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physical
and psychosocial changes in your life, menopause is not the end of
your youth or your sexuality. Several generations ago few women
lived beyond menopause. Today, you may spend as much as one-third
to one-half your life living after menopause.
Fortunately, much more is known about menopause than when your
mother or grandmother experienced it. You can also now do more to
relieve bothersome symptoms, avoid complications and improve your
health and vigor during this important phase of your life.
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Signs and Symptoms
Every
woman experiences menopause differently. Even the age at which
menopause begins may be unique to you. Some women reach menopause
in their 30s or 40s, and some in their 60s, but menopause most
often occurs between the ages of 50 and 51.
Your symptoms are also likely to be very individual. You may
breeze through menopause with few symptoms. Or you may experience
a number of physical and emotional changes, including:
Irregular menstruation. Your cycle may stop suddenly, or gradually
get lighter or heavier and then stop. The unpredictability of your
period may be your first clue that menopause is approaching.
Decreased fertility. When ovulation begins to fluctuate,
you're less likely to become pregnant. Until you haven't had a
period for a year, however, pregnancy is still possible.
Vaginal changes. As your estrogen level declines, the
tissues lining your vagina and urethra (the opening to your
bladder) become drier, thinner and less elastic. With decreased
lubrication you may experience burning or itching, along with
increased infections of the urinary tract or vagina. These changes
may make sexual intercourse uncomfortable or even painful.
Hot flashes. As your estrogen level drops, your blood
vessels may expand rapidly, causing your skin temperature to rise
and a feeling of warmth to move upward from your chest to your
shoulders, neck and head. You may sweat, and as the sweat
evaporates from your skin, you may feel chilled, weak and slightly
faint. Your face might look flushed, and red blotches may appear
on your chest, neck and arms. Hot flashes can last from 30 seconds
to as long as 30 minutes, but most subside in 2 to 3 minutes. The
frequency of hot flashes varies from woman to woman. You may have
one an hour, or have them only occasionally. They can occur any
time during the day or night. They also may be a part of your life
for a year or more, or you may never have them at all.
Sleep disturbances and night sweats. Night sweats are often
a consequence of hot flashes. You may be awakened from a sound
sleep with soaking night sweats followed by chills. You may have
difficulty falling back to sleep or achieving a deep, restful
sleep. About one in four midlife women experience insomnia. Lack
of sleep may affect your mood and overall health.
Changes in appearance. After menopause, the fat that once
was concentrated in your hips and thighs may settle above your
waist and in your abdomen. You may notice a loss of fullness in
your breasts, thinning hair and wrinkles in your skin. If you
previously experienced adult acne, it may become worse. Although
your estrogen levels drop, your body continues to produce small
amounts of the male hormone testosterone. As a result, you may
develop coarse hair on your chin, upper lip, chest and abdomen.
Emotional changes. As you go through menopause, you may
experience mood swings, be more irritable or be more prone to
emotional upset. In the past these symptoms were attributed to
hormonal fluctuations. Yet other factors may contribute to these
changes in mood, including stress, insomnia and life events that
can occur in this stage of adulthood - such as the illness or
death of a parent, grown children leaving home or retirement.
Menopause
is usually a natural process. But certain surgical or medical
treatments can bring on menopause earlier than expected. These
include:
Hysterectomy. A hysterectomy that removes your uterus but
not your ovaries usually doesn't cause menopause. Although you no
longer have periods, your ovaries still release eggs. But a total
hysterectomy that removes both your uterus and ovaries does cause
menopause. There is no perimenopausal phase. Instead, your periods
stop immediately, and you're likely to have hot flashes and other
menopausal symptoms.
Chemotherapy and radiation therapy. These cancer therapies
can induce menopause. But they usually do so gradually, and you
may have months or years of perimenopausal symptoms before you
actually reach menopause.
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Causes
Menopause begins naturally when your ovaries start making less
estrogen and progesterone. During your reproductive years, these
hormones regulate your monthly cycle of ovulation and
menstruation. In your late 30s the amount of progesterone your
body produces diminishes, and the remaining eggs from your ovaries
are less likely to be fertilized. Eventually your menstrual
periods will stop, and you can no longer become pregnant. Because
this process takes place over years, menopause is commonly divided
into the following two stages:
Perimenopause. This is the time you begin experiencing
menopausal symptoms even though you're still ovulating. Your
hormone levels rise and fall unevenly, and you may have hot
flashes and variations in your period. For instance, your flow may
be irregular, or heavier or lighter than usual. This is a normal
process leading up to menopause and may last 4 to 5 years or more.
Postmenopause. Once 12 months have passed since your last
period, you are considered postmenopausal. Your ovaries no longer
produce estrogen or progesterone, and they don't release eggs.
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Screening and Diagnosis
Usually, no
laboratory test is needed to confirm menopause. The signs and
symptoms are enough to tell most women they have begun going
through the process. If you have concerns about irregular periods
or hot flashes, talk with your doctor. In some cases it may be
important to rule out other problems.
Your doctor can check your level of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH)
and estrogen (estradiol) with a blood test. FSH levels increase
and estradiol levels decrease as menopause occurs. If your FSH
level is above 30 and your estradiol less than 20, you've probably
gone through menopause. If checked while you're still on the pill,
these tests need to be done at the end of your hormone-free week.
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Menopause
& Homeopathy
Every
woman will have a different experience of menopause - most women
will experience some symptoms - some will hardly notice any
changes, while others will experience moderate hot flashes and
headaches, and a few will have more intense symptoms.
Part of the natural approach to menopause is that it is a natural
and healthy stage of life. It is a process that can be embraced
and enjoyed, like all other stages of womanhood.
From clinical experience at the Holypills Clinic in India, 80% of
patients feel a definite improvement in menopausal symptoms while
using homeopathic medicines.
Because of the controversy around estrogen hormone replacement
therapy (HRT), safer approaches to menopause should be explored.
Homeopathic treatment can be used as an alternative to hormone
replacement therapy, or alongside it, in the management of
menopausal symptoms.
The entire journey through menopause can take many years, and each
woman's symptoms will be different. The classical homeopathic
approach is the most appropriate in matching the correct remedy to
each woman's unique symptom pattern.
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