What Ayurveda Gets Right About Women’s Hormones

I first heard Ulli Allmendinger speak at an event at the ONG Center on women’s health and hormones, and her words genuinely shifted the way I think about change. She doesn’t advocate for dramatic resets. Instead, she speaks about subtle adjustments, steady awareness, and the kind of listening that allows the body to guide the process. Here, she expands on that thinking and opens up a deeper, more nuanced conversation around hormonal balance.

Can you tell us about yourself and your practice?

I’m an Ayurvedic practitioner, educator, author, and the founder of Ulli Ayurveda. I’ve been studying and practicing Ayurveda for over twenty years, with training in both India and primarily the US. My work is rooted in classical Ayurvedic wisdom while being translated into the realities of modern life. Over the years, my focus has naturally deepened around women’s health, digestion, hormonal balance, and nervous system regulation, areas where ancient medicine intersects with some of the most pressing challenges of our time.

Today, my work includes one-on-one consultations, longer trainings, retreats, and public education. What matters most to me is helping people understand Ayurveda not as a rigid system or lifestyle overhaul, but as an intelligent and compassionate framework for listening to the body. Ayurveda isn’t about perfection or control. It’s about learning to respond wisely to what the body and nervous system are asking for, especially during stress, transition, or change.

In recent years, my life and work have become more international. I divide my time between Istanbul and Bali, and relocating to Bali marks an important new chapter. There, my focus is on developing deeper retreat experiences, immersion programs, and integrative healing work that brings together Ayurveda, nervous system education, somatic practices, and elemental wisdom.

How does Ayurveda approach women’s hormonal transition phases, such as PMS, pregnancy, and menopause?

Ayurveda understands these transitions not as pathologies, but as intelligent and meaningful passages in a woman’s life. PMS, pregnancy, perimenopause, and menopause are seen as distinct physiological and energetic phases, each with its own needs, vulnerabilities, and gifts. Challenges tend to arise not because something is wrong, but because these transitions unfold in bodies that are already depleted, overstimulated, or disconnected from natural rhythms.

Rather than isolating hormones as the main problem, Ayurveda looks at the broader terrain in which hormonal changes are taking place. The central questions become: Is the nervous system regulated enough to adapt? Is digestion strong and steady so nutrients and hormones can be properly metabolized? Is the liver supported in processing hormones and toxins? And is there sufficient nourishment, rest, and emotional support to meet the demands of transition?

Ayurveda also challenges the idea that women should function the same way at every stage of life. Hormonal transitions become difficult when women are expected to maintain the same pace, productivity, and emotional availability regardless of what their bodies are experiencing. Ayurveda offers permission to adapt, to slow down, simplify, eat differently, rest more deeply, and adjust daily rhythms. That reframing alone can be deeply healing.

Digestion is central to Ayurveda. How does it relate to hormones?

In Ayurveda, digestion, known as agni, is the central intelligence governing health on every level, including hormonal balance. Hormones aren’t simply produced by glands. They must be digested, transformed, activated, and eventually cleared from the body. That entire process depends on the strength and stability of digestion, as well as the function of the liver and gut.

When agni is steady, the body can efficiently extract nutrients, build healthy tissues, and metabolize hormones at the right pace. When digestion is weak, irregular, or overstimulated, which is common in modern life, hormones may stagnate or fluctuate in ways that lead to PMS, bloating, fatigue, mood swings, sleep disruption, or inflammatory patterns. From an Ayurvedic perspective, many hormonal symptoms are not isolated hormone problems, but signs that digestion and metabolism are under strain.

Ayurveda also recognizes that digestion is highly sensitive to stress and nervous system overload. Chronic busyness, irregular schedules, eating on the go, and emotional tension can all disturb agni. Supporting digestion is therefore not just about food, but about rhythm, presence, and simplicity.

 

 

How can we support digestion through Ayurvedic practices?

Some of the most effective Ayurvedic supports are also the simplest. Eating at regular times helps stabilize metabolic rhythms. Favoring warm, cooked, easy-to-digest foods reduces digestive burden and supports hormonal processing. Avoiding extremes, such as frequent fasting, rigid dietary rules, constant snacking, or binging, allows digestion to regulate itself.

Gentle digestive spices play an important role, not as stimulants, but as intelligent modulators of agni. Ginger, cumin, coriander, and turmeric help kindle digestion, reduce inflammation, and support liver function without overheating the system. Sipping warm water throughout the day keeps digestion fluid and responsive, especially for women who tend toward dryness or tension.

Ultimately, Ayurveda teaches that stable digestion supports stable hormones. When we care for agni through regularity, warmth, and moderation, the body regains its ability to self-regulate. Hormonal balance becomes less about intervention and more about creating the right internal conditions for the body’s own intelligence to do its work.

What are your go-to herbs for supporting hormonal balance?

I work with herbs gently and always in a context-specific way. In Ayurveda, herbs are not meant to override the body or force hormonal change. They are used to support resilience, regulation, and the body’s own intelligence. This is especially important with hormonal health, where overstimulation or the wrong herb at the wrong time can aggravate symptoms.

