The Holiday Hormone Heap: Stress, Moods, and Perimenopause

By Dr. Beverly Huang, ND, MSCP

If the holidays feel more overwhelming, emotional, or exhausting than they used to, you’re not imagining it. Perimenopause already stretches your stress response system; then December arrives with its sugar highs, social demands, disrupted routines, and the cultural expectation that women hold everything together with effortless cheer.

Layer fluctuating oestrogen, declining progesterone, and cortisol overload on top of holiday pressure, and it becomes very clear: this season hits differently for women in their 40s and 50s.

Here’s why it feels harder, what’s actually happening in your physiology, and how to reclaim steadiness without cancelling Christmas altogether.

Why Stress Spikes During Perimenopause

During perimenopause, oestrogen levels swing unpredictably and progesterone steadily declines. These hormonal changes directly affect how your brain manages stress.

Oestrogen influences serotonin and dopamine—your mood and motivation pathways. Progesterone supports GABA, your calming neurotransmitter. When both fluctuate or fall, the nervous system becomes far more sensitive to stressors.

This often shows up as:

• irritability or shorter fuse

• anxiety or overwhelm

• difficulty recovering from stress

• disrupted sleep

• emotional volatility

• sugar and comfort-food cravings

• reduced resilience or motivation

Now add holiday obligations, family dynamics, overscheduling, financial pressure, richer foods, and disrupted sleep routines—and even the most grounded woman will feel her threshold tighten.

The Mood Connection

Oestrogen fluctuations can make mood feel unpredictable on an average Tuesday. During December, when expectations and emotional labour increase dramatically, mood swings can feel sharper and recovery harder.

Women commonly experience:

• low mood or tearfulness

• sudden irritability

• reduced patience

• feeling easily overstimulated

• trouble concentrating or making decisions

This isn’t a character flaw. It’s physiology amplified by pressure.

Sleep: The Silent Saboteur of December

Sleep is often the first domino to fall in perimenopause. Cortisol dysregulation, night sweats, early-morning waking, and racing thoughts can shatter restorative sleep. Once sleep is compromised, stress tolerance, mood, appetite, memory, and energy all shift.

If you find yourself crying over tangled lights or snapping at small things, look to sleep first.

Blood Sugar and Mood: The Hidden Holiday Culprit

Between late-night snacking, holiday baking, skipped meals, and higher alcohol intake, blood sugar swings are practically built into December. And those swings can mimic or magnify mood symptoms.

Support steadier energy by:

• starting the day with 30 g of protein

• pairing carbohydrates with protein, fat, or fibre

• eating regularly to avoid cortisol crashes

• staying hydrated throughout busy days

These small shifts make a big difference in how stable and grounded you feel.

Simple Ways to Support Your Nervous System

You don’t need a silent retreat to soothe your stress pathways. Tiny, doable practices add up.

Try:

• stepping outside for 5 minutes of daylight

• lengthening your exhale to calm the vagus nerve

• creating a brief pause before agreeing to holiday tasks

• a one-minute body scan while showering

• protecting a consistent bedtime (yes, even in December)

When Extra Support Helps

Many women feel profoundly better once they receive appropriate menopausal support. Options may include:

• individualized hormone therapy

• targeted herbs for stress modulation

• nutrition strategies to stabilise mood and energy

• sleep-focused interventions

• thyroid, iron, and metabolic testing

• counselling informed by menopausal physiology

You don’t need to “push through.” You’re allowed support.

A New Way to Move Through the Season

You are not required to carry the emotional weight of the holidays the way you always have. You are allowed to rest, decline obligations, ask for help, lower expectations, and prioritise your wellbeing.

Your health is worthy of protection—especially during a season that demands so much from women.

If your stress, mood, or sleep feels harder this year, or you’re wondering whether hormones are part of the picture, it might be time for a deeper look and a more supportive plan.