Transition: symptoms and overview

1. Menopause is the farewell to the fertile years of life. Strong hormone fluctuations herald a gradual decline in estrogen. The consequences are drastic: profuse periods, hot flushes, sleeping problems, loss of libido, vaginal dryness, irritability and incontinence are just a few of the symptoms. Menopause begins between the ages of 40 and 50 and ends when menstruation is over. Until then, it is now a matter of time for 1.5 million Dutch women!

Menopause

1. Menopause is the technical name for the last menstrual period, but it is also often used to indicate the years before and after this event. The medical term for the period around the official menopause is also called climacterium

Transitional phenomena

1. The transition is not without a struggle. Almost all women notice physical and mental changes during the transition years. Some of them suffer from annoying and even agonizing symptoms. These can last for months or years, but the intensity varies greatly. Some symptoms can be permanent. Physical phenomena

Menopause and menstruation

1. Missed periods, irregular periods, periods that are too short or too long, light or very heavy menstrual periods: During menopause almost all menstrual problems are normal. You could develop a shorter cycle, say every 24 days instead of 28. Another option is light periods that alternate with strong, frightening periods. The menstrual period can last only two days, or last two weeks, and there can also be major changes in the flow of the blood, which no longer takes place regularly but more in fits and starts. After a number of months of marked changes, the pattern can go back to normal for a short while, and then, for example, skip two periods again, and so on. Any imaginable curious pattern is possible. The changes begin on average around the age of 45, when the initial phase of the menopause, the perimenopause

2. Missed periods, irregular periods, periods that are too short or too long, light or very heavy menstrual periods: Almost all menstrual problems are normal during menopause. You could develop a shorter cycle, say every 24 days instead of 28. Another option is light periods that alternate with strong, frightening periods. The menstrual period can last only two days, or last two weeks, and there can also be major changes in the flow of the blood, which no longer takes place regularly but more in fits and starts. After a number of months of significant changes, the pattern can go back to normal for a while, to skip two periods, for example, and so on. Any imaginable curious pattern is possible. The changes begin on average around the age of 45, when the initial phase of the menopause, the perimenopause

The role of hormones in menstruation

1. Estrogen and progesterone are the main hormones responsible for menstrual menstrual pattern changes. Estrogen is responsible for lining the uterus before ovulation occurs. In perimenopause one often sees an excess of estrogen: An estrogen dominance. This is often because the progesterone level becomes too low. So it is always about the estrogen-progesterone ratio. If there is too much estrogen in the blood, the uterine lining will develop irregularly and heavy bleeding may occur. Progesterone

2. Estrogen and progesterone are the main hormones responsible for the changes in menstrual periods during menopause. Estrogen is responsible for lining the uterus before ovulation occurs. In perimenopause, one often sees an excess of estrogen: An estrogen dominance. This is often because the progesterone level becomes too low. So it is always about the estrogen-progesterone ratio. If there is too much estrogen in the blood, the uterine lining will develop irregularly and heavy bleeding may occur. Progesterone

Hot flushes

1. Decreased estrogen has a direct effect on the hypothalamus, the part of the brain responsible for many things, including body temperature. In the absence of estrogen, this thermostat will

Not in the mood for sex

1. Loss of libido is a complex phenomenon, but in the transition years a normal consequence of an imbalance of the hormone balance due to estrogen deficiency. Estrogen plays an important role in female sexuality because it triggers arousal. In addition, it takes care of the production of vaginal moisture as well as the health of the tissue. Due to a deficiency, the tissues become atrophic: Thinner, drier and less elastic. There is also a decrease in acidity

2. Loss of libido is a complex phenomenon, but in the transition years a normal consequence of an imbalance of the hormone balance due to estrogen deficiency. Estrogen plays an important role in female sexuality because it triggers arousal. In addition, it ensures the production of vaginal moisture as well as the health of the tissue. Due to a shortage, the tissues become atrophic: Thinner, drier and less elastic. There is also a decrease in acidity

Mood swings in transition

1. Hormones, such as estrogen, affect the production of serotonin, which is a mood-regulating neurotransmitter. A lack of this already leads to depressive feelings, but if there is a 'surplus' of progesterone due to a shortage of estrogen, so a disturbance in the balance, then this further increases the serotonin deficiency. Result: Irrationality, irritability, angry moods or a trough of tears. People who are in menopause often no longer have control over their feelings. The mood swings can be intense, sudden and excessive. Sudden tears

2. Hormones, such as estrogen, affect the production of serotonin, which is a mood-regulating neurotransmitter. A lack of this already leads to depressive feelings, but if there is a 'surplus' of progesterone due to a shortage of estrogen, so a disturbance in the balance, then this further increases the serotonin deficiency. Result: Irrationality, irritability, angry moods or a trough of tears. People who are in menopause often have no control over their feelings. The mood swings can be intense, sudden and excessive. Sudden tears

Incontinence and Menopause

1. There are three types of incontinence (urine leakage) that can occur during menopause or earlier. Combinations are also possible. The first is called stress incontinence and occurs with pressure increases such as laughing, coughing, sneezing, lifting something, sports, bending over, etc.The entrance to the bladder suddenly changes position and the muscles are under pressure. When these pelvic muscles are weakened by age, but also by birth or surgery and no longer function properly, amounts of urine can suddenly escape. The second type of incontinence is called urge incontinence

How do you know when the transition has started?

1. When less estrogen is produced, FSH rises

The psychology of menopause

1. Menopause often coincides with a series of other life situations that can especially intensify mental symptoms of menopause. The woman is faced with end, farewell and decline

Early in the transition

1. Not all women enter menopause after the age of 45. Some are more likely to get lost, a lot of them between the ages of 40 and forty-five, but many even before their 40s and a few as early as their 30s. These women usually perceive the transition in a somewhat different way, namely if they want to become pregnant and / or stop the contraceptive pill and do not have a menstrual cycle back. This phenomenon is called Premature Ovarian Failure

Treatment of the menopause?

1. Anyone who finds the menopause unbearable for one reason or another is eligible for hormone supplementation