Perimenopause and Menopause Wellbeing

Did you know?

50% of women in Great Britain aged 45-65 years old go through the menopause without consulting a medical professional - IPOS Mori survey conducted for the British Menopause Society.

What really happens at menopause?

Around the age of 35-40 your body starts to prepare for the menopause, or cessation of periods, and you start to experience hormone changes that can give rise to a myriad of symptoms and it is not unusual to sometimes think that you are going 'crazy' during this time.

Stages of Menopause

Pre-menopause

Often used to describe the whole of a woman's life from her first period to the last one - often occurring around the age of 50.

Perimenopause

When talking about going 'through the menopause' this is really the stage we are talking about. 'Peri' means 'around' - this is the stage leading up to the 'menopause', but can sometimes include the first 12 months after you last period, and can often last between two to six years.

The symptoms you may experience in perimenopause are similar, if not the same, to the menopause but your periods have not stopped. These may become irregular or more frequent depending on hormonal fluctuations, also they may last longer or be shorter as well as an increase or decrease of bleeding.

Exactly when you will start to experience perimenopausal symptoms can be difficult to determine or predict, but you may start to experience subtle hormonal changes from around the age of 40, and this cannot be pre-determined by what age you started having periods, whether you may have been on the pill, or how many times you have been pregnant.

Early onset can be affected by:

• Total hysterectomy (where the ovaries have not been removed) - there may be a 50% chance of going through the menopause within 5 years of surgery.
• Smoking - may be a couple of years earlier than those who do not smoke
• Pregnancy when older
• Sterilization
• Sudden shock or trauma

Some of the Perimenopausal and Menopausal Symptoms include:

• Anxiety / heart palpitations / panic attacks
• Bleeding more or less
• Bloating / sudden weight gain / changes in body shape
• Brain fog / inability to concentrate
• Changes in cycle length
• Confidence changes / lack of or nervousness
• Decreased libido
• Fatigue
• Forgetfulness
• Headaches or worsening of pre-existing migraine episodes
• Hot flushes and night sweats
• Insomnia - disturbed sleep patterns
• Mood swings
• Muscle aches and joint pain
• Urinary incontinence

Menopause

This is the actual point when you have your last ever period and when the ovaries have stopped producing oestrogen and eggs are no longer released.

Post-menopause

This is life beyond your last ever period, but is usually counted from 12 months after the menstrual cycle.

Hormonal changes can affect memory, energy levels and stamina, bone health, hormones, urinary and heart health, increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis and Type 2 diabetes. Regular exercise, alongside a healthy diet can help prevent some of these as well as providing great benefit to help lift your mood, reduce high blood pressure, boost immune function, reduce stress and maintain/improve bone density, whilst helping reduce the risk of breast cancer.

Menopause Wellbeing Treatments

I offer a range of specialist treatment sessions following a holistic perspective in supporting women with menopausal issues, whether that may be with advice and guidance as to how to navigate your experiences, information on the perimenopause and menopause and the varying different stages of transitional change you may be going through, nutrition and supplement guidance, and emotional support.

Help, support and information can be given on:

• What really happens at the menopause
• What are the different stages. i.e., pre-perimenopausal, perimenopausal, etc.
• Symptoms
• Managing symptoms
• Menopause, mood and cognition
• Supporting yourself nutritionally - diet, good foods versus bad foods
• Advice on appropriate health supplements and herbs
• Self-help techniques - including acupressure, for anxiety, irritability, night sweats, depression, panic attacks etc.
• Aromatherapy - how aromatherapy oils can help, what oils to use, and how to use them
• Breathing techniques - how different techniques can be used to help with a variety of symptoms including anxiety and panic attacks
• Bach Flower Remedies - how these can help with mood and emotions, which ones may be best for you
• How to support Adrenal functional
• Bone health
• What do you know abut HRT?