Menopause Symptoms and How to Face Menopause and Its Symptoms

It's a fact that every woman faces at some time or other in her life - menopause or "the change". Menopause represents going from a reproductive phase to a non reproductive phase and the menopause symptoms and how to face menopause and its symptoms are of immediate concern to women going through this phase.

Menopause symptoms vary from woman to woman. Menopause is different for each woman but the usual symptoms include hot flashes, mood swings, vaginal dryness, fatigue, hair and skin changes, menopause weight gain, etc. Long term issues include osteoporosis and vascular and heart disease.

The transition to menopause or perimenopause involving the change in reproductive life involves the experience of menstrual cycles that are shorter or longer than usual which results from the significant fluctuations of the secretion of ovarian hormones during this time. The transition usually begins at 47.5 but can be as early as the late thirties or early forties. This varies women to women.

You may have asked yourself, if I have to go through this unpleasant phase, how long does menopause last? Perimenopause lasts for an average of 4 to 8 years. Women will experience emotional and physical changes for a number of years before they reach menopause. Menopause is the period from the last menstrual cycle and the twelve months after this last period. This usually occurs at about 51 years of age.

The length that menopause symptoms last vary from woman to woman and are due to the changes in hormones and the imbalance in the body.

Mood swings affect approximately 10% of the women going through this transition. These mood swings are characterized by drastic changes in mood over a very short time period such as laughing one minute then crying or yelling next and then falling into a depression the very next moment. A lot of these women seek solutions from traditional medicine however, more and more women are looking to natural or holistic remedies for these mood swings.

Less than 10% of women go through menopause without having some change in their menstrual cycle. Besides periods being shorter or longer than usual, the blood flow may become lighter or heavier. Birth control is usually prescribed to cause periods to become more regular.

One of the most taxing symptoms are the hot flashes experienced during this period. These begin either during the pre-menopausal stages of peri menopause or after the woman has her last menstruation. When the hot flash starts, women may feel tense, agitated, anxious and unsettled as well as have heart palpitations.

Hot flashes are usually at their worst during the first year following the last menstrual cycle. The physical manifestation of the hot flash is the skin turning pink or red as well as sweating. The severity varies from mild to very severe and some women may experience chills soon after the hot flash.

A lot of women experience the majority of their hot flashes at night which may lead to insomnia while other women experience difficulty sleeping even without hot flashes. Most women will sleep for a few hours, wake up and not be able to go back to sleep. Some women also complain about having difficulty concentrating, short term memory loss during the transition which may be due to lower estrogen level although others think that this is due to the aging process.

This transition is very stressful and affects women differently. Some women will show all the signs of menopause while others will only experience mild symptoms. It is important for each woman going through the transition to find ways to alleviate her symptoms and enjoy a full and productive life during and after menopause.