Some of my core herbal allies include Shatavari, which is deeply nourishing and cooling, and traditionally used to support the female reproductive system, tissue building, and hormonal resilience, particularly during phases of depletion such as PMS, postpartum recovery, or perimenopause. Maca, while not Ayurvedic in origin, can be helpful for some women as adaptogenic support for energy, mood, and libido when used thoughtfully and in appropriate doses.

Tulsi, or Holy Basil, is another important ally in my work, especially for women whose hormonal symptoms are closely linked to stress, emotional overwhelm, or nervous system depletion. Tulsi supports stress regulation, mental clarity, and immune resilience, while gently uplifting digestion and circulation. I often use it as a daily tea rather than a strong extract, making it accessible and grounding without being overstimulating.

Ashwagandha can be very effective for stabilizing the stress response and supporting adrenal and thyroid function, but only when truly indicated. In cases of high inflammation, excess heat, or strong Pitta patterns, it may not be appropriate, which is why individualized assessment is essential.

For digestion and elimination, which are foundational to hormonal balance, Triphala remains one of the most reliable and gentle formulations. By supporting bowel regularity, liver detoxification, and gut health, it helps ensure that hormones are metabolized and cleared properly, often reducing symptoms without stronger hormonal interventions.

What matters most is not only the herb, but when it’s used, how it’s prepared, and for whom. Herbs work best when layered onto a foundation of stable digestion, daily rhythm, nourishment, and nervous system support. Used this way, they become long-term allies rather than short-term fixes.

Pregnancy is often accompanied by many physical and emotional changes. How do you approach working with pregnant and postpartum women?

In Ayurveda, pregnancy and postpartum are seen as one continuous arc of transformation. What is supported or neglected during pregnancy directly shapes postpartum recovery, hormonal stability, mental health, and long-term vitality.

Pregnancy is not a time for strong interventions, detoxes, or rigid protocols. It is a phase of heightened intelligence and sensitivity in the body. My role is to protect and support that intelligence rather than interfere with it. The emphasis is less on optimizing and more on creating stability, physically, hormonally, and mentally, for both mother and baby.

Postpartum care is where Ayurveda becomes especially relevant, and where modern cultures often fall short. The postpartum period is recognized as a time of vulnerability marked by tissue depletion, hormonal shifts, and blood loss. Without proper support, this depletion can echo for years, showing up later as anxiety, fatigue, hormonal imbalance, digestive issues, or burnout.

My postpartum approach emphasizes deep rest, warmth, routine, and nourishment. This includes easily digestible cooked foods, grounding daily rhythms, emotional support, and gentle rebuilding of strength over time. Rather than expecting women to bounce back, Ayurveda offers a model of repair, integration, and replenishment.

 

 

Ayurveda emphasizes slowing down, but our lives are hectic. How can we balance this tension?

Ayurveda doesn’t require stepping out of modern life or radically changing everything we do. Instead, it invites more rhythm, awareness, and structure into the life we already have. Slowing down doesn’t necessarily mean doing less. It often means doing things with more presence and fewer internal fractures.

From an Ayurvedic perspective, the body responds less to how busy life is and more to how predictable and regulated it feels. Regular meals, consistent sleep times, and simple daily rituals act as anchors for the nervous system. Even within a full schedule, these anchors create a sense of continuity and safety in the body.

How can women integrate Ayurvedic practices into modern life without feeling overwhelmed?

One of the biggest misunderstandings about Ayurveda is that it requires a complete lifestyle overhaul. In reality, it is highly pragmatic. It works best when applied in small, consistent ways.

I encourage women to begin with one or two simple practices that feel realistic. This might be eating a regular breakfast, creating a short evening wind-down ritual, or drinking a gentle digestive tea during the day. These practices may seem small, but they have a powerful effect on digestion, the nervous system, and hormonal regulation.

Ayurveda is not about doing everything at once or striving for perfection. It’s about consistency and relationship. When the body begins to feel supported by even one simple habit, trust builds. From there, motivation grows naturally, and additional practices can be introduced gradually and without pressure.

You stress the importance of bringing together ancient Ayurvedic wisdom and modern scientific understanding. Why is this dialogue important today?

Today, many women feel caught between two worlds. On one side is ancient wisdom like Ayurveda, which offers insight into rhythm, digestion, the nervous system, and the cyclical nature of life. On the other is modern science, which provides research, data, and a shared language for understanding physiology and hormones.

When these two worlds remain separate, women can feel as if they must choose between intuition and evidence, tradition and science. I believe that divide is unnecessary. When Ayurvedic knowledge is placed in dialogue with modern scientific understanding, it becomes more accessible, credible, and relevant to contemporary life.

*Ulli Allmendinger’s latest book, The Power of Ayurveda: Science-Backed Wisdom for Wellness, Vitality, and Longevity, is now available in the US.