The hormonal changes you experience as you approach middle age and menopause can make your life downright miserable. Even more frustrating, the artificial hormone therapy your doctor has placed you on seems to be making no difference whatsoever. Fortunately, there is another way for you to feel better. Menopause and Perimenopause Doctors all specialize in Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy, which means that they replace your depleted hormones with ones that have the same cell structure.

Understanding Menopause

If you’re a woman in your 40s or early 50s who hasn’t completed menopause yet, you have probably noticed numerous changes in your body over the past several years. These changes occur as the result of perimenopause and prepare your body to eventually stop menstruating altogether. According to the National Institute of Aging, the average age of menopause is 51 years old. This is when you go 12 consecutive months without a menstrual period. If you have any amount of menstrual bleeding, the 12-month clock starts over again.

Smoking and certain surgical procedures, such as a hysterectomy or an oophorectomy, cause early menopause because they deprive your body of estrogen. You should see your doctor if you experience any of the following problems rather than just chalking them up to menopause:

  • You experience regular spotting
  • Your periods are closer together than normal
  • You have a period that lasts longer than a week
  • You have extremely heavy bleeding
  • You start bleeding again after having gone more than a year without a period

Although these are usually normal indications of pending menopause, it’s best to rule out other causes before pursuing Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy.

Typical Symptoms of Menopause

There are more than two dozen separate issues that may be caused by declining levels of estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone in menopause. While every woman goes through menopause, some experience few or no symptoms while others can barely function. You may be in menopause or completed it if you recognize several of these symptoms:

Hot flashes and night sweats: Hot flashes occur due to fluctuating levels of estrogen. You feel suddenly flushed with an intense feeling of heat, especially in the face and neck. You may notice red blotches on your arms, back, and chest. Heavy sweating followed by cold chills is common. When hot flashes wake you from sleep, they are called night sweats. Both hot flashes and night sweats last anywhere from 30 seconds to 10 minutes.

Mood swings: You may struggle with anxiety, depression, and irritability for the first time in your life. Little things seem to bother you and life sometimes seems like more trouble than it’s worth. The fatigue caused by hormonal imbalance also contributes to unstable moods.

Less desire to have sex: You find yourself in the mood for intimacy far less often than in the past. This is often due to fatigue, feeling self-conscious about your changing body, or painful intercourse. Vaginal dryness is often an issue as well. This occurs when estrogen slows production and affects moisture production that makes sex pleasurable for you.

Weight gain: You may notice more fat around your midsection, despite eating a healthy diet and continuing to exercise. You also have more difficulty losing weight.

Sleep problems: When night sweats wake you up, it can be difficult to get back to sleep. You may also struggle with insomnia, which is the inability to fall asleep or stay asleep, and sleep apnea, which causes you to gasp for air during your sleep.

How Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy Helps You Thrive During Menopause

You can’t stop the hormonal changes of menopause, but Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy can help make the symptoms less disruptive. After you find a Menopause and Perimenopause Doctors, the next step is to schedule an appointment with him or her for a physical and hormone testing. Your Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy specialist uses the results of these medical tests to create a treatment plan that targets your specific symptoms. Most women report significant improvement in their menopause symptoms within a few weeks of starting Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy. If you’ve had it with menopause running your life and ineffective symptom management, get in touch with one of our Menopause and Perimenopause Doctors today.