that in a holistic way, then this is the place for you, because each episode I share with you my views on what's happening in your body, why you're feeling the way that you are and how you can change that with actionable advice to help you move from chaos to calm and feel more comfortable in your body. Thank you for joining me. Let's get into it. So little life update this week, I had a bit of a blip, so I'm actually recording this on a Saturday morning podcast episode released on a Sunday.

So really taking it down to the wire. It's been a busy couple of weeks. I know I spoke to you last time about getting ready to take my kids to camp. Well, maybe that was the one before. I took them to camp. It was pretty busy. I had the doors open to PerimenoGO while we were away. Camp is very overstimulating.

And it came back, got right into life. My kids had their end-of-year circus performances. That was the whole weekend. My son was in eight shows. I watched four of them and you know what it's like when you come home from being away, you got to unpack, there's lots of washing, all that sort of stuff. I also had lacrosse club commitments.

Getting back to work on Monday felt really difficult. I was tired and I was reminded, that it's really important to schedule downtime for yourself because that's really all I felt like doing on Monday was just flubbing about and having some downtime. But I had to do some work. So needless to say, I procrastinated a lot.

Didn't get all of my work done. It was a bit the same on Tuesday and Wednesday. I took my kids to a surf lesson and that was amazing. So I got to just hang out on the beach, and go for a walk. My 17-year-old drove us, which was actually a blessing because I got a migraine while we were out. Since menopause, my migraine triggers have changed, and today's topic is not about this.

I'm just giving you, I suppose, a bit of a background and life update. But my migraine triggers have changed a bit and glare is really significant for me. So I did have a hat on, I had my sunglasses on, but I did have my prescription sunglasses and an old prescription. I think that might've been part of the problem.

The other reason I nearly always get migraines is if I'm run down and, usually if my blood sugar levels go down, which I don't feel was an issue on Wednesday, but, yeah, I got a migraine and, fortunately, as I said, my 17-year-old was there to drive us home. So I didn't have to do that. And because we're near family, my dad could pick up my kids from the circus, so I could just sleep it off a bit, but it didn't actually sleep off like it normally does.

So I still had the headache on Thursday, and on Friday, it finally went away. So You know, I was basically like a week behind at the moment in my work. And then I also realized that, oh, the headache had gone. My face was aching, which is one of my allergies, the outdoor moulds. And because in Adelaide, I'm pretty sure this has been similar for most of the Southern States.

We've had some hot weather and then rain and then hot again. So the leaves and stuff are breaking down a lot and making lots of the moulds that I'm allergic to. I call it a face ache. Anyway, so that realization was great because now I can address it. I just support my immune system and also use a saline spray to clear out my nose.

So maybe more information than you signed up for today in this podcast. But that's why I'm recording it on a Saturday morning. If you're watching the video, you'll see me in my tank top because I'm ready to take one of my kids down to nippers. And also, yeah, just a reminder that sometimes even I get it wrong.

I let it slip, things slip. But yeah I'm definitely taking the lesson and the learning from this week's migraine on board and scheduling in some downtime for myself and, Yeah, I'm catching up with, I'm taking my daughter, my youngest daughter, because my, one of the other kids is at a birthday party this evening, we're going to see Moana too and a couple of my friends are coming with us as well, so yeah, having some down time tonight, And some downtime at the beach tomorrow, all be it at a nippers carnival.

But I'm going to take my book and try and get some downtime in there as well. And in my last couple of weeks for work, it's really tempting. And this might be the case for you too, because I feel like it's definitely a thing for most women I talk with is you might be trying to cram in a lot in the last couple of weeks before you finish up your paid work for the year.

And it's really tempting to do that because we want to start the new year fresh with a clean slate. So I guess I'm just encouraging you to revisit that and rethink that's what I am going to be doing when I do my set it up Sunday tomorrow evening I'll not be trying to cram in as much as I can next week, but I will be making sure that I get my time at the gym and in the sauna there, I know I have It's time for my regular facial and massage next week.

So I'm excited about that. And yeah, I'll be popping in lots of self-care little tidbits for myself, just some downtime, some quiet time, and not trying to fill all my space with work and tasks and chores. So this is me reminding you to try and do the same thing for yourself. So actually what we're talking about today, though, is overindulging and I'm sure you can relate because I'm sure you've woken up, the morning after a big meal or maybe not even waited that long, just in the evening after a big meal and thought, Oh my gosh, why did I eat so much?

