Menopause and the Transitions Women Face During This Time Period

¶ … transitions and symptoms that menopause can cause. The writer also explores things that can be done to ease the transition of menopause. There were five sources used to complete this paper.

When mankind was created, somebody made a mistake. As it stands menopause hits women right about the time that her children enter their late teen years. What a recipe for disaster. Menopause is a process that is either reached naturally, or induced artificially, but sooner or later every woman has to go through it. Menopause impacts different women in different ways. While one woman may have many bothersome symptoms that last for years, another woman may have a few symptoms that last a short while. Menopause is something that marks the end of the childbearing years, but also provides a new phase of life that can be fulfilling and fun.

Before one can begin to understand the total impact that menopause has on a woman it is important to understand that menopause is not a single event, but a transition filled with many different elements. The process of menopause is the process of the ovaries ceasing to produce enough estrogen to maintain the menstrual cycle. This means that eggs stop being dropped and bleeding ceases to occur as well (Kieren, 1995).

Using this purely physiological referent, all women can be placed in either a pre-menopausal or a post-menopausal category. While the median age of last menses in industrialized nations is 51 years, the range is from 41-59 (Stanford, Hartge, Brinton, Hoover & Brookmeyer, 1987). After 12 months of amenorrhea (no menstruation) it is assumed that ovulation has ceased. The post-menopausal state continues throughout the remainder of a woman's life (Kieren, 1995)."

Until recently, literally nothing was known about how the majority of women managed menopause successfully (Kieren, 1995)."

Today however, there is much more information that is known and it is no longer viewed as a disease, but is now known as a process.

Menopause affects more than 43 million American women today. While the entire process is talked about more openly than it has been in the past there are still mysteries and questions surrounding its process and outcome (Hittner, 1993).

SYMPTOMS

There are many symptoms of menopause that are experienced by the rare individual. There is much controversy if certain things such as heart rate issues are actually related to menopause. While some symptoms are still open for debate, there is also a list of symptoms that are common to the process.

Hot flashes are one of the most well-known symptoms of menopause. Hot flashes occur because the hormone levels drop dramatically and quickly and cause the pores of the skin to open which in turn cause a warming sensation.

It's possible to get flashes even before your periods end, during the so-called transitional phase of "perimenopause (Hittner, 1993)."

While hot flashes are one of the more well-known symptoms of menopause all women going through menopause do not experience them. Current studies conclude that about 70% of women experience hot flashes enough to note them as a bothersome symptom. That means that 30% of women never have a hot flash. Hot flashes are not dangerous nor do they affect the health of the person who has them. They are merely bothersome and stop once the woman gets through the transition of menopause (Hittner, 1993).

But for an unlucky minority, these upper body heat waves may strike 50 times a day, often worsening at night (Hittner, 1993)."

Osteoporosis is another concern of women who are going through menopause. Studies have concluded that women have a higher risk for it to occur while going through and after menopause. What causes it to happen is the loss of estrogen, though many people have the misconception that it is a problem related to aging. It is actually a problem related to menopause.

Osteoporosis is the major culprit behind broken hips in elderly women, often causing permanent loss of independence and sometimes death (Hittner, 1993)." This makes it one of the most serious problems related to menopause.

Another serious symptom that is related to menopause is heart disease. Research has proven that estrogen is a natural protector from heart disease. As estrogen decreases, the risk of heart disease increases.

Ten years after menopause, a woman's risk of developing heart disease is nearly equal to a man's risk (Hittner, 1993)."

Women who are going through menopause also have trouble sleeping many times. The cases of insomnia are well noted as one of the most common problems women endure for the years of menopause transition.

Other less common symptoms of menopause include problems with sexual satisfaction, and the instance of depression. While severe depression is not related to menopause most of the time, mild or chronic instances of depression are often caused by the transition and chemical changes. The realization that one can no longer get pregnant may also contribute to the rise in depression reported.

THINGS THAT CAN BE DONE

There are several things that can be done to help ease the transition of menopause. Hot flashes are almost always eased by estrogen treatment. The doctor can prescribe or suggest it to the patient. For the insomnia warm milk is often helpful, but if it gets where it is interfering with the woman's ability to function, the doctor can prescribe a mild, as needed sleep aid.

Depression is something that is handled through walking and exercise and making sure one gets proper nutrition and rest. If these measures do not work it is important to contact professional assistance as it can be eased through the use of therapy, medication or a combination of both.