Ease Endo Tea Challenge 2023

 

Welcome to Week 1 on the Ease Endo Tea Challenge.
 
This week, we’re kicking off with lowering inflammation and therefore, pain.
 
The Symptom
Did you know that inflammation is a natural part of the healing process? That’s why endometriosis lesions cause inflammation at the site because the body is attempting to heal. Inflammation in short bursts to facilitate healing is essential, but when it’s chronic and in high levels, that’s when things get tricky.
 
In the case of endometriosis, because it’s ever present, so is the inflammation. This creates increasing amounts of inflammation, and the symptoms of inflammation are heat, redness, swelling and pain. So naturally, the more inflammation, the more pain.
 
We know that endometriosis is an inflammatory disease, and we know that inflammation is a key driver of the pain caused by endo, so one of the main ways we can lower and control the pain, is through lowering inflammation.
 
There are many things that can increase or decrease inflammation, including what we eat, how much sleep we get, how much exercise we get, stress, etc. Post-Christmas and New Year, we’re much more likely to experience more inflammation and pain, because we tend to have less sleep, move less, and eat more of the foods that have been shown to raise inflammation, like sugar, baked goods and alcohol.
 
So, that’s why I want to ease us into lowering inflammation with our first drink this week: ginger tea.
 
The Tea
Why are we starting with ginger? Here’s a quick low-down on the power of ginger root powder (just to be clear, the research has been conducted on ginger root powder, not fresh ginger, as the powder is more concentrated):
 

  • Ginger has been shown to be just as effective as ibuprofen and mefenamic acid for dysmenorrhea (painful periods), so if you’re looking to get off NSAIDS, this could help. It’s also been shown in multiple other studies to reduce dysmenorrhea.

  • It’s a generally a powerful anti-inflammatory and pain reliever, demonstrated in numerous studies.

  • Aids with migraines and headaches and has been shown to be as effective as migraine medication when taken at a dose of 250mg at the start of the migraine. Migraines and headaches are common with inflammation and can also come with hormonal imbalances like low progesterone and oestrogen dominance.

  • Additionally, it’s been shown in research to aid with nausea – something that can be caused by excessive inflammation during our periods!

  • Ginger is a natural antihistamine, shown to just as effective as loratadine. Histamine contributes to cramping during ovulation and menstruation, and people with endo tend to have excessive amounts of histamine in the pelvic cavity because endometriosis lesions contain mast cells (which release histamine!).

 
How To Drink
Dose wise, the recommendation for dysmenorrhea (according to the research) is between 750 mg to 2000 mg per day, split into doses of around 250-500 mg in the lead up to your period and during the first 3-4 days of your cycle.

To lower inflammation and pain overall for endo, ginger can be used daily – starting with a lower dose and building up to a dose that feels helpful. Dr. Aviva Romm recommends 1000 mg - 2000 mg a day to reduce pain with endo.

For our challenge, we’ll be using ginger root powder in tea. Taking a lot of ginger in one go can cause diarrhoea, which is why in so many of the studies the dose is split across the day. We can likewise split our dose. I’ve found that I can tolerate (taste wise and stomach wise!) about 250 mg – 500 mg of ginger per tea, it’s spicy, but a dash of good quality plant milk or organic, grass-fed, full-fat dairy milk can help lower that. If you’d prefer, you can go even lower, to what works for your taste buds and body.

You can start with just one ginger tea and see how you feel, and then if you like, you can build up slowly. The aim is that we’re all drinking at least one ginger tea a day to start fighting the inflammation, but remember, the studies are on total doses of 750 mg to 2000 mg, so don’t give up if 250 mg a day doesn’t do much for you!

You can drink your ginger tea whenever you’d like, but if you suffer with bloating, a good option would be to drink your tea two hours after a meal, because ginger can help stimulate motility in the gut – essentially helping to move gases and food down the digestive tract. This should help with endo belly trigger by food!

Must-read Precautions
Now just a reminder, when you registered for this challenge, you agreed to the terms and conditions – including informing your doctor if you make any dietary or supplement changes, so please do consult with your doctor regarding our new tea!
 