Or maybe why did I drink so much? Whatever it might be there for you. Because I'm doing this series. So this is number six in the series of eight, podcasts. It's all about how to help you thrive during this time of year. So I've been recording it, particularly with my clients in mind, but there's nothing in it that you even if you're not a client of mine, can't benefit from there as well.

And I know that some of the content and the topics feel big and maybe uncomfortable and like, you don't want to address it but. But this is me being open and honest with you and just telling you as it is, like, these are the things that you need to do. Whether you do it now, you do it in the longer term for your best health in the long term and ongoing.

But yeah holidays, there are lots of social events lots of celebrations and lots of connection and lots of indulgences. But you know, if you've been having a bit too much of the high life and you end up feeling bloated or uncomfortable or hung over, maybe feeling some guilt or judgment about what you did do or didn't do then this episode is for you.

We're talking about how to bounce back after overindulging without punishing yourself. No shame or judgment here, friends. Cause yeah, like I said, we've all been there. I've been there, you've been there. Sometimes, lots of times, not so much these days. I'm pleased to say I don't find, I think the thing these days too, if you, if I have too many drinks, maybe this is the same for you.

I still wake up at the same time at like 6:30. So if I go to bed late and have had too many drinks on top of that, I just end up feeling terrible. And honestly, I don't generally have time for it as well. So I usually stick with just a couple of drinks because it's not worth it, yeah. I just don't have time to feel so crappy the next day.

And that tends to keep me motivated on track, but you know, sometimes things happen and the party boots get on and off we go. So yeah, maybe that's you. You feel sluggish. You're like we vow to be good. I'll never do this again. But also I want you to think about it from this perspective.

What if he doesn't need to make up for anything? What if like, there's no shame, there's no turning over a new leaf no getting back on the wagon, no fixing the mistake so you don't need to fix anything. You don't need to, punish yourself with lots of exercises or get into calorie restriction or skipping meals, to make up for it, which is a pattern that I see in a lot of people, not just necessarily women, overindulge, then the solution is, Oh, well, I'll just restrict and not eat and make up for it that way.

So overindulgence has happened to everyone. They're not a failure. They don't mean anything about you. You're not a bad person because you've done that. Remember that food doesn't have a moral value. It's not bad. It's not good. It doesn't make you bad or good depending on what you eat.

So just keep that parked in the back of your mind as well. But really what matters most when you if you have an overindulgence or it might be maybe I'm sort of thinking more like hangovers or when you've really overeaten and you're really uncomfortable, but also applying this to, like, if you've had a little sip, maybe you're eating to a nutrition plan, or you've got a plan in your mind and things you want to do, and you have a slip-up and maybe eat dessert or you have cake, or maybe you have a second helping of cake.

And you didn't, that wasn't really on your plan. So maybe like a small indulgent, not like hyperindulgence really what matters is what you do next and how you approach it next and how you sort of reset yourself and move forward. And I encourage you to move forward with kindness and intention there as well, not shame and judgment.

So, yeah, in this episode, I want to share with you some strategies to help you feel better, in the short term, if you have overindulged a bit of a hangover or you're feeling a bit sluggish and refocusing on nourishing your body and enjoying the rest of the festive, season without guilt or obsession.

If I think back to six years ago, pretty much my whole adult life. It wasn't that so much that I dreaded the holidays, but I always was a bit resigned that I was going to gain weight over the holidays because I felt really out of control around food. I was really obsessing.

I was constantly obsessed over my next meal. My husband used to joke that I was the only person he knew, that woke up in the morning thinking about what they were having for dinner. And it was it was accurate. I'd wake up. I had already known what I was going to have for breakfast cause I'd planned that out beforehand or I thought about that.

And then I'd move on to what was going to have for lunch and for dinner. I was always hungry. And if I didn't like it when I got hungry, if I didn't eat immediately, I would get so hungry. Like I was mean. And I would snap at everyone because I needed to eat like right now. Like if I said I was hungry, it was kind of too late.

Like I was already hungry and I used to end up eating lots of stuff that I didn't really want to eat. It wasn't on my plan and contributed to me gaining weight. It wasn't like that I had a lack of willpower. It was really more that my hormones and my body were working against me because my blood biochemistry was out of balance.

That's what I know now, what I learned four years ago was yeah, I was insulin resistant and that had left me stuck in a carb-burning cycle. So I couldn't access my fat stores. And that is the case for a lot of women in perimenopause. A lot of the women that I work with, get stuck in that carb-burning cycle and you can't get out of it.

