Menopause

Natural changes can often cause anxiety. Menopause manifests both physiologically and psychologically. However, every woman is individual and therefore menopause is a highly individual experience. Most often the unknown causes the greatest fear. Familiarising yourself with possible symptoms makes this part of life not so frightening.

Menopause is the period from the end of fertility to the end of ovarian function.

This period of time varies for each individual but is usually experienced between the ages of 40 and 58. Menopause can be divided into a few periods. The first two are called premenopause and perimenopause. Some doctors do not distinguish these periods because their boundaries aren’t clearly defined.

The first and most important symptom of premenopause will be irregular periods. Later in the premenopause, the intervals between periods can become around 2-4 months. Ovulation still occurs during this period, even though much less often, and therefore it is still possible to get pregnant during premenopause.

During perimenopause women complain feeling “hot flushes”, when sweating, palpitations and flushing in the face are experienced. These hot flushes often occur at night. Other common symptoms include mood changes, irritability or depression. When the amount of oestrogen in the body is reduced, the amount of vaginal mucus decreases as well, which can cause a sense of dryness and soreness.

Menopause is determined when a woman doesn’t have a period for 12 months. Right after that, the postmenopausal period begins. It is important to note that postmenopausal bleeding from the vagina is abnormal, therefore if any postmenopausal bleeding occurs urgently seek help.

These symptoms can be especially unpleasant and even dangerous to health, but they do not necessarily occur in every woman.

Hair loss and brittle nails. The main cause of these symptoms include a drop in the amount of oestrogen, which is necessary for hair follicle growth. Change in hormone balance leads to disruptions in the transfer of nutrients to nail cells, and as a result, they become soft and dry.

Weight gain. It is not proven that menopause directly causes weight gain, however, hormone changes and physiological and anatomical body changes may have some impact on quicker weight gain.

Emotional disorders. Women during menopause often report constant mood swings. These changes can be attributed to a change in hormonal balance, physiological changes, as well as poorer night’s sleep and fatigue. 

Concentration disorders. Some memory disorders and difficulty concentrating are considered to be features of menopause as well. However, there is no single consensus regarding these concentration disorders. Some scientists have reported this change is due to hormone changes, others have reported it is due to experienced stress.

Osteoporosis. This health condition weakens bones, making them fragile and more likely to break, and is caused by the changes in sex hormones. Oestrogen is important for calcium absorption in the bone tissue, therefore reduced amount of oestrogen causes disruption in bone tissue formation and making bones weaker.

Urinary incontinence. Reduced amount of oestrogen makes the urinary tract wall thinner, which causes frequent and sudden need to urinate. Another especially unpleasant psychological experience is accidental secretion of urine while laughing, coughing or lifting heavy items.

Cardiovascular system problems. Reduced amount of oestrogen has a negative effect on the cardiovascular system and metabolism. Other factors increasing the risk of cardiac diseases include smoking, obesity and high blood pressure.

As mentioned, menopause symptoms are very individual. It is important to note that most of these symptoms mentioned above are easily suppressed. Please refer to Northway Clinic’s gynaecologists and they will suggest the best solution for a full and active life.