This is especially important for those who are pregnant or trying to conceive (up to 2000 mg is thought to be safe for pregnancy, and is used for morning sickness, but it’s always best to consult a medical practitioner), as well as anyone with a thyroid disorder (gingermayaffect the thyroid though this is largelyno longer a concern, but better to be safe right?), interstitial cystitis (ginger may cause some bladder burning in those with sensitive bladders, though many are fine with it) and anyone with a history of a stomach ulcer (just in case the ginger is too spicy/aggravating, I'm not sure if this would be a problem, but better to check).
 
Ginger is also a natural blood thinner, which is usually helpful, but if you’re already on blood thinners, medication (some medications thin the blood as a side effect) or have a surgery coming up, it’s important to discuss with your doctor and surgeon. Ginger additionally helps to prevent high blood pressure, but if you tend to have low blood pressure, it's best to speak with your doctor just in case.
 
As I said, ginger is generally very safe at doses of up to 2000 mg, but it’s always important to consult a medical professional, especially if you have one of the conditions I just mentioned.
 
You can pick up ginger root powder from the supermarket or any shop that sells herbs and spices. Organic is of course always better, to avoid any added pesticides, but just use what you can get your hands on!
 
If a ginger tea isn’t quite what you fancy, you can try myturmeric latte recipewhich includes ginger. This recipe has added anti-inflammatory benefits which will super charge this week’s tea challenge.
 
You can use a digital scale to one decimal place (basically, it needs to be able weigh milligrams) to weigh your ginger out, ours cost about £10-£15 and is by Salter. If you don’t have access to a scale, 1/8thof a teaspoon is roughly 250 mg of ginger – I know because I weigh it out myself!
 
So that’s it! That’s this week’s tea. Feel free to jazz it up and turn it into something special if you’d like to – just avoid adding sugar, because sugar raises inflammation, so will be cancelling out what we’re doing! If you want to sweeten it, try monk fruit, allulose or stevia.
 
Okay, so get cosy, start sipping and I’ll see you next week!
 
Love,
Jessica xx
 
References:       
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23865123/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26177393/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25912592/
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ptr.6730
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7171779/
https://avivaromm.com/endometriosis-natural-approach/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23657930/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18403946/
https://www.europeanreview.org/article/10145

 

Welcome to Week 2 on the Ease Endo Tea Challenge.
 
This week, we’re supporting the liver, which in turn, will help support our hormones.

Trigger warning: Very brief note about oestrogen and its role in conception. Skip the next paragraph if you'd like to avoid.
 
The Symptom
Did you know the liver plays a crucial role in balancing our levels of oestrogen? Oestrogen is the hormone responsible for many functions, but in relation to our cycles and endometriosis, it helps thicken the uterine lining, grow breast tissue and kicks off ovulation. In the first half of our cycle, it also drives us to be more sociable, energised and optimistic - this is because oestrogen is ultimately trying to get us to reproduce, whether we want to or not and because it helps to produce serotonin.

However, if we have too much oestrogen or we have too much oestrogen in relation to progesterone in the second half of our cycle, we can have symptoms of excess oestrogen or oestrogen dominance. They include:

  • PMS

  • Tender breasts

  • Bloating/water retention

  • Heavy periods/clotty periods

  • Painful periods

  • Mood swings

Often clients come to me thinking most of these symptoms are because of their endo, but actually, when we begin to balance their hormones, many of them fall away or get significantly better!

So, what's the liver got to do with this?

Once we've used up our oestrogen for the day, it's sent to the liver to package it up and get it ready for removal. It's then sent to the gut, and leaves us through daily bowel movements. BUT, in this day and age, the liver is often overburdened with more important waste like sugar, caffeine, medication, pollutants, toxins from beauty and body products, smoking, alcohol, etc.

When it has these guys to also clean out, it will put oestrogen to the back of the queue because these are more harmful to the body and need to be cleared out. The result is we start stacking up the oestrogen, creating excess oestrogen levels.

Following Christmas, it's pretty likely that most of us are going to have livers that are needing a bit more support, whether we've drunken more, eating more sugar, drank more caffeine or simply used more make up and fancy body products.

