My Journey through Menopause

My journey through menopause is more of an update of my "Mad at Menopause" blog post.  Head on over and read that before diving in here to get the full story of my symptoms, frustrations, and actions to resolve them.

My Menopause Journey

Instead of being mad at menopause, I'm now calling it a journey through menopause. The drastic symptoms have softened thanks to research, talking with my doctors, and making treatment decisions that best fit my body. As women, we will all experience menopause and the havoc placed upon our bodies during this transition.

Menopause is part of life and health and not a topic to be hushed under the rug. There is no shame or embarrassment in discussing anything that relates to health and fitness. We have lived too long with our heads tucked between our tails and still thinking how dare we use the term "vagina" in public. Come on now, we're all adults and this is an important issue for women and the men who support them.

Menopause Symptoms

Starting menopause, I was plagued with unbelievable hot flashes that tormented my days and nights. Fatigue was at an all-time high. I felt irritable, experienced foggy thinking, and inability to sleep. Vaginal dryness was insane, numerous urinary tract infections were intolerable and lastly, my libido tanked. I was completely frustrated and menopause absolutely consumed me.

I think menopause was at the forefront of every conversation with hubby back then. I thank God every day for such a supportive man. It didn't matter how physically fit I looked on the outside because my inside was so out of balance. I didn't feel confident sexually or as a woman. This weighed on me heavily and I was desperate to fight menopause with all I had.

Menopause Update

This update comes two years into my menopause and happy to report, I feel so much better. I no longer take OTC herbal blends and decided to give bio-identical hormone therapy a try.

I have been on bio-identical hormones for two years now and the improvement in menopause symptoms is remarkable. In addition, I have continued the low dose estrogen vaginal insert pill and very happy with the plumped up results. I also use natural coconut oil and vitamin E suppositories regularly for internal vaginal moisturizing.

My hot flashes went away within 2-weeks of bio-identical therapy. As the months have gone by, I feel like my old self again. Emotionally and physically my body feels like it has been brought back into hormonal balance. I am now functioning at what I would call a normal level.

My confidence is renewed, my thinking is clear, and sex is great. My lifestyle of eating healthy and regular exercise continues to help residual menopause symptoms. My cycles have not made an appearance for over a year which is one of the indicators of being in full menopause.

I don't know how long I will require transdermal bioidentical hormone therapy but I am happy with the decision to go this route for my body. It has changed my frustration into stress-free days and I can better accept going through menopause. Not having a period feels like sweet freedom. I can wear white pants with confidence.

Sharing my journey through menopause is my way of supporting other women going through this process. However, we are all unique individuals who need to be our own health care advocates. It's important to make the best choices for ourselves through research and doctor discussions.

What works for me may not be the best option for you. Be motivated there is hope to feeling better going through menopause and always be pro-active when it comes to your health.

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Mad at Menopause and Finding Relief

I have been mad at menopause for awhile. Just thinking about it can bring on a hot flash. Turning 50 was an exciting time and I still enjoy being in the club. The ongoing hormonal changes my body is experiencing not so much. 

I will be talking very candidly about my experience with hormone changes and my body. This is not meant to offend anyone. Going through the change is a subject many are afraid to discuss out of embarrassment, fear, or the belief it should be hush-hush. We have come too far to continue this way of thinking. Health involves discussing all things relating to the human body and aging.

Hormone Challenges

I have been frantically researching hormone imbalance for a few years now. I have tried supplementation, herbals, transdermal creams, and natural moisturizers attempting to restore balance in my body. 

I am very aware of foods that help with hormone imbalance and eat my share of raw pumpkin seeds and watermelon. I also exercise consistently which is another way to help with the stresses of hormone imbalance.

Some women may sail right through without a hitch in the get along, but not this girl. Through research, I have discovered I'm not alone and there are plenty of women suffering from menopause symptoms. 

I began experiencing night sweats years ago, which I easily managed with a transdermal OTC progesterone cream. That seemed to be the biggest drag during my peri-menopausal time. However and for a few years, my periods took on a life of their own. Everything became unpredictable. I didn't know from one month to the next if I was in full menopause. 

According to my doctor, not having a cycle for one year would be the indicator of being in true menopause. I enjoy my gynecologist and have to say she is easy to talk to. I respect her opinion and am able to share my desire to go through this process as natural as possible. The thing about most western medicine doctors is the non-support of bio-identical hormones. Also, they're generally not covered by insurance. So be prepared for such roadblocks. Don't be afraid to be yourself and cover every concern with your doctor.

