Symptoms and Treatments for Perimenopuase
Alright ladies, let’s talk hormones - particularly when those hormones start to fluctuate in our late 30’s and early 40’s sending us into perimenopause. This phase of life has gotten a bad reputation due to the symptoms and repercussions of our body's changes. In this post, I hope to help my fellow women surrounding this phase of our lives.
What is Perimenopause?
Perimenopause is the beginning of menopause which is marked by a decrease in estrogen and progesterone levels. These hormones are created and released by your ovaries. Changes in your hormone levels, lead to infrequent ovulation and therefore inconsistent menstrual cycles.
Symptoms of Perimenopause:
Due to changing hormone levels, many women experience symptoms that are similar to PMS (premenstrual syndrome). Other symptoms often include:
Hot Flashes
Mood Changes
Night Sweats
Trouble with Concentration or Memory
Headaches
Vaginal Dryness
Decrease in Libido
Trouble Sleeping
Irregular Menstrual Cycles
Changes in hormones also have side effects that you may not physically notice, such as decreased fertility, changes in cholesterol levels, and loss of bone mass.
How Long Does It Last?
Unfortunately, this one is the real kicker - years. Perimenopause can start anywhere from your mid-thirties to age 50. How long it lasts is mostly genetic and unpredictable. Sorry. Perimenopause ends and menopause begins when you have gone 12 months without a menstrual cycle.
You Don’t Have to Suffer!! There’s Hope!
While all of this seems really bleak, you don’t have to simply succumb to the symptoms of your body’s changes. There are lifestyle changes and treatment options available to decrease and possibly eliminate your symptoms.
Lifestyle Changes to Consider:
Decrease Alcohol and Caffeine Intake- both of these can trigger hot flashes
Switch to High Fiber and Calcium-Rich Foods - a healthy diet helps control weight and maintain bone density.
Exercise Regularly- While walking is great for cardio health - strength training cannot be ignored. At this phase of life, you are losing muscle mass. You need to exercise with weights regularly to build muscle and again help with bone density.
Reduce Stress - Stress can trigger hot flashes and mood swings, along with stress eating.
Treatment Options From Your Doctor:
Fortunately, there has been lots of research in the last couple of decades on hormone treatment options and even non-hormonal therapies. If you find that you don’t feel like yourself or your symptoms are interfering with your life - please see your doctor.
Hormone Therapy - Doctors can prescribe estrogen in the form of pills, gels, creams, patches, or sprays (who knew!). You may also need progesterone depending on your health history. Hormonal treatment can help relieve some of the physical symptoms and help maintain bone mass.
Low-dose Birth Control- This can be a good option if you are in the early years of perimenopause and don’t smoke. It can regulate cycles and estrogen levels, and relieve PMS-like symptoms.
Anti-Depressants- Ceratin anti-depressants have been found to reduce hot flashes as well as help with mood changes.
Holistic Approach:
Along with the above-mentioned lifestyle changes, some choose to take a holistic approach to treatment. Please be advised that while certain supplements can be beneficial to treat symptoms they can also have side effects or interfere with other medications.
Supplements that claim to help with symptoms include:
Ginseng
Wild yam
Black Cohosh
Calcium
Vitamin D
There are no supplements currently FDA-approved for treating symptoms, however that doesn’t mean they don’t help. Here are some other articles on the topic for your research:
https://www.health.com/perimenopause-supplements-8741208
Please speak with your doctor before taking any supplements. I highly recommend working with a licensed integrative or functional medicine doctor if you choose to go this route. I can almost guarantee you that in the long run, it will save you time and money.