So, this week, we're giving the liver a bit of a helping hand with dandelion tea.
 
The Tea
There are many things that will support your liver and hormone levels, such as blood sugar balance, added veggies and herbs, minimising your toxin exposure, etc. but tea is an easy way in. It's not going to solve all your hormonal problems, but it'll help!

Here's how dandelion tea can help your liver:

  • It helps to increase bile flow. Bile is a substance that transports those packaged up waste products (like oestrogen) to the gut, for pooping. However, it can become thick and stagnant, or diminished, meaning there's not enough of it or it's too thick to move those toxins out. By supporting bile production, we're literally supporting oestrogen removal.

  • It can help improve liver function. The liver works in two phases, phase 1 and phase 2, if either of these phases aren't working properly, oestrogen detoxification will be impaired, so dandelion tea is giving this a little boost.

  • For those with interstitial cystitis, it may also soothe the bladder!


How To Drink
Dose wise, I suggest doing what's easiest for you.

You can use teabags, just try to pick ones that aren't made with glues and plastics (most are, but this brand in the UK doesn't use these). Allow to steep for at least 5 minutes, so the tea is concentrated. If you're worried about it cooling down, put a saucer/small plate over your tea cup.

You can also use loose leaf tea, and leading natural medicine doctor, Dr. Axe, recommends using one tablespoon. Steep the tea for 5-10 minutes, again, to ensure it's really concentrated.

Finally, if you don't like grassy flavoured teas, you can drink roasted dandelion root as coffee! Look for organic roasted dandelion root, grind it up using a handheld grinder (it can be manual or electric), just don't put it through a big coffee grinder because it'll clog that up! Then put 1-2 teaspoons into a cafetiere, top with hot water and brew for 5-10 minutes. It's delicious! You can also blend it up with a good quality milk or with some cashew butter for a creamy latte.

You can drink your tea/coffee whenever you like, but dandelion is a natural diuretic (meaning it makes you pee) so it's probably best to have it earlier in the day so you're not waking up in the night to go.

You can get dandelion tea in most health shops, or from specialist herb shops.

Roasted dandelion roots are more commonly found online (unless you're lucky!). Watch out for any added ingredients like barley, etc. as many of these contain gluten, which may affect some of us with endo. We're looking for pure roasted dandelion root. I use Costwold Roasted Dandelion Root Coffee, unfortunately it's not organic, but I find it difficult to get hold of an organic dandelion coffee.

Ideally, we'll now be drinking both ginger and dandelion root tea daily, but if that's unsustainable, you can alternate them each day, so you get a bit of both.

Moving forward, drinking dandelion tea in the second half of your cycle is a great way to help ensure oestrogen is kept in check and allows progesterone to shine. Of course, it takes more than tea, but it's a start!

Must-read Precautions
Now just a reminder, when you registered for this challenge, you agreed to the terms and conditions – including informing your doctor if you make any dietary or supplement changes, so please do consult with your doctor regarding our new tea! Especially if you're going to be drinking it daily.
 
If you are allergic to dandelions, of course, please do not use this tea.

If you're on any medication at all, it's essential you discuss drinking this tea with a doctor as it can interreact with some medications and can also increase how quickly they are cleared out through the body.

As always, if you're pregnant or trying to conceive, please talk to your doctor as well.

Dandelion tea is generally safe, but it's always important to discuss bringing in herbs with a doctor. Especially if you fit into any of the above.
 
So that’s it! That’s this week’s tea. Feel free to jazz it up and turn it into something special if you’d like to – just avoid adding sugar, because sugar raises inflammation, so will be cancelling out what we’re doing! If you want to sweeten it, try monk fruit, allulose or stevia.
 
Okay, so get cosy, start sipping and I’ll see you next week!
 
Love,
Jessica xx
 
References:       
https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/22/9/1409/htm
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3155102/
https://draxe.com/nutrition/dandelion-tea/
 

 

Welcome to Week 3 of the Ease Endo Tea Challenge.

 

This week, we're easing the endo belly!

 

The Symptom

Did you know the endo belly might not be just caused by endometriosis?

