How to Cope With Menopause

If you're a woman around age 50 or have had an ovariectomy, you're most likely facing menopause. Although some women breeze through menopause, others experience mood changes, hot flashes, sweats or vaginal dryness.

Difficulty: Moderately challenging

Instructions

1. Research as much as you can about menopause therapies, such as hormone replacement therapy, that reduce symptoms and delay changes brought on by the decline in estrogen and progesterone production. This will help you decide which, if any, are best suited for your needs.

2. Realize that you may have headaches, perhaps even an occasional migraine. Hormonal changes, especially decreases in estrogen levels, may cause vasoconstriction of the blood vessels in your forehead.

3. Understand that menopause lessens the amount of elastin and collagen in the skin. Use lotions and body oils liberally to keep thinning skin supple and hydrated and to reduce the appearance of wrinkles.

4. Prepare yourself for night sweats'hot flashes that occur when you are sleeping. They are more common than hot flashes during the day.

5. Get enough calcium. A woman going through menopause needs 1,200 to 1,500 mg of calcium a day, as does a postmenopausal woman on hormone replacement therapy. Women not on hormone replacement therapy need 1,500mg of calcium per day. Discuss this with your doctor. Remember that vitamin D (or exposure to sunshine) helps your body absorb calcium.

6. Eat a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, which contain an abundance of vitamins B 6 and B 12 , folic acid and certain antioxidants. These can help women through menopause and ease the aging process.

7. Talk to your doctor about eating foods high in phytoestrogens'soy products, flaxseed and some legumes and whole-grain foods. Intestinal bacteria can transform these foods into substances that your body can use to offset menopause-related hormonal depletions.

Tips & Warnings

• Be aware that as female hormone production declines, you are at increased risk for heart disease and osteoporosis. Get a periodic bone-density test as well as cholesterol and blood-pressure screening.
• Many women have had success with homeopathy and acupuncture as alternatives to estrogen replacement therapy. Discuss these and other options with your doctor.
• Consider using hormone creams to relieve vaginal dryness.
• Some menopause therapies are controversial because of potential side effects. Consult your doctor to find out about the risks.
• Too much calcium may cause constipation and kidney stones.
• This information is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice or treatment.

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on 1/25/2008 Regarding menopause and depression...

On Tuesday, January 29, 2008, at 2:00 p.m. ET, Peter Schmidt, M.D., a clinician and an investigator at the National Institute of Mental Health, will answer questions about mood disorders in the perimenopause period, a time of significant changes in women’s lives that can impact mental health, as part of a Society for Women’s Health Research online moderated discussion. Sherry Marts, Ph.D., vice president of scientific affairs for the Society, will participate in the discussion to answer questions about the Society's work in this important area.

Visit this Web site to submit a question/comment beforehand or to find out more about this online discussion:
http://live.womenshealthresearch.org/session/perimenopause-and-mood-disorders.html

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