Until you’ve woken up in the middle of the night soaking wet for no reason, gone from a perfectly good mood to livid in under a minute, and considered stripping off your clothes in the middle of a retail store in public, you probably haven’t experienced menopause.
For those who have been through it or are just at the beginning of their menopause journey, these stories don’t sound so far-fetched. Like many young women love to trade labor and delivery tales, older and middle-aged women will often joke about how they manage the difficult time that is menopause. Here are just a few tips for managing menopause symptoms if they have begun happening to you.
Physical Symptoms
Not much different than puberty or pregnancy, menopause is a perfectly natural part of being a woman that can begin as early as age forty. A condition that shows up when natural hormone balancing becomes difficult for the aging body, the result is a wild ride through moods, physical symptoms, weight gain, hair changes, and more. Things like vaginal dryness, changes in the skin and bone density, and decreased sex drive are just a few of the things that pop up after a year of missed periods and that first hot flash.
But fear not. Because menopause happens to most women as a result of normal aging, there are a variety of treatments to help make these years easier. From testing to treating estrogen and progesterone levels to medications for hormone replacement therapy, there are many options for women in nearly every stage of this natural process. For example, there are plenty of vaginal dryness treatment options both over the counter and as a prescription from your healthcare provider. General use products like lubricants sold over the counter can help with this too and don’t need to be earmarked specifically for more mature women. When in doubt, talk to your health care provider. He or she will know what to do for you.
Mood Swings
One of the biggest symptoms women entering or going through menopause complain about is the mood swings that accompany their lack of interest in sex and other side effects of hormonal imbalances. But again, there are ways to manage this. There is no need to live in discomfort and anyone who believes their moods are dangerous or have just gone too far should see a doctor. Doctors can test for hormone levels in the bloodstream and may be able to help you with the same supplements used for other symptoms and/or prescribe antidepressants to get you through this rocky patch.
Others turn to support groups online and use the stories of other women, often funny, to pull them through a bad mood. There, there are also plenty of resources to manage menopause symptoms in a variety of ways that may work for you. It also helps to know you are going through any of it alone.
Relationships
Relationships with friends and family will be impacted by your changing body and moods. These changes don’t have to be in the wrong direction. An open conversation about what you are going through and leaning on other women who have either been there or are going through it too will go a long way in helping you and your loved ones to understand menopause is only temporary.
As for your partner, he or she may struggle with your low libido. Remind him or her that this is only temporary and consider ways to keep intimacy alive in and out of the bedroom. Sex is not always intercourse. It may even be painful for some who suffer from dryness. Be creative in ways you connect with your partner and work as a team to see this thing through.
Hot Flashes
Perhaps the most talked (and joked) about menopause symptom is the dreaded hot flash. While stories about moments at the mall desperately running out of a store for fresh air can be funny to menopausal women, they certainly aren’t fun during the experience. Again, the great news here is there are tips and tricks for handling that out of the blue hot flash. Finding cold, fresh air like an air conditioner works even in wintertime. So too, do popsicles. Have them on hand at home.
You’d be surprised how fast they can cool you down. Ice chips, wet washcloths, and a cold shower will stop a hot flash in its tracks too. And remind yourself while you are going through it that it will be over soon. Believe it or not, this too shall pass and you will eventually come out on the postmenopausal end of this with stories, laughs, and sympathy for the women working to catch up to you.