In fact, it's most likely not!

Whilst the inflammation from endometriosis can definitely cause the endo belly at certain times of your cycle or make it worse, there are other contributing factors. 

  • Fluctuating hormones can be a cause - progesterone in the second half of your cycle slows gut motility down, leading to more accumulation of gas and waste in your intestines, which might create some bloating.

  • The changes in oestrogen and progesterone in the second half of your cycle can contribute to water retention and bloating, and are worse when hormones are out of balance, especially in the case of oestrogen dominance.

  • Adhesions from surgery or from the inflammation caused by endo, can stick to intestines and cause issues with the motility (or flow), creating pockets of swelling and gas, leading to bloating.

  • Research has shown that people with endo tend to have some level of microbiome dysbiosis, which is an imbalance of the bacteria in our intestines, which can cause bloating.

  • Research is showing that up to 80% of people with endo also have small intestine bacterial overgrowth, and the classic symptom of SIBO is a big, bloated belly.

There are many other potential factors contributing to your own personal endo belly, from coeliac disease (which is common in the endo community) to chronic stress. To learn more about the possible causes, have a listen to this podcast.

Clearly, there are multiple areas to possibly address when it comes to healing the endo belly, and we're not going to solve it all with just tea, but the first step is for us to get you feeling a little better so you have the encouragement, energy and health to even consider those steps...

So this week, we're drinking peppermint tea.

 

The Tea

Here's how peppermint tea can help your endo belly:

  • Peppermint relaxes the smooth muscle of the intestines, so helps significantly with cramping and abdominal pain, and helps to ease the transition of gas.

  • It's been shown in the research to aid with abdominal pain, bloating, indigestion, painful bowel movements and all IBS symptoms.

  • Research has shown that pain and symptoms improve significantly with long-term use with peppermint oil.

The caveat is the research is on peppermint oil capsules, not tea, however, many people (including me) still find that peppermint tea eases their gastro symptoms, especially bloating! So see if it works for you too...

 

How To Drink

Dose wise, you can use teabags or loose leaf tea as instructed on the label, just try to pick tea bags that aren't made with glues and plastics (most are, but this brand in the UK doesn't use these). Allow to steep for a few minutes so the tea is concentrated - we're going to get more benefit with a stronger tea. If you're worried about it cooling down, put a saucer/small plate over your tea cup.

You can also use fresh peppermint leaves, but they're not always easy to find in the supermarkets (unless you grow your own)! A handful of fresh leaves steeped in boiling water for 5-10 minutes is a wonderful way to really extract some of that lovely peppermint oil.

You can boost the effectiveness of your peppermint tea for endo belly, by also drinking ginger tea (probably separately , as that might taste weird!) as well. Ginger is great for motility (moving things down the digestive tract) and is a helpful drink to have two hours after meals if you're feeling bloated. Having one of these each day is going to do wonders for your digestion!

For extra bang for your buck, you can buy digestif teas which are deliberately made to ease bloating and help with after-meal fullness. Many of these contain a combination of peppermint fennel, chicory root and ginger. Have a look around at what's available in your local area!

Ideally, we'll now be drinking ginger, dandelion root and peppermint tea daily. This is going to make a powerful trio for the endo belly, with dandelion aiding oestrogen clearance (and it helps with digestion!), ginger for motility and peppermint for relaxing the intestines and IBS symptoms. You could have one when you wake, one mid-morning, and one two hours after lunch! BUT if that's unsustainable, you can alternate them each day, so you get the best of all - or try spending this week solely on peppermint to see what it does for your endo belly.

Moving forward, drinking peppermint tea around ovulation and towards your period is a great way to ease that hormonal bloating and the constipation that can happen in the luteal phase!

 

Must-read Precautions

Now just a reminder, when you registered for this challenge, you agreed to the terms and conditions – including informing your doctor if you make any dietary or supplement changes, so please do consult with your doctor regarding our new tea! Especially if you're going to be drinking it daily.

Peppermint tea is very safe, but it may come with one or two side effects depending on your body.

