Everyone who has ovaries will eventually experience menopause. For women who go through menopause naturally, it’s when you stop menstruating because your ovaries gradually stop producing hormones like estrogen and progesterone. For women who experience surgical menopause, these hormonal changes happen a lot more suddenly.
There’s a dearth of negative connotations associated with menopause. However, if you look at the brighter side of it, you may be excited for this new phase of life. Menopause is inevitable. So, whether you’re looking forward to it or dreading it, it’s important that you understand what’s going on. Here are a few things you should know about the stages of menopause.
Perimenopause Is the Beginning of the End (Of Your Period)
Perimenopause is sometimes referred to as premenopause. However, the latter could technically be any time prior to the cessation of menstruation. The “peri” prefix, which has a range of meanings, including “about,” “near,” and “around,” is a more apt description.
This initial stage generally begins in a three to five-year period before your period ends. For most women, it occurs in their middle to late 40s. However, different women will begin experiencing it at different times.
Hormonal production begins to vary, particularly that of estrogen and progesterone. This is what normally keeps your menstrual cycle on schedule. So, you may experience irregular periods and mood swings, among other events.
You may also begin suffering from more frequent and severe urinary tract infections. One reason for the increased risk for UTIs is that the urethra and bladder linings begin to thin with lower estrogen levels. The thinning leaves you more susceptible to growth of harmful bacteria that causes UTIs.
You may want to consider taking a daily UTI supplement to help keep bacteria from sticking to your bladder. It could help you break the infection-antibiotic cycle you would otherwise experience.
As you start to deal with the symptoms of menstrual cycle change, control the ones you can. That includes using contraception unless you want to get pregnant. Perimenopausal women can have healthy babies, although the risk of complications is higher. Talk to your doctor if you want to take one last shot at conception during perimenopause.
Menopause Is the Thick of It
Menopause is the absence of menstruation for 12 months. There are other reasons your period may cease for this length of time, such as pregnancy, illness, or certain medications. Absent those, you have reached the menopause milestone and pregnancy is no longer an option.
Just as the age of women starting their periods varies widely, so does the age they reach menopause. It’s usually between ages 45 and 55 or after undergoing hysterectomy. It’s recommended that women still having periods in their late 50s or early 60s consult a doctor. Late-onset menopause is associated with higher risks of ovarian, uterine, and breast cancer.
In this stage, your ovaries stop releasing eggs, heralding the end of ovulation. Your ovaries also stop producing estrogen and progesterone. It’s during this time that those oft-dreaded symptoms you’ve heard about begin to occur. Not every woman will suffer from vaginal dryness, mood swings, and hot flashes. But they are quite common.
Most menopausal women experience night sweats. These can cause sleep disturbances, which can lead to anxiety, depression, and elevated risks of heart disease, diabetes, and other conditions. You may reduce their impact by sleeping in a cooler room and using cooling pillows, mattresses, and linens. You should also watch triggers like caffeine, alcohol, spicy foods, smoking, and exercise too close to bedtime.
The lack of estrogen can increase the risk of medical conditions, such as osteoporosis, heart disease, and stroke. The osteoporosis threat comes from the thinning of bones. The others may be associated with the thickening of fat around the midsection. If your symptoms are extreme, you may want to discuss the pros and cons of hormone replacement therapy with your doctor.
You may also notice increased facial hair during menopause. That’s because the estrogen-to-testosterone production ratio has changed. On the flip side, you’ll be shaving your legs and pits less often. That’s something to look forward to.
Postmenopause Is Forever
You remain in the postmenopausal stage for the rest of your life. The good news is that the older you get, the less volatile symptoms like hot flashes and night sweats are. They decrease in frequency and severity over time. Facial hair growth tends to lessen as well.
However, the increased risks of medical conditions due to a lack of estrogen don’t lessen. At this stage, diet and exercise become extremely important to lowering cholesterol and blood pressure and increasing bone density. Even if you’ve always been healthy, you may find your healthcare provider prescribing blood pressure medication or a statin.
The increase in fat, particularly in the midsection, is a real thing. So is the loss of muscle. Diet and exercise regimens that worked for you for decades won’t yield the same results. The only way to lose that expanded belt line is to lose fat everywhere.
The weight and size increase can be physically and mentally devastating to many women. With age, you may think you can cut back on exercise and eat what you want. However, your doctor may be telling you the opposite to avoid dangerous physical diagnoses and depression.
But if you’re a glass-half-full kind of person, there are benefits. There are no more risks of unexpected spotting, cramps, or PMS. Use the money you’re saving by not buying tampons, napkins, and birth control to buy something you really want. And while you may need to invest in a dermaplaning tool, you’ll need far fewer razors.
It’s true that you’re stuck with postmenopause. But you can also enjoy some liberation from a lifetime of menstruation.
Take the Stage (in Stride)
Shakespeare wrote that “All the world’s a stage,” but he was a guy. Women need three stages to act their way through menopause. Every script will be a little different. But knowing something about the beginning, middle, and end will improve your performance.