What you need to know about the menopause

Menopause: What You Need to Know?

Menopause is a natural process that occurs when a woman’s ovaries stop producing eggs and her hormone levels decline. It marks the end of her reproductive years and the start of a new phase of life. Menopause usually happens between the ages of 45 and 55, but it can vary depending on genetics, lifestyle, and health conditions.

Signs & Symptoms of Menopause

Menopause is not a sudden event, but a gradual transition that can last for several years. During this time, a woman may experience various changes in her body and mind, such as:

• Irregular periods: The menstrual cycle becomes shorter, longer, or unpredictable. Periods may be heavier, lighter, or skipped altogether.
  
  
• Hot flashes: A sudden feeling of heat that spreads over the face, neck, and chest, causing sweating, flushing, and palpitations. Hot flashes can last from a few seconds to several minutes and can occur at any time of the day or night.
  
  
• Night sweats: Hot flashes that happen during sleep, causing discomfort and disruption of sleep quality.
  
  
• Dry vagina: A decrease in the production of natural lubrication in the vagina, leading to itching, irritation, and pain during sexual intercourse.
  
  
• Urinary problems: A loss of elasticity and tone in the urinary tract, resulting in frequent urination, urgency, leakage, or infections.
  
  
• Mood changes: A fluctuation in the levels of estrogen and progesterone, which affect the brain’s chemical balance, causing irritability, anxiety, depression, or mood swings.
  
  
• Cognitive changes: A difficulty in concentrating, remembering, or learning new things, due to hormonal changes and stress.
  
  
• Physical changes: A decrease in the production of collagen and elastin, which affect the skin, hair, nails, and bones, causing dryness, wrinkles, thinning, brittleness, and osteoporosis.
  
  
• Sexual changes: A decrease in the libido, arousal, and orgasm, due to hormonal changes, vaginal dryness, and psychological factors.

What you need to know about post menopause?

Post menopause is the stage that begins one year after the last menstrual period and lasts for the rest of a woman’s life. During this time, a woman may still experience some of the symptoms of menopause, but they usually become less frequent and severe.
However, post menopausal women also face an increased risk of certain health conditions, such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer, due to the lack of protective effects of estrogen.

How to treat menopause?

Menopause is not a disease, but a natural part of aging that does not require medical treatment. However, some women may seek treatment to relieve the symptoms of menopause and prevent or manage the health risks associated with it. The treatment options include:

• Hormone therapy: The use of synthetic or bioidentical hormones, such as estrogen, progesterone, or a combination of both, to replace the hormones that the ovaries no longer produce. Hormone therapy can be taken orally, transdermally, vaginally, or by injection.
  Hormone therapy can effectively reduce the symptoms of menopause, such as hot flashes, vaginal dryness, and mood changes, and also prevent osteoporosis and lower the risk of colon cancer.
  However, hormone therapy also has some potential side effects and risks, such as breast tenderness, bleeding, weight gain, blood clots, stroke, heart attack, and breast cancer.
  Therefore, hormone therapy should be used at the lowest effective dose and for the shortest possible time, and only after consulting with a doctor.

• Non-hormonal medications: The use of drugs that are not hormones, but can help with some of the symptoms of menopause, such as antidepressants, anticonvulsants, blood pressure medications, and herbal remedies.
  These medications may have fewer side effects and risks than hormone therapy, but they may also be less effective or interact with other drugs. Therefore, they should also be used with caution and under medical supervision.

• Lifestyle changes: The adoption of healthy habits that can improve the quality of life and well-being of menopausal women, such as eating a balanced diet, exercising regularly, quitting smoking, limiting alcohol, managing stress, practicing mindfulness and meditation, and maintaining a good sleep hygiene. Lifestyle changes can not only alleviate some of the symptoms of menopause, but also prevent or reduce the risk of chronic diseases, such as obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and cancer.

• Alternative therapies: The use of complementary or alternative methods that are not based on conventional medicine, but may offer some relief or benefit for menopausal women, such as acupuncture, yoga, massage, aromatherapy, and phytoestrogens.
  These therapies may have some positive effects on the mood, sleep, and pain of menopausal women, but they may also have some negative effects or interactions with other treatments. Therefore, they should also be used with caution and under medical supervision.

Conclusion

Menopause is a natural and inevitable stage of life that affects every woman differently. It can bring about various physical, emotional, and social changes that can be challenging or rewarding, depending on how a woman copes with them. The best way to deal with menopause is to be informed, prepared, and proactive, and to seek the appropriate treatment and support that suits one’s needs and preferences. Menopause is not the end of life, but the beginning of a new and exciting chapter.