And it's why if you do keto or low carb or something like that, you feel awful because your body's like starving and your brain is like, Oh my God. Freaking out because it can't access your fat stores. And that was the same for me. My body couldn't access my fat stores. So I would be hungry every couple of hours.

I craved carbs, sweets, chocolates all the things I was powerless against mince pies and those sorts of things. And the way I was eating as well was also contributing to that too. So I, I'd get hangry, I'd eat, I'd be fine. And then it'd crash again and I'd be craving the carbs and sweets and stuff.

And off I would go. So yeah, that often fueled binge eating or like feeling really out of control and, also the way that I felt afterwards, the shame and judgment kind of kept me stuck in that. And I was like really all or nothing in my mindset. Really diet mindset focus. Like I was on a diet or off a diet.

And if I had a mistake as one slip-up, I'd be like, Oh, well, I've blown it now. I might as well just go to town. And so it was pretty grim. It wasn't a pleasant place to be in, but that's kind of how I was a lot of my adult life sometimes was better than others in that wasn't so food obsessed, but particularly when I hit early perimenopause. And I was told I was too young for perimenopause. So none of this stuff was sort of considered. Yeah, I felt terrible. I hated how I felt. I hated that. I couldn't stop myself from eating these things. I just felt bloated all the time. Felt tired feeling hangry and snappy and then snapping at everyone and then feeling guilty and bad about it afterwards.

It's not a very nice space to be in there. And so there was a lot of shame, a lot of judgment, I felt quite defeated, there was something wrong with me why was I a naturopath and feeling this way and doing these things? Shouldn't I know better? Shouldn't I be able to do better? But you know, like willpower is not really, and even discipline, it's not really designed.

It's hard to use it in these situations because food's all around us. But also like I talked about in another episode recently, it's when our blood biochemistry is out of balance, our willpower is quite powerless against it because it's like a physical force. And our brain is driving us for these things as well.

And so, yeah, it wasn't until I started learning more about my body and how perimenopause shifts your hormones and how that impacts your blood biochemistry and your appetite hormones and all those things. And you can see, I did a whole episode on appetite hormones and how they get influenced by the perimenopause hormone changes.

I've done insulin I've done lots of different episodes recently to help you understand what's happening in your blood biochemistry. And of course, it's what I help women with all the time, with my programs, with PerimenoGO and the Chaos to Calm method. So yeah, when and those things are formed because of what I learned and trialled and errored with myself and experimented with myself and my learnings and then with my early clients as well.

We sort of saw that it worked with them as well and I refined my approach further after their feedback over time. But that's how I, you know slowly and actually it wasn't really that slowly It was quite quickly when I got it, right Bang, I felt better and was more in charge of what was eating, what I was eating rather than feeling out of control with it and sort of driven by cravings.

And that's the same for women in PerimenoGO, they tell me they usually feel better, like within a week or two, they're starting to notice some difference. Some women with more stubborn insulin resistance take a little longer but at least they understand what's happening and understand how to tweak and adjust their meals so that they don't have as much of that hunger. And they're certainly not having the cravings, for the sweets and refined carbs. And, so today I ate three balanced meals. I don't feel obsessed. I never thought I would be able to do it. Just three meals a day and not like snacks in between and not having something sweet after dinner.

And do I eat chocolate? Yes, of course, I eat chocolate. I had some yesterday, but I eat it in a particular way, which is what I teach my clients as well. So that it doesn't sabotage my insulin and blood glucose levels and doesn't feed in and fuel more cravings later on. So yeah, over the season, I haven't had a mince pie yet.

Look, I'll be honest. Gluten-free ones generally aren't as great. I'm a celiac, so I don't have the option to not eat a gluten-free one, but I will have one. I will have some for sure. But yeah, I and I'll have pudding and we're going to have pavlova on Christmas day. And I've got lots of treats planned here as well.

And I'll have some wine with my dad and things like that too. I'm going to enjoy it all, but it's really on my terms these days. And I guess that's what I'm saying to you. I certainly don't feel obligated either. And so the recent episode on boundaries is really important for you over Christmas. I don't feel obligated to have a drink or eat something because someone else wants to they can certainly eat that.

No problem. No, it doesn't. It doesn't mean anything for me and it's, and me not eating it doesn't need to mean anything for them either. So yeah, really long intro today, but anyway, hopefully you're getting the idea that I was, I've been where many of you are definitely stuck in the same cycle.