For those of you with acid reflux, peppermint might worsen this as it can relax the sphincter between your stomach and oesophagus, which can open it up, allowing acid to rise. Try with caution, and if it worsens, you can use this natural remedy to reduce the acid and avoid peppermint tea for the time being. You may do better with triple coated peppermint oil capsules, as they're designed to not dissolve and release the oil until after the stomach, meaning you won't get that sphincter relaxation.

Peppermint might cause an uncomfortable sensation in the bladder of those with interstitial cystitis. Essentially, you can end up have a mentholated bladder, which can feel uncomfortable if you already have bladder irritation.

Finally, another side effect is possible nausea, although this is more likely to occur with capsules of peppermint oil rather than tea.

So that’s it! That’s this week’s tea. Feel free to jazz it up and turn it into something special if you’d like to – just avoid adding sugar, because sugar raises inflammation, so will be cancelling out what we’re doing! If you want to sweeten it, try monk fruit, allulose or stevia 

Okay, so get cosy, start sipping and I’ll see you next week!

Love,

Jessica xx

 

References:      

https://bmccomplementmedtherapies.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12906-018-2409-0

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11207510/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24100754/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26319955/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3016669/

https://academic.oup.com/humrep/article/17/7/1704/576914

 

Welcome to Week 4 on the Ease Endo Tea Challenge.
 
This week, we're easing lowering histamine levels, and as a result, pain and inflammation!
 
The Symptom
Did you know that histamine is involved in growth and inflammation of endometriosis? Mast cells, the immune cells which release histamines, have been found in high levels within and around endometriosis lesions - and the research shows that the higher the number, the more intense the pain.
 
The involvement of mast cells and histamines is so integral to the growth and symptoms of endometriosis, that researchers are now calling for mast cell focused immune treatments for endo.

Additionally, histamines are involved in both menstruation and ovulation. Their inflammatory nature helps with the shedding of the uterine lining, but too high levels during our period or ovulation could mean excessive pain.
 
In my experience as an endo health coach, many of my clients respond well to supplements, tools and lifestyle changes that lower histamines or stabilise mast cells. Now, luckily, this doesn't mean adopting a low histamine diet! In fact, I generally see that as a last resort, because it can feel fairly restrictive, and because often it's only required in clients who genuinely have very strong reactions to histamines.

For many of us with endo, just lowering histamine levels with tools that calm down the mast cells, is enough to see a difference in our endo symptoms.

Here are some other facts about endo and histamines:

  • 61% of people with endo have been found to have allergies.

  • People with endometriosis are significantly more like to have a family history of allergies.

  • People with endo have been found to be four times more likely to have allergies.

So, chances are, you have allergies! And as histamines are released in response to a potential allergen/threat, by calming down mast cells, we can in turn calm down our allergies and our endo pain!

So this week, we're drinking nettle tea.
 
The Tea
Here's how nettle tea can help ease your endo symptoms and allergies:

  • Multiple studies have found stinging nettles to be effective antihistamines, some studies show freeze-dried nettles to be more effective than pharmaceutical allergy drugs!

  • Lab research has found several ways that nettles can lower histamine reactions; nettle extract can block histamine receptors, inhibit mast cells from releasing histamines and even block the formation of inflammatory cells such as prostaglandins (which also contribute to endo growth and pain)!

  • Nettles are also naturally high in iron, making this tea a helpful aid during menstruation, when we lose a lot of iron in our menstrual blood and can often feel fatigued.

The caveat is the research is on freeze-dried nettles, not tea - but tea can still be helpful for many people! Again, we're just easing into symptom management at this stage, so if you find nettle tea helped but only somewhat, consider nettle supplements...

How To Drink
Dose wise, you can use teabags or loose leaf tea - and you can even use fresh leaves.

If you're using teabags, follow the label as instructed - brewing for longer if needed. And just a quick reminder for the tea bags - try to pick tea bags that aren't made with glues and plastics (most are, but this brand in the UK doesn't use these).

