Symptoms of Menopause

Menopause is said to be a disorder in women occurring after the age of 50 years where the ovaries ability to produce the hormone named estrogen decreases significantly and gradually stops. As a result treatment has to be started immediately by the doctor in the form of medications, hormone replacement therapy or surgically removing the uterus. Let us delve further into the symptoms of menopause. The most common symptoms of menopause are vaginal dryness, irregular periods and pain in vagina during intercourse and psychological problems like depression, insomnia and mood swings. The symptoms of menopause can be divided into early symptoms and later stage symptoms. The early symptoms of menopause are: 1) Irregular Vaginal Bleeding - This is one of the most common symptoms of menopause. Some women have excess vaginal bleeding while some women might have minimal vaginal bleeding. The period cycle either gets delayed or gets shortened in the case of menopause. There is no fixed length of time when the woman completes her menopausal transition. Also women who develop irregular menses should get themselves immediately evaluated by their doctor. 2) Hot Flashes and Sweat - Hot flashes may occur at night along with breaking in sweat. As a result sleep is not completed. It is observed that women with hot flashes sweat more at lower temperatures than women who suffer from hot flashes. There is currently no method to predict when the next attack of hot flash will occur. Hot flashes tend to decrease over a period of time. 3) Mood Symptoms - Women suffering from menopause suffer from mood symptoms like depression and sleep disorders. Women are not able to sleep at night due to hot flashes and extreme sweating. As a result women get tired easily. Researchers are trying to bring the symptoms of mood disorders under control. Advanced stage symptoms: 1) Vaginal Symptoms - Vaginal symptoms tend to start after some years of the cessation of menses. Postmenopausal women might experience vaginal dryness, irritation in vagina, pain during intercourse. 2) Osteoporosis - Osteoporosis is said to occur when the bones and the joints become weaker and weaker. Menopause, along with age and hormonal changes leads to osteoporosis. Many times osteoporosis is only detected at the advanced stages of its development and hence is said to be a silent disease disorder till it develops fully. In addition to the above mentioned symptoms of menopause the other symptoms that people suffering from menopause can experience are thinning of hair, increased risk of allergies, excessive weight, irregular body odor and itchiness of skin.