Menopause is a normal part of the aging process for people who menstruate, marking the end of their periods and fertility. A decrease in the sex hormones estrogen and progesterone are responsible for menopause and the unpleasant side effects that come with it.
Hot flashes, vaginal dryness, and a low libido are some of the symptoms you may experience before and during menopause. Though type and severity vary, some people find their menopausal symptoms disruptive to their daily life. But there’s no need to suffer.
At Weston Medical Health & Wellness in Weston, Florida, our medical director and board-certified internal medicine physician, Dr. Andrea Bretal, offers hormone therapy as a treatment for menopausal symptoms.
Here, we want to talk about menopause, how it may affect your physical and emotional well-being, and what you can do about it.
About menopause
Menopause, sometimes called the change of life, is when you no longer menstruate. You officially reach menopause when you go one full year without your period. At this stage of your life, your ovaries make very little estrogen and progesterone, which are the sex hormones that control your menstrual cycle.
Though menopause has a defined start date, it doesn’t happen all at once. Before your period stops, you go through perimenopause, a transitional period of time when sex hormone production fluctuates.
Many of the symptoms associated with menopause start during this transitional period. Many women start perimenopause in their mid-40s and may remain in this stage for several months or years. The average age that menopause begins for American women is 51.
Symptoms: What to expect
Everyone’s menopause experience is different. Some people have sudden and severe symptoms, while others have mild symptoms they barely notice.
Common menopausal symptoms include:
- Hot flashes
- Night sweats
- Vaginal dryness
- Pain during vaginal intercourse
- Urinary incontinence
- More frequent urinary tract infections (UTIs)
- Hair thinning
- Problems sleeping
- Low energy
- Irritability
Hot flashes are the most common symptom, affecting about 75% of women during menopause. Hot flashes are a sudden warming sensation in the face, neck, and chest that lasts 1 to 5 minutes. You may also sweat, feel anxious, and have an increased heart rate during a hot flash.
Treatment for menopause symptoms
Not all women need treatment for their menopause symptoms. However, if your symptoms are severe and disruptive to your life, you have many options.
Hormone therapy is a medical treatment for menopause that restores hormone balance to relieve symptoms. Hormone therapy also protects bone health and may lower your risk of osteoporosis. Hormone therapy is customized to match your needs and comes in many forms, including tablet, skin patch, and injection.
Hormone therapy isn’t recommended if you have a history of heart disease, breast cancer, or blood clots.
If you’re not a candidate for hormone therapy, there are nonhormonal options to relieve symptoms like hot flashes (low-dose antidepressant or gabapentin) and vaginal dryness (over-the-counter water-based vaginal lubricants).
If you’re looking for a more natural approach, come in for an evaluation, and our functional medicine expert may provide some suggestions, like herbal supplements, stress-management therapies, and diet modifications.
Are your menopausal symptoms disrupting your life? There’s no need to suffer because we can help. Call our office today at 954-466-9679 or request a telehealth appointment online.