Most Common 10 Menopause Symptoms

Menopause symptoms explained

Women all over the world try and learn more about menopause and the health problems that result from menopause. However, menopause is just a certain point of time when women have not had their menstrual period for 12 months. It is in the period leading up to menopause when most women experience the effects of hormone fluctuations. This is called perimenopause or pre-menopause, and it could last from 2 years to 15 years or more. Therefore, although menopause generally strikes around the age of 50-52 years, pre-menopause symptoms start several months or years before.

Before exploring menopause symptoms in detail, it is necessary to understand why these symptoms occur in the first place.

Throughout life, the human body strives to achieve hormonal balance. This is the natural state. However, during perimenopause, the amount of estrogen and progesterone produced in the body falls. This leads to hormonal imbalance which in turn causes menopause symptoms. Loss of estrogen and falling progesterone levels are believed to cause most of the symptoms associated with menopause.

Premenopause symptoms:

Most women know some of the menopause symptoms like irregular bleeding, hot flashes and so on. However, many of them are surprised when they learn the complete spectrum of menopause symptoms. Some of the most common menopause symptoms are:

• Irregular periods
  
• Loss of regular sleep
• Fatigue
• Low energy levels
• Loss of libido
• Food cravings
• Mood swings, irritability, anger and anxiety
• Loss of concentration
• Hot flashes
• Weight gain

Hot flashes:

This is the most common menopause symptom and it is believed that more than 75% of women experience it at the time of menopause. Commonly, the hot flash is experienced as a feeling of warmth spreading over the body for 30 seconds or more. This is accompanied by palpitations, flushed skin and sweating. Hot flashes increase the pulse rate and elevate the temperature of the skin. They can also be the leading cause of insomnia in menopausal women.

Weight gain:

Most women find themselves gaining weight around the waist when they approach menopause. Often, weight management techniques that have worked well for years start failing. In addition to this, some women also experience sudden food cravings for carbohydrates and fats. Hormones play a vital role in metabolism and fat deposition. Therefore, fluctuating hormone levels lead to weight gain and the development of the ‘apple’ body.

Mood swings:

Pre-menopause is an emotional rollercoaster ride for most women. Mood swings may be defined as rapidly changing moods when people experience dramatic shift in their moods. Women experience mood swings during their menopause because of fluctuating hormone levels. Hormones are responsible for regulating moods. Mood swings may manifest as irritability, unexplained tears, listlessness, aggression, lack of patience, anxiety, depression or nervousness.

Irregular periods:

Declining levels of hormones in the body trigger irregular periods. Unfortunately, in addition to these underlying hormonal causes, physical and emotional factors worsen the problem of irregular periods in women.

Loss of sleep:

Menopause can trigger the onset of sleep problems like insomnia and sleep apnea. The lack of proper sleep has a cascading effect as it triggers other problems such as low energy levels, lack of concentration, fogginess and mood swings.

Some of the other lesser known menopause symptoms include headache, thinning of hair, dryness of facial skin, vaginal dryness, heart palpitations, problems in digestion and urinary dysfunction.

More than 80% of women around the world experience symptoms of hormonal imbalance because of two reasons: the extraordinary demands placed on the body, and the lack of sufficient support. That said, it must be remembered that all women do not experience all the menopause symptoms listed above. Some women experience some symptoms more than others while in a small minority of cases, the transition from pre-menopause to menopause takes place without incident.

Many women worry about menopause symptoms. Fortunately, it is possible to find relief from menopause symptoms by restoring hormonal balance naturally. When this is done, menopause becomes a liberating experience.

Tagged with: hormonal imbalance • hot flashes • Irregular periods • mood swings • most common menopause symptoms • premenopause symptoms • sleeplessness • weight gain

Filed under: Menopause Symptoms

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