If you'd like a stronger brew, especially if you're low in iron or struggling with inflammation and allergies, you can use loose leaf tea. Dr. Aviva Romm suggests using a handful in a teapot of boiling water (enough to serve 4 cups) and to brew for a couple of hours. You can then reheat and drink as many cups as desired. Alternatively, she also suggests 3-4 tablespoons in 4 cups of boiling water, left for 30 minutes, for those who prefer a more neutral taste. Of course, if there's no way you're going to drink 4 cups, you could just make enough for one.

If you'd like to try using fresh leaves, firstly - handle with care and wear gloves, because the leaves sting the skin (they are sting-free once cooked/boiled)! Secondly, make sure you wash your leaves well. Healthline has a helpful article on how to make fresh nettle tea here.

Ideally, we'll now be drinking ginger, dandelion root, peppermint tea and nettle tea daily. You could try having one on waking, one mid-morning, one mid-afternoon and one early evening (not too late, as we don't want you waking in the night with a full bladder)!

The ginger and peppermint would be great ones to have after meals, whilst the other two can really fit in anywhere.

If you want to make it a little easier, you could combine the peppermint, nettle and even the dandelion into one single tea, as the peppermint compliments the grassy flavours of the other two, and even masks them if you're not a fan of the taste! That way, you'll just be drinking two teas a day - the combination tea and the ginger. Or of course, you can just alternate between teas across the week.

Moving forward, drinking nettle tea at the onset of and during your period is a great way to lower histamines and inflammation and to decrease pain during this time, whilst keeping your iron levels topped up.

Must-read Precautions
Now just a reminder, when you registered for this challenge, you agreed to the terms and conditions – including informing your doctor if you make any dietary or supplement changes, so please do consult with your doctor regarding our new tea! Especially if you're going to be drinking it daily.
 
Nettle tea is very safe, but may not be safe for pregnancy, so please consult your doctor. Additionally, it can interact with medications, so consult your doctor first if you're on any type of medications.
 
What's next?
So in theory, this is the last week of our challenge... But stay tuned, because next Monday I am going to share with you a tea chart showing where and when to drink these teas in your cycle... and I'll be sharing an extra hot drink to add for those moments when you need to fight brain fog and fatigue. You're going to love this one! I'll also explain how to use tea going forward, after this challenge.

So that’s it! That’s this week’s tea. Feel free to jazz it up and turn it into something special if you’d like to – just avoid adding sugar, because sugar raises inflammation, so will be cancelling out what we’re doing! If you want to sweeten it, try monk fruit, allulose or stevia.
 
Okay, so get cosy, start sipping and I’ll see you next week for our wrap email!
 
Love,
Jessica xx
 
References:       
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19140159/
https://avivaromm.com/remedies-seasonal-allergies/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2192379/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2192379/
https://www.emjreviews.com/reproductive-health/article/targeting-mast-cells-as-a-viable-therapeutic-option-in-endometriosis/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22332753/
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphys.2019.01543/full
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27841046/

 

Welcome to our wrap up week of the Ease Endo Tea Challenge.

So, how did you find the tea challenge? Hopefully, you've experienced some changes - or your period/endo pain wasn't as bad as you thought it might be following the festive season!

Don't worry if you don't feel dramatic change yet - remember, this was all about dipping your toe in and giving you easy, quick tools to get started with and steady consistency, even with habits as small as tea, is when we'll start to notice changes.

Your cyclical tea plan
Okay so now you've tried all the teas, here's how you might want to use them moving forward:

Menstruation: Nettle tea and ginger
Menstruation is the time when inflammation and histamines are going to be high, and iron is going to be low. The ginger will address the pain and inflammation, whilst the nettle will replenish iron loss and also lower any histamines contributing to pain.

Follicular: Dandelion
This is the phase when our oestrogen is building, and whilst we do want a lovely healthy amount of oestrogen, we want to be clearing it out properly once it's been used up. That's where dandelion comes in and can help support our oestrogen detoxification in this stage to ensure it doesn't contribute to oestrogen excess in the later phases of our cycle.

Ovulation: Peppermint
Ovulation is a time that can bring bloating due to the high levels of hormones and the inflammation which occurs as part of the ovulatory process. If you struggle with bloating during this time, peppermint can really aid you there!