I certainly never feel like I miss out these days. And yeah, you don't have to be stuck in that cycle there as well. So let's get into talking about how to pick yourself up after an overindulgence how to feel a bit better and get yourself back on track and feeling great. So really, what I want you to take out of this episode today is to really challenge that diet mindset, that all-or-nothing mindset for yourself.

Yeah, it's something that I do, I talk about it a lot with my clients. It's it actually can impact your whole life in different areas. That all-or-nothing mindset. I did a festive thrive guide for my PerimenoGO clients yesterday. And I talked a lot about that all-or-nothing and that diet mindset.

So just remember that one slip is just one slip. And when we overindulge, it's really easy to slip into a cycle of guilt and self-criticism, that shame, that judgment. And we're all, lots of us are conditioned or socialized to think this way that indulging in food, like bad food or drink, or too much of it is a moral failing that we're a bad person.

And the way that we're taught to fix it as well is with punishment and restriction. More exercise and less food. But like I've said, food isn't moral. It doesn't have a moral value. What you eat doesn't define your worth or who you are as a person. Yeah. Indulgences are just moments.

They're not failures or overindulgences really. So instead of guilt and shame don't help. They just keep you stuck. They're really indulgent emotions and they drain your energy and can contribute to buffering behaviours. It's like emotional eating or emotional drinking, which I covered a couple of episodes ago as well.

So we don't like to feel those feelings and we want to avoid feeling bad. And that's where those emotional eating and drinking can pop up there as well. So feeling that shame and judgment alongside that all-or-nothing mindset, Oh, well, I've blown it now. So I might as well go to town.

Then you can really get stuck in that cycle of over-hyperindulgence and overindulgence. So a little analogy, if you like, if you think of guilt as quicksand, the more you struggle in it, the deeper that you sink. So the more you try and struggle against it, and this is the same with all of these sorts of negative emotions that we have, the more you struggle against it, the deeper you're going to sink and you're going to be stuck.

The way out really is to pause, take a breath look for the solid ground and gently move yourself out. And that's the same with any of these emotions particularly guilt that you're feeling. The more we resist them, the more we get stuck in them, the more we acknowledge that it's there. Think why am I feeling that way?

All right. And what might I change next time? Or what might I do differently? And then move forward, move on because being stuck in those emotions, if they don't actually add anything to your plan, they don't help you move forward. They just keep you stuck thinking about the past. So it's really important to let go of the idea that one meal or even one day of indulgence can undo all of your progress.

Like if we think about it now, Oh, I don't have quite the right stats here, but when I was doing the Thrive Guide, festive Thrive Guide from my clients running that session. There were 52 meals from then to Boxing Day, and only three of those were on Christmas Day. So, or whatever it might be, maybe you have one big event coming up now between now and then if we look at it in the bigger scheme, it's a small percentage, a small part of everything and, one meal or, one day, it's not gonna undo you completely.

So like think about it, like if you got a flat tire on your car, you wouldn't like give up on the car. And Oh, well, that's it. It's ruined. It doesn't work now. You just fix the flat tire, replace it, like put the other spare tire on and you'd keep going. So like an overindulgence is the same.

It's just one tire. The whole car is not wrecked or ruined. Don't let it derail your whole journey. So one moment, one meal, one overindulgence doesn't define you, your journey or what's going to happen next. So think about the last time that you overindulged maybe it was the second helping of trifle or a plate of nibbles at a party when you maybe weren't hungry or too many champagnes at the same party as well, like we've all been there, honestly.

But how did it make you feel physically, and emotionally? Particularly emotionally. And how long did you carry those feelings with you? How long did you think about it and feel guilty or feel some shame about it? So let's talk about how you move forward. It starts by really letting go of the guilt and focusing on what's next, but, and what does, and tuning into your body, what does your body need?

What does it want from you? The first step is really simple. You need to hydrate, particularly if it's an overindulgence in alcohol, but even sugary things or salty snacks. Really, this is a great basic basic to carry you right through the festive season and every day of life is to make sure that you're hydrated.

Because otherwise, you're feeling dehydrated, it feels you're fatigued, and foggy in the head, and also it keeps waste in your body. So when we go to the toilet and do a wee, we're able to eliminate The by-products or waste products from what we've eaten and drunk. And waters help support our lymphatic system too, which is our waste system, like the sewage system of our body.

