Ahhhh menopause, that beautiful transitional time where you finally enter into later adulthood. Your periods stop overnight, and you finally leap right off the hormonal roller coaster. You’re suddenly calm as a monk, you sleep better than ever, and everything just seems that much easier.
Just kidding! While that’s what some movies and TV commercials would have you believe, the reality of menopause is a lot slower and more frustrating! The truth is, after decades of cramps, bloating, and PMS, the hormonal ride is actually about to get even wilder. When perimenopause starts to hit, you can expect anywhere from a few years to a decade of frustrating symptoms. Luckily, in today’s day and age you don’t have to suffer through your menopause journey with no relief. Here’s how to know when you’re entering menopause and how to ease some of the discomfort.
1. Things are a Little Dry Down There
One of the hallmark signs that your body is shifting into menopause is a change in your natural level of vaginal lubrication. You may start to feel dryer, even when you feel otherwise ready for sexual activity. That dryness can even cause sex to start to feel uncomfortable. In more severe cases, that dryness can lead to itching, tearing, and pain or burning when you urinate. Your vaginal tissues may get thinner, and you may have an increased risk of urinary tract infections.
The reason this happens is that you’re losing estrogen, the hormone responsible for lubricating and thickening the vaginal walls. The first line of treatment is usually a vaginal moisturizer, as well as being sure to stay hydrated. As menopause progresses, you may wish to try hormonal treatments, like estrogen creams, suppositories, or oral medications. It’s also important to be open with sexual partners about what does and doesn’t feel comfortable for you.
2. Your Libido is Lower
Speaking of sexual partners, you may be noticing you have less interest in sex, or get less pleasure from it. Maybe you’ve lost your spark, and the things or people that used to excite you don’t anymore. Or maybe you’re feeling more discomfort or suffering from embarrassing symptoms, like incontinence, and just can’t get there mentally. Whatever the case may be, a lower libido is often a good indication that you’re entering menopause.
Lubricants, moisturizers, and hormones can help, and there are some newer medications designed to boost libido during menopause. Additionally , for many women, a combination of nutritious food, exercise, and sleep can make a positive difference. It’s also important to note that your body might like different things than it did before this transition. Try working with your partner, a counselor, or on your own to find out what feels pleasurable to the new you.
3.You’ve Been Having Hot Flashes
Hot flashes are perhaps the most telltale, stereotypical sign of menopause, and they’re exactly what they sound like. Out of nowhere, you get flushed, break out in a sweat, and feel like you’ve been zapped by an invisible sauna ray. When hot flashes happen at night, they’re often called night sweats, and they can interfere with sleep and sex. Besides low libido and low lubrication, they’re another contributing factor to changes in your love life during menopause.
Estrogen therapy is considered an effective treatment for hot flashes by menopause specialists, but not everyone can take hormones. There are also a handful of other prescription medications that can help. Researchers are currently looking into a nerve block treatment, involving injections that could help prevent hot flashes. Eating certain foods, like calcium and phytoestrogens, and avoiding triggers like alcohol and spicy foods can also help.
4. You’re Moody or Aren’t Sleeping as Well
Night-time hot flashes, aka night sweats, can disrupt your sleep during menopause — but they aren’t the only reason you might be up at night. Many women experience insomnia during menopause, and wake up late at night or have trouble falling asleep. Sometimes, this insomnia is explained by other factors like stress, anxiety, or depression. Hormonal changes during menopause can cause or aggravate mental health symptoms, irritability, and mood swings.
Hormonal medications may help with these symptoms, for some people, while for others they may make them worse. Antidepressants, anti anxiety medications, mood stabilizers, and other mental health medications may also help . For trouble sleeping, you can try taking over-the-counter supplements like melatonin and L-theanine. However, the best relief from sleep issues often comes from diet, exercise, and a healthy lifestyle.
5. Your Periods Aren’t as Predictable
The last time you skipped a period, you started wondering if Brad from the football team would clean up his act and make a decent father. Since then, Aunt Flo has come like clockwork — up until these last few months. As the body enters menopause (technically, perimenopause, at this point), you’ll likely have fewer or less regular periods. Eventually, you’ll stop getting your period entirely for a full year, the clinical criteria for menopause.
Some women may choose to start hormone replacement therapy to regulate their periods during menopause.
Easing the Transition
Menopause isn’t easy, but once you know the symptoms and treatments, it can be much more manageable. The hardest part, for many women, is that no one talks about it, and they feel like they have to do it alone. The good news about menopause is that there’s actually no shortage out there of other women to empathize with you. Reach out and talk to your mother, your best friend, your boss, and even that neighbor with the rival hydrangeas — they’ve probably been through it.
