The article is developed in partnership with BetterHelp.
There are many health issues that a woman may experience throughout the course of her life. One of the issues that you may have heard of is menopause. This is a time in a woman’s life in which her menstrual cycle stops, and she may also experience quite a few unwanted symptoms as well. Here’s a look at how to know if it is menopause and what to do when you think you are going through it.
What is Menopause?
Menopause is defined as the end of a woman’s menstrual cycle and occurs once she has not had a period in 12 months. This generally happens around age 50, but it can happen sooner or at a later age, depending on the woman. The time that leads up to this point is also called menopause. Once menopause occurs, a woman will no longer be able to get pregnant.
To read more about menopause, check out this link: https://www.betterhelp.com/advice/menopause. There is further information on symptoms and treatment options to consider.
How to Know if You Are Experiencing Menopause
In addition to the end of a monthly period, there are many symptoms that a woman may express that can provide a clue that menopause is occurring. Keep in mind that every woman is different, so the symptoms and the severity of them will be varied from woman to woman.
Here are a few symptoms you may experience when you are going through menopause. Symptoms can last a number of years and be intense or minor.
• Being unable to sleep
• Chills
• Intense periods of feeling hot
• Excessive sweating
• Dry skin
• Hair loss
• Weight gain
• Moodiness
• Body pains
If you note a few of these symptoms in your life and you aren’t sure of what the cause is, you may want to talk to your doctor. They should be able to inform you whether you are experiencing menopause or not. When this is the case, they can also talk to you about treatment options.
Treatments
There are a few common treatments for menopause that you might want to keep in mind. One is medication. A doctor can recommend medication to help alleviate some of the symptoms you are experiencing. For instance, if you are feeling hot or cold often, this could be the case because of a dip in hormones. Your physician may be able to talk to you about options related to addressing this change in hormones. Additionally, if you have dry skin or hair loss, there are options available to treat these things as well.
For other symptoms, lifestyle changes may be necessary. Perhaps you are unable to sleep at night because you are sweating too much. It might be helpful to keep your room cool and only use one blanket. Besides that, you should consider keeping your bedroom dark, so there’s no light interrupting your sleep cycle when you are trying to get rest.
If you want to work on the changes in your mood, it may be a good idea to speak with a therapist. You can talk to them about what you are going through, which may be able to help you feel more comfortable with the process. For some, the loss of the ability to have children may be overwhelming. Also, experiencing multiple symptoms that impact your life could cause you to become stressed out, which a psychiatrist may also be able to help you alleviate. Be sure to work with a therapist when you want to, as they can lend a hand in a number of ways.
Overview
There are a few symptoms that are common when it comes to menopause, which can provide you with the clues you need to determine if you are experiencing it yourself. If you are, it is important to get checked out by your doctor. They will be able to talk to you about your treatment options or recommend a therapist to work with.