Menopause. What is it ?
The menopause is not a disorder, but instead a time of physical change defined medically as the end of menstruation. Coming to terms with the feeling that the child-bearing years are now over, and moving on into a new phase in life, can also mean a good deal of emotional adjustment. Some women are delighted to be free at last from menstruation, pre-menstruation syndrome, pregnancies, worries over contraception and the hard physical work of bringing up young children, yet others are sad to have come to the end of their fertility and youth.
The list of possible menopausal symptoms is long, but a woman may only find they are troubled only briefly by one or two of them, and between 25 and 50% of all women experience no unpleasant symptoms at all.
The symptoms that are experienced can include:
Hot flushes
Dryer vagina
Dryer facial skin and hair.
Night sweats and insomnia.
Anxiety, irritability, tiredness and depression.
Poor memory and concentration.
Decreased libido and painful intercourse.
Breasts becoming smaller.
Unwanted body hair growth.
Joint pains.
Urinary problems.
Prolapse of the womb.
Onset of osteoporosis: a degenerative, fragile bone disorder.
Causes.
The average age when women reach menopause is 51. The time period leading up to menopause (the climacteric) lasts for, on average, 10 to 15 years, during which a woman’s ovaries gradually cease producing oestrogen. It is her slowly dropping oestrogen levels which produce most of the physical and some of the psychological symptoms she might experience during this time.
Osteoporosis which affects one in three women may begin now because of the drop in oestrogen levels. Oestrogen has a protective effect on the bones and as levels of the hormone drop, calcium is then lost from the bones. This loss is the heaviest during the first 5 years after the menopause is complete. Oestrogen also gives a woman protection against heart disease.
Orthodox treatment of menopause.
The most common treatment for menopause is HRT, This medication is only suitable for women who no longer have a womb, because the continued regular monthly thickening of the womb lining without the protective effect of added progesterone can encourage the development of cancer in that area. If a woman is taking HRT, she will need to have six monthly blood pressure checks and yearly breast / pelvis check-ups, and to examine her own breasts each month. the positive effects of HRT, include:
Cessation of most menopausal symptoms.
Protection against heart disease.
Increased wellbeing, energy and a higher sex drive than before.
However and as with any drug there are unwanted side effects, there is also more than one type of HRT available and many doctors are not sufficiently familiar with the different formulations of HRT available to get around the (sometimes temporary) side effect problems that can occur and these include:
Nausea.
Mood swings.
Weight gain.
Irritability.
Tender, enlarged breasts.
Abdominal cramps.
Return of menstruation and ore-menstrual syndrome symptoms if a woman is taking progesterone as well.
Menopausal symptoms are also treated purely symptomatically by orthodox medicine and such treatments include.
Anti-depressants for depression.
Mild tranquilizers for anxiety.
Topical oestrogen cream for vaginal dryness.
Calcium supplementation.
Dietary and exercise advice to help prevent osteoporosis.
Sleeping pills for insomnia.
Diuretics and dietary advice for weight gain.
Pessaries and /or a course of pelvic exercises with physiotherapy to treat prolapse problems.
Alternatively you can go drug free and there are many natural medicine styles that can and do treat menopausal symptoms, such as: Western herbal medicine, Homeopathy, Aromatherapy, Acupuncture, Nutritional advice, Osteopathy and many more.
At Acu-Care Naturopathics, I regularly treat menopausal symptoms using a combination of homeopathy western herbal medicine, supplements, nutritional advice and of course acupuncture.
regardless of your medically diagnosed condition natural medicine has something to offer either as a stand alone treatment or as complementary treatment along side orthodox treatment.
The Acu-Care Naturopathic clinic is suitably located for many of Perth’s suburbs and is particularly handy for; Belmont, south perth, vic park, lathlain, Carlisle, kewdale, rivervale, redcliffe, and cloverdale.
To find out more about acupuncture and how it can help you call 9478-1415 or better still make an appointment today.
Best of health
Paul Neilson