Let's Talk About Menopause

Menopause has been a thief of my womanhood. It has plagued me with sleepless nights, hot flashes, frequent urinary tract infections (UTIs), and the worst part - a broken ya-ya. My frustration has become a motivation to work very hard at making the best decisions for me and my body. 

I'm sure many women can relate to what I am sharing. Hopefully, this Blog will stimulate comments so we can all support and share what has worked or not worked. We can no longer hide our adverse menopause symptoms. As women, it's important to be brave, embrace who we are, what we're going through, and create a voice for answers. 

Menopause Sucks

The dreaded hot flash comes at all hours of the day and night. For some reason, I'm bothered most at night. It's so frustrating not to be able to get a full night's sleep. This alone can really put me on edge. I have discovered the best remedy is sleeping under a light sheet with one leg covered and one leg exposed. I also keep the ceiling fan going which seems to help. 

Enjoying a glass of wine in the evening will trigger a hot flash. It will continue to haunt me during sleep time with dreaded night sweats. I have found it's important to stay away from the triggers. 

What has seemed to help my menopause symptoms is Maca Root, recommended by my gynecologist. Maca is an herbal I mix in a green shake each day. Before using maca root, I put in the necessary research of the pros and cons and decided to give it a go. 

What I'm sharing has worked and not worked for me. It's important for each woman to be your own health care advocate. You should not try any supplement without reviewing clinical research and solid evidence to support health claims. Don't take my word as gospel. My body is different than yours and may respond differently to herbs like maca root. My share is to inform and motivate you to start your own journey of research.  

Other Menopause Symptoms

Moving on to other adverse menopause symptoms: decreased sexual sensitivity, increased bladder discomfort, urinary tract infections (UTIs), and vaginal dryness (what I like to call the broken ya-ya).  Talk about the worst of the worst and are you kidding me?! This has got to be the most unfair situation ever as sex is a very important part of a healthy marital relationship. 

As women, it's important to feel confident about our bodies and our abilities. We shouldn't feel guarded about sex because our minds get so focused on things like: will I orgasm? am I too dry? will it hurt too much? what's he thinking? The list is really endless. How can we be in the moment when all that mental noise is going on? 

Personally, I refuse to be a woman on the edge with the inability to get over the fence and I'm referring to orgasm here. I enjoy this part of my married life and research focused on this topic has been very thorough. I have discovered a new vaginal suppository containing coconut oil and vitamin E. This magic stuff works better than most of the OTC products out there. I use ½ suppository daily which keeps me naturally moisturized for the day and into the evening. 

My goal is to prevent vaginal atrophy and yes this is what occurs during menopause. In laymen's terms, the vagina starts shrinking and drying up like a prune. The 'do not disturb' sign has clearly landed. I refuse to allow any such nonsense to happen and am fighting for my sexual right as a woman and wife.

Decreased sensitivity during sex can also occur as the body no longer carries adequate blood supply to the vaginal tissue and clitoris. Research sent me to L-arginine supplementation which is an amino acid naturally occurring in your body. Studies have shown L-arginine to help with blood supply and flow to the sex organs. Well, this turned out to be a huge waste of my time. I can be prone to cold sores and updated research lead me to discover L-arginine stimulates the virus causing cold sores. I tossed the bottle in the trash and never looked back. Thank goodness I also keep a supply of Lysine, an immunity boosting amino acid that works to prevent cold sores. I increased the dose to counteract the negative side effects of the L-arginine.   

Menopause and UTIs

Another unfortunate menopause-related problem that occurs with me has been severe bouts of urinary tract infection (UTI) symptoms. The discomfort can wake me in the middle of the night and cause me to curl up in a fetal position. I have a low-dose antibiotic on standby when these events occur, OTC Cystex, and cranberry supplements.

I found a heating pad also helps along with OTC pain reliever like Aleve. I also began a protocol of increased water and 100% cranberry juice to flush out my system. I also supplement with D-Mannose suggested by my primary care physician. It appears to be helping.

I'm very in tune with my body and can feel a UTI early onset. So, typically I do catch it early and am able to not lose too much time or days off work. The night may suck getting the symptoms calmed down, but once manageable, I can function pretty well at work and in general. 

Menopause and Hormone Replacement Therapy

I have also looked into HRT (hormone replacement therapy), and currently researching bio-identical hormones. Bio-identicals are hormone closely related to our own body production and administered transdermally. I have been using bio-identicals for quite some time now and have experienced significant relief.

I have decided not to take any systemic estrogen by mouth in order to minimize cancer risk. I don't want the hormone to metabolize directly through my liver and into my bloodstream. The incidence of cancer is greater with such therapy so this door is forever closed for me. 

