Why you likely have had or will have the worst PMS of the year every January

Another January, another raging month of PMS. Not quite how you’d planned to kick off a brand new year, right? But like clockwork, your symptoms have gone into overdrive, leaving you feeling fatigued, sluggish, and anything but amped to stick to those resolutions. So why does the first month of the year always seem to be the roughest in terms of cramps, bloating, mood swings, acne, and all those other infuriating, debilitating aspects of PMS?‍

Why January Can be the worst for PMS Symptoms

‍While pop culture representations of the menstrual cycle might have you believing that a monthly week of suffering is perfectly “normal,” I want you to know that PMS is NOT something you should ignore and brush off as normal. The constellation of irritating, inconvenient, and downright painful symptoms is a sign of a hormonal imbalance. You should not have to live in a reality in which you feel like garbage every month simply because you’ve been told it’s a “normal” part of womanhood. It’s not, and you deserve better. And you can get it!Now that you know PMS is actually a red flag for some form of endocrine disruption, you might be wondering why all of this tends to feel so much more intense in January. This isn’t a spontaneous shift that occurred as soon as the clock struck midnight on New Year’s Eve. This eruption of symptoms is actually the result of a slow build-up that began all the way back in October — Halloween really winds up hitting you with more tricks than treats. All that extra sugar you likely reveled in at the end of that month simply warmed you up for super sweet pumpkin spice everything in November, which made the overindulgences of December seem totally acceptable. On top of all the refined carbs you likely consumed in those three months, you may have been traveling, stressing over presents, drinking all kinds of seasonal cocktails (more sugar!), and spending a little too much time with family. That plus the decrease in sunlight end up leaving you very depleted from a micronutrient perspective.  This makes it more difficult for you to have an adequate luteal phase of your menstrual cycle, preventing proper progesterone production, which leads to an overabundance of estrogen, the prime culprit for stereotypical symptoms. All those factors can throw your hormones completely off kilter and set the stage for endocrine chaos come January.

‍How to Combat New Year’s PMS

‍There’s a reason everyone you know is signing up for juice cleanses and crazy workout classes — the holiday season really does a number on your health and can leave you feeling terrible. But committing to a restrictive detox diet or punishing boot camp classes isn’t the way to solve a hormonal imbalance — in fact, these extreme tactics can exacerbate the issues and leave you feeling worse. When we don’t take our hormones into account, they get disrupted and it can take months to regain balance. This is why not only you feel like you can’t stick to your resolutions in january, but also why you don’t feel like yourself until April or worse, continue to spiral out into more and more period and hormone symptoms all year.The key to regaining your balance in January and kicking symptoms to the curb is to detox the right way. No intense measures required — simply practical, easy-to-implement steps to restoring your natural equilibrium. Here’s how:

1. Focus on feeding your body a nutrient-dense diet. The FLO Living protocol is all about packing your diet with cleansing foods that address your liver, intestines, and lymphatic system. Your elimination organs require nutrients to breakdown toxins, and you get nutrients from food. Load up on leafy greens, complex carbs, and healthy fats to keep you nourished and satisfied.  Try the FLO Living 4 Day Hormone Detox - it’s free!
2. Have one grain free day a week. If you’re in need of some major damage control, try going grain free for just one day a week. It’s easier than you think to cut the processed junk: For breakfast, have eggs with coconut oil. For lunch, have turkey with avocados and greens along with a cup of bone broth. Steer away from the grains and gluten-free carbs today to give your gut the break and take a fiber supplement to sweep out the white flour residue. And always try to add in a brisk walk after eating carbs to help your body use the glucose for fuel.
3. Add in a special detox juice. I’m not a fan of juice-only cleanses, but adding this potent beverage to your healthy diet will support your liver as it recovers from all that holiday eggnog. Combine a handful of spinach, 1 carrot, 2 stalks of celery, half a bunch of cilantro, one-third a bunch of parsley, half a lemon with rind, half a green apple in a blender or juicer.
4. Add in the right supplements. As far as I’m concerned, certain supplements aren’t optional; they’re non-negotiable micronutrients every woman needs to keep her hormones healthy and happy! Especially after the onslaught of micronutrient depletion from this intense and long holiday period, it’s even more important to take them to get back to homeostasis.  Magnesium, vitamins B6, E, C, omega 3s, D3, and calcium are absolutely essential, which is why I decided it was time to create 5 formulations that would deliver these to you every day. The Balance Supplements are your daily ritual to keep your hormones functioning optimally.