Mayan Women and Menopause

This is something from Women to Women that I thought was pretty fascinating about Mayan women and how they experience menopause.

"Several pockets of Mayans in the rural regions of Guatemala and Chichimilá have been interviewed regarding women’s health and, in particular, menopause. Scientists have been fascinated by these rural Mayan women and how they experience — or rather do not experience — what we could call traditional menopausal symptoms: hot flashes, mood swings, and insomnia. What’s more is that the women in Chichimilá, like the Japanese, seem to avoid osteoporosis. Though their estrogen levels drop at menopause, just like ours, and they experience a reduction in bone mineral density, as we do, there is no clinical evidence of an increase in bone fractures or osteoporosis.

The Mayans have an all-natural, herb-based diet, and a slow, relatively easy pace of life (sounds good to me!!), both elements which contribute heavily to fewer menopause symptoms. Mayan women also acquire new status when they enter menopause: they can become spiritual leaders of their communities.

A common belief among traditional shamanic cultures — for example, Mayan women and the Cree women of Canada — is that women must enter menopause to access their shamanic and healing powers. Menstrual blood has the power to create life in the womb, so when women reach the age of retaining their “wise blood,” they cross the threshold into “wise womanhood” by keeping their wise blood within. At this point they become priestesses and healers — the spiritual leaders of their communities.

The Japanese, like the Mayans, hold a great deal of respect for older people. For them, experience is fundamental to learning, and becoming an elder in many cultures means moving into a place of honor.

A menopausal woman’s wisdom is essential for survival, and the more we recognize this truth, the more menopause will be celebrated in our culture."

If we looked at menopause this way in the US, how differently might we experience it?