I am also trying a vaginal insert pill of very low dose estrogen. This is localized to the vaginal tissues and helps plump up and restore natural vaginal lubrication and reduce the incidence of UTIs. I even had doubts and fears regarding cancer with the vaginal insert. After a discussion with both western medicine and natural path doctors, I felt confident to move forward with the less messy vaginal pill estrogen insert.  

Online research also reduced my fears, and I am willing to give it a try for a few months. I'm hoping for a positive outcome.  I will need to report back with my personal findings. I do welcome feedback from women, or husbands whose wives are currently using vaginal insert low estrogen and how it has been helpful or not. 

Menopause Support

I have had many discussions with women going through menopause which is helpful and supportive. It can feel like such a desperate and frustrating time not knowing the best course of action to take. It feels scary to possibly subject ourselves to cancer or other diseases in the process of discovery. 

It can seem unfair very little clinical studies on menopause and women’s dysfunction have been conducted. Further research would provide more options, and allow women to feel more confident in methods to improve menopause symptoms. 

I hope my personal share of the subject has been helpful. You are not alone in your struggle and frustration. Keep up the research and find what works best for you and your body.

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What is up with Weight Gain and Menopause?

Hot flashes and mood changes aren't the only symptoms of menopause. Many women also say it becomes harder to control their weight around this time. And take if from me - IT"S TRUE!  

With menopause and peri-menopause, estrogen levels fluctuate wildly leading to irregular periods, temperature intolerance and mood disturbances.  With menopause there is an increase in visceral fat, which is the deep abdominal fat that increases the risk for health problems like heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Research shows that up to 90% of women gain weight during and after menopause. Sop what is a Girl to do?  

Fact:  Lack of Estrogen makes it harder to control weight

Estrogen plays a role in regulating body weight. Women who take hormone replacement therapy experience fewer problems with weight gain increased tummy fat.  There are many benefits to hormone replacement therapy, but there are also risks that need to be considered when making these decisions.

Loss of estrogen has a metabolism-slowing effect. In the absence of estrogen, you burn as many as 80 fewer calories a day. Estrogen also regulates two hormones called lipoprotein lipase and hormone-sensitive lipase that directly affect fat storage. When hormone-sensitive lipase is active, fat is oxidized to be used as energy. Estrogen puts the brakes on fat storage by activating hormone-sensitive lipase and inhibiting lipoprotein lipase. Once estrogen levels decline, the body shifts more to the fat storage mode. (I know, this is a bummer!)

As you can see, the decline in estrogen that happens at menopause makes it harder to control your weight in a number of ways – by making it easier for your body to store fat, and by decreasing metabolic.  So what can you do about it?

So What’s a Girl to Do?

One of the best things you can do to prevent weight gain during menopause is exercise. Research consistently shows that women who are physically active either avoid menopausal weight gain or significantly reduce it.

What type of exercise is best? You guys hear me say this all the time!  More intense exercise creates a metabolic environment for fat burning. So do not decrease your exercise intensity as you age.  And remember you can add intensitywithout adding impact!  High-intensity interval training and metabolic workouts are better than steady-state aerobics for reducing body fat and increasing metabolism.  If you are walker – add hills to add intensity.  If you bike, get out there and climb!  

As estrogen levels decline, loss of lean body mass accelerates so it is important to include strength and resistance training. Resistance training helps to preserve lean body mass while giving to help keep your metabolic rate increase. It also improves bone density. If there’s one thing every woman going through menopause needs to do it’s workout with enough resistance to build muscle.

Nutrition – the essential link

Limiting processed foods and rapidly absorbed carbohydrates helps to improve insulin sensitivity. Insulin sensitivity declines with age and is a risk factor for weight gain and other health problems. It’s important to get enough protein and fiber to boost satiety as well. Choose more whole foods and fiber-rich vegetables along with monounsaturated fats in nuts, olive oil and avocados along with omega-3s from fatty fish.

 What Else can you do to minimize weight gain?

Make sure you’re getting eat least 7 hours of sleep per night.  Also, taking control of stress is a key factor.  What relieves your stress?  A nice walk outside and getting back to nature?  Reading a good book?  Prayer, meditation?  Whatever works to lower your stress - do IT and do it about three times a week. Stress and lack of sleep increase cortisol levels and further add to the problem of visceral abdominal fat. 

References:

Medscape.com. “Exercise, Weight Gain and Menopause”

Menopause International, vol. 16, no. 3, pp. 100–104, 2010.

Exp Biol Med December 2004 vol. 229 no. 11 1127-1135.

Southwestern Medical Center. “Study shows estrogen works in the brain to keep weight in check”

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