The reproductive period in women begins with the onset of menstruation at puberty and ends at menopause. Menopause, which is considered to start when a woman does not have a period for 12 months, is mostly seen between the ages of 44 and 55. However, the onset of menopause can occur before or after this age range.
What is Menopause? What are the Periods?
Menopause, which has an extremely important place in women's life, is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO, WHO) as the permanent cessation of the menstrual cycle with the end of ovarian activities. The age of onset of menopause, which is not related to the age of the person's menarche (first menstruation), is mostly related to genetic and environmental factors.
Menopause, which is divided into three different periods as premenopause, menopause and postmenopause, causes symptoms such as hot flashes, night sweats, vaginal dryness, decreased libido, and dry skin. Before moving on to the symptoms of menopause, it should be well understood what menopause is.
Every woman is born with a certain egg reserve. In other words, the female body cannot produce the egg, which is the reproductive cell. During the menstrual cycle, which occurs regularly every month with the effect of increasing hormones starting from the puberty period, some of the follicles in which the female eggs are found mature.
While the healthiest of the matured eggs are thrown into the fallopian tubes, which act as a bridge between the uterus and the ovaries, the other follicles deflate and these dysfunctional eggs are absorbed by the body. This decrease in ovarian follicles also leads to a decrease in estrogen hormone. In addition to estrogen, there is a decrease in progesterone, testosterone, FSH, (follicle stimulating hormone) and LH (luteinizing hormone). The menopause period, which is one of the important turning points in a woman's life, can be defined as the cessation of menstruation and the end of fertility. However, in order to be able to talk about the onset of menopause, the person must not have menstrual bleeding for a year. When the menopause period, which is generally expected to be between the ages of 44 and 55, will begin mostly depends on the genetic characteristics of the person.
Besides the genetic structure Ra, race, malnutrition, number of births, operations, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, smoking, vegetarian diet, being extremely thin and socioeconomic level are among the factors that play a role in the decrease in the age of menopause. The menopause process is examined in three different periods. This process, which can also be defined as the pre-menopausal period, begins in the years before the person's last menstrual period. During this period when ovulation continues, the function of the eggs decreases. In this process, the person may become pregnant, albeit with a low probability. The perimenopause period, which usually lasts for 4 years, ends after the person does not have a menstrual period for 12 months, and then the menopause period begins. Accordingly, fertility also comes to an end.
What are the Symptoms of Menopause?
A person can understand that he will enter menopause based on the symptoms that occur in his body. The heaviness or prolongation of menstrual periods and the irregularity of these periods are the harbingers of menopause. During menopause, many physical and psychological changes occur in the person.
Flushing, night sweats, palpitations, dizziness, ligament pain, weakness, breast tenderness, muscle and joint pains, sleep disorders, increased appetite, increased body hair, weight gain, sexual organ withdrawal (atrophy), urinating during coughing Incontinence, vaginal dryness, and pain during intercourse are common physical changes. This situation, which causes the person to think that he is getting old, has nothing to do with old age. This change, which is mostly psychological, is caused by anxiety disorder, depression. Symptoms such as forgetfulness, tantrums, lack of concentration, decreased sexual desire and excessive crying in the face of simple situations may also accompany. Due to this shrinkage, complaints of itching in the vulva, frequent urination, urinary incontinence, sagging bladder, uterine prolapse, constipation and painful sexual intercourse can be seen. While there is a decrease in armpit and genital area hair, there may be hair in the face, chin, lips and chest area.
Slowing the metabolic rate during menopause can lead to weight gain. In addition, the risk of heart diseases such as arteriosclerosis and hypertension increases in menopause.
Why Psychology is Important During Menopause?
Menopause, which is known as a period that is easy to say but difficult to live, is a result of the ovaries losing their functions to a large extent. It refers to a period seen in women with the end of menstrual bleeding.
In the menopause period, which is generally seen between the ages of 45 and 50 in women, pregnancy does not occur because there is no ovulation anymore. This is related to the decreasing hormonal levels with age and the decreasing number of eggs. In the period before menopause, conditions such as intermittent bleeding, long bleeding periods and discharges that may accompany it, such as hot and hot flashes, breast tenderness, mental changes, and prolongation of menstrual periods may be encountered.
