Understanding the Top Five Menopause Symptoms
Many women that are reaching a certain age wonder what are menopause symptoms? Well, there are many but the top five seem to be:
*Fatigue
*Weight Gain
*Hot Flashes
*Low Libido
*Hair Loss
Let’s first talk about fatigue. If you are dealing with fatigue as a menopause symptom, it could be caused by many different things. If you are having trouble sleeping because of night sweats due to menopause this could cause fatigue. Once you start feeling fatigued, this increases stress and anxiety which then causes insomnia. This becomes a vicious cycle.
Fatigue can also be from a lack of progesterone. Progesterone is the hormone that keeps you energized and also accounts for your sex drive.
The second menopause symptom that we are going to talk about is weight gain. Probably one of the most complained about symptoms of menopause is weight gain. If you are gaining weight during this time of your life, don’t blame yourself. This is something that happens to about 90% of women during menopause. Some will gain more than others. Most women will gain 10 to 15 pounds during their menopausal years. That is approximately 1 pound per year.
The next menopause symptom is hot flashes. Hot flashes are very common during menopause. A hot flash is a brief feeling of heat that may make the face and neck flushed, cause temporary red blotches to appear on the chest, back and arms. Sweating and chills may follow. Hot flashes vary in intensity and typically last between 30 seconds and 10 minutes.
Okay, now let’s talk about low libido or low sex drive. As with all menopause symptoms a low libido or low sex drive is different with each woman. As you begin menopause you could have some hormones waning or fluctuating. Estrogen can start to diminish which can affect your sexual response.
Some changes that you might notice are:
*Less sensation in the genital area
*Painful intercourse
*Lower sex drive
*Difficulty becoming aroused
*Vaginal dryness
*More vaginal or bladder infections than usual
Again, if you have the menopause symptom of hair loss, it is usually because of fluctuating hormones. It is normal for women to have some hair loss, but if you see any of the following symptoms it could be from menopause:
*Scalp is red and itchy
*Large amounts of hair in your comb or brush
*Small bald patches
*More hair than usual falls out while washing
*Noticeable hair thinning
All of the above subjects are some of the menopause symptoms. Some women will have more and some women will have less. If any of these symptoms become too extreme you should always tell your ob/gyn or your family practitioner.