Menopause is a term for the end of a woman's menstrual cycle, and the end of her fertility because her estrogen and progesterone (hormones) levels become low. It is also a term that generates anxiety in many a woman as she nears 50. "What will it be like? Will I have much discomfort? Am I going to suddenly break into sweats and gain weight and become an old woman?" are questions she may ask about this phase in her life. Men, too, are often anxious as they worry about their beloved women's reactions to all that is happening in their bodies, as well as possible changes to their relationships. This anxiety about menopause is understandable since women are affected in different ways. Some women reach menopause gradually with little or no problems while others experience several disturbing symptoms, especially if menopause comes abruptly. For all women, though, menopause marks an important point in their lives. As they learn to adjust, it can also become a time for them to protect themselves against heart disease and osteoporosis because of their loss of estrogen.
Most Common Types of Menopause
1. Premature Menopause
Fifty-one is considered the average age for women to enter menopause; however, some women begin to have the symptoms of menopause at a younger age. If the woman is under the age of 40, she is diagnosed with Premature Menopause. This experience can occur because of genes or for medical reasons such as radiation or chemotherapy. Also, surgical removal of the ovaries can bring on premature menopause.
Premature menopause should not be confused with a condition known as Primary Ovarian Insufficiency. Women with ovarian insufficiency suffer from frequent infertility because their ovaries do not release a sufficient number of eggs, and the ovaries also do not produce enough estrogen for pregnancy to occur. Unlike women who have premature menopause, women with ovarian insufficiency can sometimes menstruate. And, if their ovaries also release enough eggs, it is possible for them to become pregnant. However, women with premature menopause no longer menstruate, so they are unable to become pregnant.
No treatment to prevent or reverse premature menopause is available; however, there are treatments, as well as hormone therapy, that can relieve the early menopausal symptoms such as mood swings, lower sex drive, vaginal dryness, and sleep disturbances.
2. Normal Menopause
Most women experience the symptoms of menopause in their early 50's; a small percentage of women do not begin until their 60's. The term Perimenopause is sometimes used to indicate the time when periods start to be delayed or stop; it is the menopausal transition period. Menopause begins after women have gone 12 months without a menstrual period. The symptoms include mood swings, hot flashes and night sweats, feelings of being stressed, palpitations, fatigue, headaches, joint pain, and vaginal dryness and itching. The time after menopause begins is termed perimenopause. During perimenopause, the ovaries that produce eggs stop functioning and a woman is no longer able to become pregnant.
3. Surgical/Artificial Menopause
Sometimes menopause is brought on because of surgical removal of the ovaries. This procedure, known as a bilateral oophorectomy, is usually performed because of cancer of the uterus, cervical cancer, or ovarian cancer. Sometimes this surgery is done to treat medical conditions such as repeated infections, uterine fibroids, and endometriosis, as well as conditions which are noncancerous. Surgical Menopause often brings on the menopausal symptoms of hot flashes, palpitations, sweats, fatigue, and pain to a higher degree than normal menopause because of the abruptness of the onset of surgical menopause. These symptoms often bring on psychological problems, as well. A woman who has had this quick change can also suffer from anxiety, irritability, difficulty concentrating and sleeping, forgetfulness, and depression.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. How long do the conditions of perimenopause last?
Perimenopause, or the menopausal transition period in which a woman's menstrual periods begin to be delayed, can last from two to eight years. But for most women, the transition is usually four years. Menopause begins after a woman has had no periods for one year.
2. Should a woman take hormone therapy during menopause?
At one time, hormone replacement therapy was prescribed for menopausal women. It was used to treat hot flashes, vaginal discomfort, and to prevent bone loss. Then, studies revealed that hormone treatments could increase the risk of breast cancer, blood clots, heart disease, and strokes. Nowadays, the determination of whether to use hormones depends upon the time the therapy begins and the age of the patient. If the taking of hormones begins before the woman is 60 or within ten years of menopause, the benefits are much higher than any risks. But, if the woman is older than 60, or it has been longer than ten years since menopause has occurred, the danger of her taking hormones far outweighs the benefits.
3. How can a woman best cope with the symptoms of menopause?
When hot flashes come, a woman who is going through menopause should record where she was excessively warm, what she ate or drank, and what her psychological condition was at the time (i. e. Was she stressed?) Then, she can avoid similar conditions to prevent more hot flashes.
To deal with night sweats, the menopausal woman can put a gel pack or an ice pack under the pillow, and she can use thin blankets and remove layers when she gets too warm.
If sleeplessness is a problem, she can read before going to bed, exercise during the day, and avoid a nightcap because alcohol will keep her awake.
4. What foods contribute to the onset of menopause, and what foods delay it?
A report in Health Day Reporterdescribes a test of more than 35,000 British women in which it was determined that in women whose diets contained many refined carbohydrates, menopause began earlier than in women whose diets included more fish and legumes than carbohydrates. YashveeDunneram, a researcher from the University of Leeds in England, speculates that a diet with higher levels of estrogencould cause the menstrual cycles to increase, thus reducing the egg supply sooner and causing early menopause.
