Menopause is when your periods stop due to lower hormone levels. This usually happens between the ages of 45 and 55. Perimenopause is when you have symptoms before your periods have stopped.
Menopause and perimenopause can have a big impact on your life, including relationships and work. The symptoms experienced are different for everyone.
Taking a test will help you understand why you are feeling the way you are. There are treatment options available for troublesome symptoms.
Symptoms can last for months or years and can change with time.
The average age of a person going through natural menopause is 51 years, but it can happen earlier or later. If you’re younger than 45, it is called ‘early menopause’. If symptoms start before the age of 40, it is known as ‘premature menopause’ or ‘premature ovarian insufficiency’ (POI). By the age of 54, 80% of women will have stopped having periods.
In many women, no cause can be found and sometimes it runs in families. If you have had surgery to remove your ovaries this will cause early menopause.
Changes to your periods – they may become irregular and eventually they will stop altogether.
Effect on your well-being: changes in mood are common including low mood, anxiety, mood swings and low self-esteem. There may also be problems with memory and concentration (sometimes called ‘brain fog’).
See our Overview section above for physical symptoms of Menopause.
25% will have no menopause symptoms at all.
75% will have some menopausal symptoms and for 25% of these, symptoms are more severe and are negatively affect their daily life.
The average time a person will experience menopausal symptoms is 7 years.
For some women, symptoms may only last a few months. For others, symptoms can continue for several years. Some women may have early menopause symptoms that start months or years before their periods stop. These are known as peri-menopause symptoms.
There are vaginal moisturisers and lubricants that you can get without a prescription at the pharmacy. There are also other treatments for vaginal dryness that a doctor can prescribe.
The Royal Osteoporosis Society recommends the following to help protect against weakening bones:
One treatment for menopause and perimenopause symptoms is hormone replacement therapy (HRT). This replaces the hormones that are at low levels during menopause.
There are different types and doses of HRT. Using the right dose and type usually means your symptoms improve.
HRT comes as:
The benefit of HRT is that it can relieve most menopause and perimenopausal symptoms including hot flushes, brain fog, joint pains, mood swings and vaginal dryness. It can also reduce the risk of hormone-related health problems including osteoporosis and heart disease. As with all medications, there are some risks of HRT. Your doctor can discuss the benefits and risks with you in greater detail.
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