If ovulation is a particularly painful part of your cycle, then feel free to also bring in ginger and/or nettle, which will both address the inflammation levels (though ginger is better for pain relief).

Luteal: Ginger and dandelion
Once we've ovulated, inflammation begins to build in our uterus right up until menstruation, so to keep those pre-menstrual aches and pains down, and to reduce the pain you experience on your period, you can begin drinking ginger in your luteal phase.

This is also a time when we can have some oestrogen dominance if our hormones aren't balanced, so dandelion can assist there too.

If you're finding yourself particularly bloated, try the peppermint, though ginger should help with that as well.

I'm hoping that after taking this challenge, you can see that many of these teas play various roles and can help with various symptoms. So, you don't have to follow the above, it's just some suggestions - feel free to bring in whatever tea you like when you feel you need it!

Also, if tea hasn't been your thing - don't worry. There are plenty of different methods for managing endo, and this is just one tool from the tool box!

Finally, there's no perfection here - don't force yourself to drink tea every day if you don't fancy it, I certainly don't. I use these teas at various points in my cycle, but I don't drink them every day. For the purpose of this challenge we did, but going forward, you can just use them as you see fit.

Hot chocolate
Now, I understand that teas aren't always enough to hit the spot, so how about a hot chocolate?

Raw cacao is the raw form of cocoa powder, and it's rich in iron, magnesium and other essential nutrients. It's wonderful for replenishing your nutrient stores when you're on your period!

Cacao is also mildly stimulating, so it's a great pick-me-up if you're feeling brain fogged or fatigued.

A quick way to drink it is to add a teaspoon of cacao to a cup, top with boiling water, a little good quality milk of your choice and a few drops of monk fruit sweetener. I call this my 'instant hot cacao' - it's a nod to my 90's obsession with diet instant hot chocolates, which I now understand was a terrible idea! Anyway, this instant cacao isn't made with water to be low cal, but to be quick!

For extra creaminess, add some nut butter (cashew works well). You could also include some mushrooms like lion's mane and cordyceps which aid with focus and concentration, and you could use those in the instant version too - or not at all, the cacao still works wonders.

Must-read Precautions
Now just a reminder, when you registered for this challenge, you agreed to the terms and conditions – including informing your doctor if you make any dietary or supplement changes, so please do consult with your doctor regarding our new teas!

If you're very sensitive to histamine foods, you might find cacao isn't for you, or you can only have a certain amount. If you notice a worsening of allergy symptoms, heart palpitations, shortness of breath, stomach cramps or a worsening of any of your symptoms, you might currently be sensitive to histamines and I suggest you work with someone to see if that's the case. When my histamine issues have been at their worst, I have had to cut down on cacao or even at times, have removed it entirely for a short while.

Cacao also has some caffeine in it (it varies from brand to brand, crop to crop), so you may need to be mindful of how much you have if you're sensitive to caffeine. I find if I have it too late at night I'm wired!

Finally, cacao is reported by many interstitial cystitis patients to be one of their trigger foods and this is thought to be because it's quite acidic (though it could also be down to the histamine levels). If you still want to be able to enjoy a hot chocolate from time to time but find it causes bladder irritation, you can take calcium glycerophosphate with it, which neutralises acidic foods. Just remember, this isn't a long-term solution and root causes should be addressed so that you can expand your diet and minimise symptoms long-term.

So that’s it! I really, truly hoped you enjoyed this challenge and I would LOVE to know how you found it or if you experienced any changes in your cycle or symptoms. Please feel free to reply and let me know!

If this challenge has you motivated to continue on your endo healing journey, I have plenty of other resources to help you along the way.

Short but sweet (and affordable!) masterclasses
Nutrition for Endo Foundations Masterclass
Nutrition for Endo Advanced Masterclass
Natural Pain Relief Tool Kit Masterclass
Holistic Pre- and Post-Surgery Protocol Masterclass

Free tools
This EndoLife Podcast
My Endometriosis Net and Endometriosis News articles
Pain Relief Tool Kit Guide
 
Thank you for joining me on this cosy challenge.
 
Love,
Jessica xx