Optimized Women - The Future of Feminine Performance Energy
Dr. Anais Verena
A holistic health doctor recounts her journey from undiagnosed hormonal imbalance and fatigue toward healing through understanding the menstrual cycle’s phases—menstruation, follicular, ovulation, and luteal—and their hormonal shifts. Emphasizing bioharmonizing over biohacking, she advocates syncing nutrition, exercise, and self-care with cyclical energy changes while addressing societal norms around women’s health. Techniques like breathwork, tapping, and emotional acceptance support nervous system balance. She stresses embracing feminine and masculine energies within, promoting self-awareness, love, and inner healing as foundations for wellness and joy.
"Question what society tells you is normal, come back to yourself, and know that true healing comes from within. Allow yourself to feel all feelings with love and kindness; the only way out is if you go through."
Summary
- True healing, especially for women, comes from within by reconnecting to your essence and understanding your body. - Understanding the menstrual cycle phases can empower women to optimize energy, nutrition, and self-care accordingly. - Society normalizes fatigue, pain, and low libido, but these symptoms are not truly normal and should be questioned. - Energy and activity should align with the menstrual cycle, balancing high-energy workouts post-menstruation and restorative practices pre-menstruation. - Managing stress and emotional regulation through breathwork, tapping, movement, and embracing both feminine and masculine energies is essential for well-being.
Article
Beyond biohacking: the cyclical approach to women's health gains ground
Dr. Anais Verena challenges conventional wellness paradigms at El Salvador health symposium
At the Reclaiming Health & Longevity Symposium held in El Salvador, Dr. Anais Verena presented a compelling case for what she terms "bioharmonizing" – working with, rather than against, women's natural hormonal cycles to optimize health, energy and wellbeing.
Her presentation, "Optimized Women - The Future of Feminine Performance Energy," delivered on Monday to an engaged audience, offered a critique of traditional medical approaches to women's health while proposing practical alternatives based on cyclical awareness.
From personal crisis to professional mission
Dr. Verena began her talk with a personal turning point: sitting in a doctor's office after a year without menstruation, being offered birth control as the only solution.
"This was the moment the doctor I am today was born," she told attendees. "I help women come home to themselves, reconnect to their true essence, and understand that true healing comes from within."
This experience shaped her subsequent career in holistic health and functional medicine, with a focus on empowering women through understanding their bodies' natural rhythms.
Questioning medical norms
A significant portion of Dr. Verena's presentation challenged what she describes as problematic assumptions in conventional healthcare. When she asked who had ever felt "unseen" by a doctor or failed by the medical system, a forest of hands rose in the conference hall.
"Society tells us it's completely normal to be fatigued all the time, to have menstrual pain, to have low libido," Dr. Verena said. "But even as a woman, it's NOT normal to have low sex drive, anxiety, mood swings, or digestive issues."
She urged attendees to "question what society tells you is normal, and come back to yourself."
Understanding the cyclical body
Central to Dr. Verena's approach is detailed knowledge of the menstrual cycle's phases and their corresponding hormonal fluctuations. She walked the audience through the four main phases – menstruation, follicular, ovulation, and luteal – explaining how each affects energy levels, nutritional needs, and optimal activities.
This awareness, she argued, allows women to work with their bodies rather than pushing against natural rhythms, a philosophical shift she frames as moving from "biohacking" to "bioharmonizing."
"Just like nature, women have phases too," she explained. "Your period is like winter – cozy, cold. Follicular phase is spring; energy comes back. Ovulation is summer; you shine most. And the luteal phase is autumn, where energy management becomes important."
Practical applications
Dr. Verena offered concrete recommendations for aligning lifestyle with hormonal cycles, including:
- Timing high-intensity workouts for the follicular and ovulation phases when energy is naturally higher - Shifting to gentler activities like yoga and mobility work during the luteal phase and menstruation - Adjusting nutrition for each phase, focusing on iron-rich foods during menstruation and complex carbohydrates during the luteal phase - Planning social engagements and important business meetings during high-energy phases - Reserving self-care and reflective time for lower-energy phases
"You can biohack without burning out by training with your cycle," she noted.
Self-connection as foundation
Perhaps most striking was Dr. Verena's emphasis on self-connection as fundamental to health. She advocated for starting each day with a simple self-check: "How am I feeling? What do I need today?"
"You can't pour from an empty cup; you must take care of yourself first," she told the audience, demonstrating breathing techniques and encouraging attendees to practice connecting with their bodies.
This internal awareness extends to emotional regulation. "Allow yourself to feel all feelings, even the ones you don't like," she advised. "Welcome them with love and acceptance because the only way out is if you go through."
Balancing energies
Dr. Verena concluded by addressing what she called "the missing link" – living in and with feminine essence while acknowledging masculine energy. She described how all people, regardless of gender, embody both energies: the feminine intuitive, receptive, and connected qualities alongside the masculine goal-oriented, analytical, and protective ones.
The key, she suggested, is recognizing which energy dominates in your life and developing flexibility between them according to context and need.
Looking forward
As the Reclaiming Health & Longevity Symposium continues through November 12th, Dr. Verena's presentation has sparked discussions about the future direction of women's health approaches.
While critics might question whether cycle-based approaches are practical in conventional medical settings or everyday life, many attendees expressed relief at finding validation for their lived experiences and a framework that honors rather than pathologizes their cyclical nature.
"Every morning, ask yourself how you're feeling and what you need today," Dr. Verena said in closing. "Connect to your heart with love and kindness." For the women in attendance, this simple practice might represent the most radical health intervention of all.
Part of Reclaiming Health & Longevity Symposium