Due to the decrease in estrogen in menopause, the thickness of the uterus becomes very thin. For this reason, doctors want to follow this area absolutely. Changes here can be seen with ultrasound during the transition to menopause and may indicate some diseases that require treatment. During this period, the eggs will no longer produce follicles. Therefore, cysts that develop in the ovaries after menopause are considered abnormal.
Due to the irregularity of ovulation during the transition to menopause, functional cyst development in eggs is quite common. Sometimes cysts can be seen due to the development of the eggs but not cracking. A significant part of this type of physiological cysts are followed and disappear over time. Uterine tumors, fibroids, which become more common as age progresses, hormone secretion in the period before menopause. While they can grow depending on their skin, there is absolutely no growth in them after menopause.
For this reason, your doctor always follows the previous tumors with ultrasound during the menopause period. In general, tumor growth during menopause is not well received. It definitely requires evaluation.
Be Prepared for Change
Since female genital organs are very sensitive to estrogen and estrogen decreases very much during menopause, a condition open to thinning and irritation occurs in the genital area.
While this situation creates problems in sexual contact, it also causes some problems such as urinary incontinence and frequent urination in some women. Although these types of complaints are more common in women who have given birth multiple times, they can also be seen in women who have never given birth, depending on the tissue structure of the woman.
When such a situation develops, a solution can be found with some treatments such as local estrogen.
If the vagina is very dry during sexual contact, use the moisturizer recommended by your doctor. You can gain weight during menopause. Therefore, pay attention to your diet.
Insomnia and restlessness are seen in menopause. Let's not forget that this is due to a transitional period.
Make Changes in Your Lifestyle
Apart from all the clinical changes in menopause, a serious emotional stress is added to this period. For this reason, it would be good to try to keep yourself under control according to your symptoms, that is, your complaints. Problems such as hot flashes and night sweats can be reduced by changing the temperature in the environment you live in or by staying in cooler places.
During the menopause, you may feel uncomfortable and stressed, or you may notice that your sleep is disturbed. Keep in mind that this is due to a transitional period and your health, especially your well-being, will improve. Keep in mind that it will be appropriate for you to prepare for this period, make changes in your lifestyle, and your problems can be solved.
What is Early Menopause?
Menopause seen before the age of 40 is defined as early menopause. In this period, when ovarian functions are not seen, the person loses his fertility. Menopausal symptoms are a symptom of women who go through early menopause. is much more severe. Early menopause can occur naturally or due to surgical interventions.
The type of menopause that develops due to surgical operations is defined as surgical menopause. Removal of the uterus and ovaries, pelvic injuries that cause damage to the ovaries, drugs used in tumor treatment, radiation exposure of the uterus and ovaries may cause a person to enter early menopause.
What is Late Menopause?
If the person is still menstruating despite being 51 years old, it is called late menopause. In this case, the person should continue to be protected during sexual intercourse, as he may become pregnant.
Although the person's failure to enter menopause is mostly due to genetic factors, causes such as thyroid, obesity, high estrogen levels can also cause late menopause. If the person continues to have regular menstruation despite the age of 51, it is recommended to have health check-ups. The physician first listens to the patient's history and requests a laboratory test to measure LH and FSH hormones in the blood on the third day of menstruation.
In women with menstrual irregularity, if the FSH level is 40 pg/ml and above, the person is diagnosed with menopause. A FSH level of 25 to 39 pg/ml indicates that the person is in the premenopausal period. The physician may request additional tests to investigate a different disease that causes menstrual irregularity.
What are the Menopause Treatment Methods?
Menopause is not treated because it is a natural process. However, there are many different treatment options to improve a person's quality of life. Hormone replacement therapy (GRT) is one of them. In this treatment method, also known as postmenopausal hormone therapy (PHT), the person is given drugs consisting of estrogen or a combination of estrogen and progesterone.
This method, which is effective in preventing osteoporosis and cardiovascular diseases, also reduces common symptoms such as vaginal dryness, night sweats and hot flashes during menopause.
In Which Patients Should Begin Treatment?
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