You’ve reached menopause when it has been a full year since your last menstrual period. It’s a biological process that marks the end of your fertile years, but the symptoms that come with it can take a toll.
The average age of menopause onset is 51. Women may start noticing symptoms of menopause several years before menopause starts, and those symptoms continue for more than seven years on average.
Hot flashes, insomnia, mood swings, and more can disrupt your quality of life and your overall well-being. The symptoms can be intense, but you don’t have to navigate these changes on your own.
Farly Sejour, MD, Natalie Gould, WHNP-BC, and our team at Solace Women’s Care offer comprehensive gynecology services for women — and that includes managing the symptoms of menopause.
Your hormones fluctuate throughout your life. But as your reproductive years come to an end, estrogen and progesterone start to drop. Low hormone levels trigger a series of changes in the years leading up to menopause (known as perimenopause) and the years during menopause.
Eight of the most common menopausal symptoms are:
Hot flashes are a classic symptom of menopause, and more than two-thirds of women in menopause get them. Hot flashes happen when hormonal fluctuations make you suddenly overheat. Your face, neck, and chest flush, and you start sweating.
When hot flashes happen at night, they’re called night sweats. Night sweats can be so intense that they disrupt your sleep and wake you up. You might wake up so sweaty that you need to change your sleeping clothes.
Menopause can affect your sleep patterns, making it more difficult to fall asleep or stay asleep during the night. About 40% of women in menopause experience periods of insomnia, which lowers your ability to sleep soundly and feel rested in the morning.
Many common symptoms of menopause, like night sweats and insomnia, can keep you from getting a restful night’s sleep during menopause. Hormonal changes can also cause chronic fatigue, which makes you feel exhausted even if you do rest. Chronic fatigue is particularly common during the early stages of menopause.
During menopause, hormonal changes also affect the way your vagina feels. Low hormone levels may cause dryness, itching, and discomfort. Vaginal dryness can make it more difficult to get sexually aroused and contribute to pain with sexual intercourse.
Low libido, or sex drive, is a common issue among women in menopause. It’s normal to experience a drop in sex drive, but it can be embarrassing and frustrating. Coupled with vaginal dryness or painful intercourse, these changes can make sex downright unpleasant for many women.
Hormonal imbalance during menopause can affect your mood. You might find yourself feeling irritable or angry more often, and in some cases, menopause can increase your risk of depression. Other menopausal symptoms, like fatigue, can also contribute to mood swings.
Along with sex hormone changes, the hormones that control your metabolism naturally slow down in menopause. Muscle mass starts to decrease too, and these factors increase your risk of gaining weight.
Dr. Sejour and our team know how disruptive menopause symptoms can be. And since perimenopause and menopause can last a decade or longer, we know you need menopause treatment that works.
Some simple lifestyle changes can reduce the severity and duration of many menopausal symptoms. Regular physical exercise offers benefits like:
We help women find ways to get and stay active at every age. Along with regular exercise, eating a healthy diet helps maintain wellness and keep bothersome menopausal symptoms to a minimum.
Hormonal changes are at the root of many menopausal symptoms, and hormone replacement therapy offers a way to balance hormone levels to minimize those symptoms. It may be a good option for you if you find that your life is disrupted by severe menopause symptoms.
Dr. Sejour and our team develop personalized hormone replacement therapy plans for each woman, optimizing the lowest possible dose for the shortest amount of time to make a difference.
Hormone therapy is available in a variety of delivery methods. Oral pills, skin patches, and pellets can help manage symptoms like hot flashes, while topical creams, rings and tablets can improve vaginal dryness and symptoms of sexual dysfunction.
Don’t wait to seek relief from your menopause symptoms. Call our Conroe, Texas, office at 936-441-7100 to schedule an appointment, or send us a message online.