It helps bring the waste from the cells up from the legs, arms and everything to our liver and kidneys for their working on. So as an example, I would like you to drink 35 mils of water per kilogram of body weight daily. So for a 70-kilo woman, that would be 2.45 litres, two and a half litres, spread it out through the day, drink the lion's share in the morning, early afternoons, you don't have to get up and go to the toilet all night, and maybe add a squeeze of lemon to it to help support your liver function and for the little bit of sugar and, vitamin C and the other beneficial nutrients in that as well. Or maybe think of some herbal teas. Like I love peppermint, ginger, fennel, chamomile, or some mix of those that will really help soothe bloating. If you're bloated after a meal or you feel really overfull, chamomile, peppermint, ginger, fennel, are all lovely for that.

And a bit of lemon as well is great. And those teas will help support your digestion. Also great. If you've got a hangover too, to help your body and your digestive system, get back on track, support your liver and your kidney function there as well. So. I love a bit of peppermint, but I love fennel and ginger after, after a meal.

Like I just get some fennel seeds, half a teaspoon or a teaspoon put them in some hot water and cut some fresh ginger up or grate some fresh ginger into it, about a teaspoon. I like it really spicy and let it sit for five or 10 minutes and then drink it. And I'll often refill it and go again. Yeah, so you don't have to buy herbal teas.

You can definitely make them with your kitchen ingredients as well. Fennel and ginger, as I said, are my favourite beautiful herbs there as well. And yeah, lots of benefits for your body and your brain. So step number two, you're going to refocus on your balance meals. So this really plays into that all-or-nothing mindset, really challenge that for yourself.

And if you're starting to think, Oh, well, Oh, in for a penny, in for a pound, I've done, I've like, I've wrecked it now. And, don't skip meals. I know many of you might be tempted to skip meals because you're thinking you'll cancel out or reduce your calories. Go back and listen to my calorie counting episode to see why I hate calories and calorie counting anyway.

But you know, your body still needs fuel to work and operate. And if you decide to cut the fuel because you've had too much of maybe some alcohol or sweets or something, just because it's calorie dense, your body's going to be missing out on the nutrients that it needs and that it gets from actual food and nourishing foods.

So yeah, cutting out meals and skipping meals is counterproductive here as well because then also your liver and your kidneys and your body are not getting the nutrients that it needs to help process and metabolize the sugar and alcohol and other things as well and get them from your body. And that also cutting your calories, reducing your food intake, slows your metabolism, slows your energy, leaves you foggy and feeling gross.

Messes with your blood sugar levels and it can feed into cravings or you're feeling really hungry and say, set you up for another binge episode there. So make sure you fuel your body with nutrient-dense meals. And I've done the episode on the perimenopause diet so that you can build your meals with, it and tell you how to build your plate there with protein, healthy fats, fibre, and phytoestrogens.

Because those, the nutrients in those foods will help reduce your sugar cravings and stabilize your blood sugar and support your hormones there as well. So check out my blog and my podcast episode on the perimenopause diet. Take a moment and think about what meals you already have on hand.

What leftovers have you got? This is the leftover season. Maybe you can turn them into a plate that a balanced plate that feels satisfying and nourishing, and you don't have to cook them if you don't feel like it. And it's quicker than takeaway. Think about a plate with some leftover ham or turkey or chicken or prawns, whatever you've got leftover with some fresh veggies, some salad veg just some cucumber and capsicum and lettuce, iceberg lettuce.

Don't under, don't underrate it. Or maybe just a couple of boiled eggs. I love to keep some boiled eggs in the fridge all the time so that we can just cobble together a grazing plate or choose our own adventure meal. Or even just a tin of salmon or tuna, choose tuna in water or olive oil, some leafy grains, drizzle some olive oil, some balsamic vinegar or something over it.

Beautiful, quick and easy. So also just a note too, like if you've been craving sweets, please don't just cut carbs out completely in trying to get over that, get your carbs from nutrient-rich sources, like your veggies, your fruit, or even some whole grains that are really helpful for women's hormones, particularly in perimenopause, your sleep and keeping your blood sugar balance there as well.

And let's talk about movement because I don't want you to think about it like burning off calories. It's actually more just about supporting your body's natural detoxification and elimination processes. So gentle movement helps reduce cortisol, and boost your mood, activates your, helps your lymphatic system, your waste removal system.

Because your lymphatic system doesn't have its own pump. So it relies on you moving to circulate and do its job effectively. So, if you are feeling a bit blurred post-indulgence, then just a gentle light walk especially if you're feeling low in energy, it will actually boost that for you or just do some light stretching.

