Menopause

Overview

Menopause is when periods stop permanently. This usually happens when a woman is in her forties or fifties, and the average age in the U.S. is 51. It is officially diagnosed after there has been no period, vaginal bleeding or spotting for twelve months. Menopause has many symptoms including hot flashes, and low energy. 

Perimenopause

The months or years leading up to menopause are known as perimenopause or the menopausal transition. This can last from two to eight years, but on average it lasts for four years. During this time the amount of hormones that your ovaries produce varies greatly. Skipped periods frequently occur during perimenopause. At the start of perimenopause, periods tend to get closer together, as perimenopause progresses periods tend to get farther apart. During perimenopause women might experience pain during sex, a drop in energy levels, mood changes, and breast pain.  It is important to note that you can still become pregnant during this time. 

Lifestyle Tips for During Menopause

Behavior:

• Get at least seven to eight hours of sleep a night. If night sweats keep you up try turning down the thermostat, and removing some bedding.

• Take a cold shower right before bed to lower your core temperature

• Experiment with breathing exercises and meditation

Diet:

• Limit your alcohol and caffeine intake as they can trigger hot flashes and night sweats

• Drink sixty to eighty ounces of water per day

• Reduce the amount of saturated fat that you consume, and instead focus on lean protein, low fat dairy, and vegetable oils. 

• Reduce the amount of simple carbohydrates in your diet, instead focus on fruits, vegetables, and complex carbohydrates.

• Limit your intake of sugary drinks like soda and fruit juice.

• Eat foods with vitamin D, or consider taking a vitamin D supplement.

• Eat foods rich with calcium,. or consider taking a calcium supplement. Women in menopause need 1200 mg of calcium a day.

• If bothered by hot flashes and night sweats, increase your consumption of foods that contain phytoestrogens like nuts, dark leafy green vegetables, apples, avocados, bananas, mangos, papayas, rhubarb, wildflower honey, and soy products.

Exercise:

• Try to get thirty minutes of moderate level exercise at least three times per week.

• Combine stretching, aerobic exercises, and strength training to receive the best results.

• Exercises that strengthen the muscles of the pelvic floor can help to prevent bladder leaks and pelvic organ prolapse.

• Weight bearing exercises can increase muscle mass and prevent osteoporosis

Lifestyle:

• Smoking can increase menopause symptoms and women who smoke on average go through menopause two years earlier than non smokers.

Stress Management:

• Strategies like mediation, mindfulness, deep breathing, and journaling can help to reduce stress.

Treatment

Although menopause is a completely normal thing to go through some people use different treatments to help with severe symptoms. These treatments include:

• Anti-depressants: Relieve symptoms like hot flashes and night sweats

• Hormone therapy: Estrogen and progesterone therapy

• Oral Contraceptives: Helps with hot flashes and night sweats, regulates irregular periods, and helps with mood swings.

• Vaginal estrogen: Helps with vaginal dryness and pain during sex

• Alternative treatments: Women have said that yoga, acupuncture and massage have helped with their menopause symptoms.

Post Menopause

After menopause you are more likely to suffer from:

• Heart and blood vessel disease

• Osteoporosis

• Urinary Incontinence

• Sex problems

• Weight gain

For Further questions relating to Menopause some helpful resources are:

The Mayo Clinic

Corewell Health 

Cleveland Clinic 

Works Cited

Cleveland Clinic. “Menopause: Age, Stages, Signs, Symptoms & Treatment.” Cleveland Clinic, 5 Oct. 2021, my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/21841-menopause. 

Mayo Clinic. “Menopause - Symptoms and Causes.” Mayo Clinic, 25 May 2023, www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/menopause/symptoms-causes/syc-20353397.

“Menopause | Wellness Resource Library.” Corewell Health, www.spectrumhealth.org/services/womens/wellness-resource-library/menopause.