Menopause is the period of 12 months when the woman doesn’t have a menstrual cycle. Many women start to notice signs of menopause in their 40’s. Usually the signs they’re encountering are changing moods, hot flashes, as well as changing their usual menstrual cycle. This is the period that’s called perimenopause, when the ovaries in the woman’s body begin to wane, and the estrogen levels are decreasing.
Here are the common signs and symptoms that women approach when the cycle of menopause starts.
1. Changes in Menstrual Cycle
For many women, the first sign of the perimenopause is the length of the menstrual cycle. At the first menstrual cycle will be longer than they’re used to, while the next period most of the women will experience shorten menstrual cycle. That is normal, and it means that the ovaries do not ovulate (produce eggs) very often.
If you had a menstrual cycle that was correct to day, every month you’ll notice these changes immediately, but if you had irregular periods, even back then it’s not going to hit hard once you notice these changes in your body. The thing is, every woman experiences differently, these changes, for some women they’re very obvious and for some are more subtle. Finally, it’s important here to note that you can get pregnant during this period, because the ovaries still produce eggs, just not very often.
2. Hot Flashes
Hot flashes are the most common symptoms experienced by women in perimenopause. The “hot flashes” are described as a warm flush in the body that firstly starts in the face and neck area and then moves down to the body. Also, this is variable, because some women experience it like the description we wrote, but other may notice these changes in a very subtle way.
The good news is that the hot flashes will get better with time. They can happen in five years, but the intensity will go away with time, and also some women may experience getting hot flashes even after the menopause but milder.
3. Vaginal Symptoms
This is the period when vaginal dryness happens, and this can be noticed during an intercourse which can be painful, because the vaginal walls become thinner and less elastic from the loss of estrogen in the body.
In addition to vaginal itching and dryness, a woman may experience frequent urinary tract infections as the lining of the urinary tract also thins in response to the deficit of estrogen.
While the most symptoms of the menopause get better with time, vaginal dryness unfortunately gets worse with time. Luckily, there is a wide range of therapies that women can use to treat this uncomfortable symptom, there are many vaginal moisturizers to non-hormonal and hormonal medical therapies.
It’s really important to note that as time passes, women are less and less interested in sexual intercourse. Changes in libido may go unnoticed, but the intercourse becomes a sort of painful, and the orgasms are not intense or missing.
4. Changes in Mood
Some women experience changes in mood, and may describe them as feeling angry, irritable, anxious, sad, depressed, and discontented. Mood problems are affecting relationships and work performance, this is the least wanted symptoms in the menopause cycle.
Experts are not entirely sure why some women have more difficult experiences with the mood changes in the menopause cycle and others don’t. They mention that maybe their mourn to the loss of the menstrual cycle and the fact that they cannot have children anymore may strengthen the mood changes because it’s hard for them to accept that their bodies are growing old. Some women are accepting it so they can bear much better with the changes that their body makes during this period, also changes in their mood. Also, perimenopause may occur in a very difficult period of time when they experience loss of their partner, whether it’s death or divorce, or generally go through a very hard time in their lives. Those kinds of situation may work very difficult with the symptoms of the menopause.
5. Changes in Sleep Patterns
Losing sleep is a very common complaint when it comes to women as they approach the menopause. There are many reasons that you may lose sleep in this period, whether it’s the hot flashes, the mood occurs, or simply the stress you experience. Frequent nighttime awakenings are going to happen in this period, also connected with leg cramps. There are possible remedies for this symptom, but it’s best to contact your doctor at this point. We do not recommend getting sleeping pills at your own hand.
6. Changes in Appearance
There are many other potential signs that may occur when a woman approaches menopause, and changes in appearance also come on the way. They very likely stem from the hormonal changes and less ovulation from the ovaries.
This includes:
- Hair Loss
- Aging Skin (wrinkles, dry skin)
- Expanding waistline due to the redistribution of fat in the body
- Acne
A journey to menopause varies for every woman, and every woman experiences menopause and perimenopause differently because everybody is unique and different. Be reassured though that those hot flashes and mood changes will get better.
Even so, there are medical treatments that you may discuss them with your doctor – you deserve to feel well. Try to embrace this transition the best you can, and don’t forget that you have support on your way.