There are lots of yoga poses. Like this yoga with Adrian or many others as well to help you with some light or yin yoga. There as well. And if you're doing a walk and you're outside, you're going to get some fresh air as well, and maybe some safe sun exposure, but it's not about creating a calorie deficit.

Let's just be clear on that. It's about helping your body process and eliminate what it doesn't need. All right. So, reflection is really important. It's overindulgence is a learning opportunity. As long as you approach it with curiosity rather than criticism, it's really important because reflection allows you to understand your patterns and triggers so you can be aware of them and also plan if you want to make different choices next time or plan the rest of your week and days around what you know is going to eventuate there as well.

So I think it's really important to ask yourself what triggered the indulgence. How did you feel beforehand, during, and after what really, what were the feelings and the thoughts underlying your behaviour or your actions there? And how might you handle it differently next time? Do you want to even handle it differently next time?

And as I said, if not cool, that's fine, but you might want to make sure that you are prepped and ready for that and how you're going to feel afterwards. And that might influence what you plan to eat before the meals leading up to it and afterwards as well. And I think reflection and reviewing how you're feeling emotionally and physically and what your body needs or what symptoms you're noticing and interpreting those and what your body needs from you helps you, get your long term, get your health and maintain it in the long term as well. And that's what I told all my clients as well. The ones that people who have great health, not just now, but long term are always ones that stay connected and in tune with their body and reflect on what's happening.

So like when someone offers you a glass of wine or another slice of cake and you feel a bit torn between, I don't want it, no, it's going to make me feel not great, but you know, then you've got those feelings of how they're going to feel, or maybe you do want it a bit that's where planning and reflection shine.

And even planning or visualizing what you're going to say in those instances. So go back again to the boundaries episode. That's helpful to help you practice and understand your human brain and everyone else's human brain as well. Right. So yeah, if you're feeling bloated, flat out of sorts, I'm over.

Your body will help your body know what to do. It knows how to detox and eliminate every day of its life. But if you can give it the right support and what it needs, it'll help you feel better more quickly. So hydration, hydration, hydration, nourishing your body with your meals and nutrients and the nutrient-rich food, some gentle movement to help your body get rid of the waste.

And yeah, soothing your gut with those teas that I mentioned. And challenged that all-or-nothing mindset. One indulgence, one overindulgence doesn't mean you have to give up entirely. You don't have to abandon the car by the side of the road. What matters is how you respond, it gives your body what it needs.

You'll feel better, faster. You'll get your sense of balance back and just get back onto your plan. If you have a plan of how you're eating or you're using a nutrition plan, just get back onto it the next meal. Because life, including eating and looking after your health, isn't about perfection or making up for anything.

I mentioned at the start of this episode that I have made mistakes in recent weeks and my body let me know with a whopping migraine. And so I've taken the message on board, thanks body. And I will tune into, I've tuned into what it needs and I'm going to make choices that help better support it.

So I don't get another migraine because. Ain't nobody got time for migraines. They're terrible. And that's what I encourage you. Tune into your body's needs and make choices that support how you want to feel because you can actually enjoy the holidays and enjoy the foods and drinks around it and still feel great.

Absolutely. A hundred percent. And part of that is letting go of guilt and focusing on what serves you best. And when I say guilt, not just guilt and judgment of yourself, but guilt about being responsible for other people's emotions. Talked about that a lot in the last six episodes, but it's true.

It's a big thing for women. So think ahead, imagine that it's boxing day. And instead of feeling horrible and, feeling like you've overindulged you've got your peppermint tea, you've had a little walk and you're preparing your meal of leftovers with some turkey and veggies and you're just fueling your body, not punishing it and enjoying that week that becomes like, what day is it? And everyone, no one knows what day it is. And everyone relaxes into the season there as well. And it feels calm and relaxed there as well. And that's what I want for you. And I'd love for you to have that mindset shift there as well.

So that brings us to the end of the episode for today, you can find the link to learn more about PerimenoGO, and there are other episodes and resources I mentioned today in the show notes at www.chaostocalmpodcast.com, or just check the show notes for wherever you are right now, wherever you're listening from, while you're there on, if you're in the show notes.

If you enjoyed this episode and found it useful, please subscribe, leave a review and share it with a friend who could use some help to go from Chaos to Calm this holiday season. Next week, we're going to be exploring the power of sleep and how to catch up on rest during the busy festive season.

Thank you so much for spending your time with me today until next time, keep transforming your perimenopause from chaos to calm.