Hormone Replacement Therapy

This is the most controversial treatment for menopause symptoms. Hormone replacement therapy or HRT comes with an increased risk for several different conditions and cancers. However, depending on your age, the hormones you take and how long you take them there are also health benefits to HRT. It’s important to talk to your doctor about your symptoms and your options.

Hot Flashes

Hot flashes are probably the most common menopause symptom. They can be treated with a number of natural or alternative remedies. The first thing to do is to become aware of when you experience hot flashes. Look for patterns and triggers. For example, do you experience them after your morning cup of coffee? It could be that caffeine makes them worse.

Consider treating hot flashes with:

* Black Cohosh
* Soy
* Acupuncture

Insomnia

Insomnia is another common menopause symptom. It often coincides with hot flashes. Valerian, melatonin and relaxation techniques all help you sleep better at night. Also make sure you have a consistent bedtime routine.

Vaginal Dryness

Vaginal dryness caused by dropping estrogen can make sexual activity downright painful. Lots of foreplay can help. Also consider using a water based lubricant.

Mood Swings

Menopause has the effect of making some women feel as if they’re losing their mind. One minute you can be perfectly content and the next you’re crying or furious. It’s the change in hormones. There are many things you can do to alleviate the mood swings.

* Exercise
* Meditate
* Take vitamin D
* Acupuncture
* Yoga
* St John’s Wort
* Light Therapy
* Antidepressants

Above all else make sure you take great care of yourself. That means eating a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains and lean protein. Get daily exercise. Make sure you enjoy your exercise and choose activities that make you feel good. Also spend time on relaxation techniques and cultivating a positive attitude. Finally, make sure you get plenty of good sleep.

A whole body wellness approach will help you transition through menopause. You’ll enjoy better health and you’ll reduce or eliminate your menopause symptoms. If you’re struggling, don’t hesitate to talk to your doctor or alternative health care provider. Massage, acupuncture and manual therapies can help you manage your symptoms effectively.

Myth#1 Hormone Replacement Therapy Causes Cancer

Fact: The truth is a bit of a mixed bag. Hormone replacement therapy can lower the risk of some types of cancer. For example, studies have shown that estrogen alone can decrease the risk of colorectal cancer.

However, it can also raise the risk of breast cancer. According to studies, hormone replacement therapy increases your risk of developing breast cancer by 24%. This means for every 10,000 women eight more will develop breast cancer if they’re taking estrogen and progesterone replacement therapy.

Myth #2 HRT Only Offers Relief from Hot Flashes and Low Libido

While it’s true that HRT does minimize the side effects of menopause it’s also true that studies have shown that hormone therapy taken soon after menopause may help protect against dementia. It also reduces the risk of heart attack in women age 50-59. It may also protect women against osteoporosis, a condition where the bones become thin and fragile.

Myth #3 Hormone Replacement Therapy is Perfectly Safe

This is not the case. HRT increases the risk of many major illnesses including:
* Cancer
* Heart Disease
* Stroke
* Blood Clots

Hormone replacement therapy has serious risks. However, it’s riskier for some than others. If you have a history of breast cancer, cancer, heart disease or other conditions HRT may not be right for you.

Myth #4 Hormone Replacement Treatments Are Ongoing

HRT is generally best suited as a short term solution to symptoms of menopause. Women that take estrogen only, progesterone only or a combination for a short period, less than two years, tend to be at much less risk for serious side effects.

However, those that take it for five years or more are at a greater risk for the conditions discussed.

If you’re considering HRT talk to your doctor about your risk factors and the severity of your menopausal symptoms. Your doctor will likely evaluate your:
* Age
* Health history
* Family health history
* And the severity of your symptoms
Before deciding which protocol, if any, is right for you.
Alternative Solutions
There are other solutions to HRT that are more natural and have fewer risky side effects. Consider herbal remedies, supplements, acupuncture, massage and research bioidentical hormones.
The symptoms and side effects of menopause are not fun. However, HRT may not be the solution you’re looking for. Talk to your doctor and research natural remedies to ease your symptoms.

We’ve all heard of things like hot flashes, and night sweats, decreased sex drive, and many other very negative side affects. But the shear intensity of the actual symptoms can have an enormous impact on your everyday life.

Not being able to sleep night after night, while you are still expected to perform all your normal daily obligations can take a huge toll on your health, both mentally and physically.

While finding effective menopause relief can be very hard to do, it’s not impossible. There are a lot of things you can do to help lessen your symptoms. It’s often a matter of trial and error, some things will work for some people and not for others so you may have to try several different products before you find something that will give you the relief you need.

It’s important to remember that you do have options in dealing with symptoms and that  there are vitamins to relieve menopause symptoms.

Today most doctors are staying away from prescribing Hormone Replacement Therapy for their patients due to the dangerous side effects that these drugs can have. There have been many studies to show an increased risk of breast cancer with the use of HRT so many doctors are very reluctant to prescribe it for their patients.   Instead more emphasis is placed on natural menopause remedies.

The effectiveness of these remedies will vary greatly from one woman to the next, but if you’re a woman suffering from hot flashes, mood swings, vaginal dryness, or irritability, you’ll be willing to try just about anything to find relief.

Many women have found relief of their menopause symptoms with the use of black cohosh. This natural remedy won’t help everyone but it is worth it to give it a try and see if you are one of the lucky women who can find relief by using this herb.

Vitamin E is one supplement that has been shown to help reduce hot flashes in many women.  It can also help promote strong bones and overall good health.

The recommended dosage is 400 – 800 I.U. daily, of course aways consult with your doctor before taking any type of supplement to make sure there aren’t any potentially harmful drug interactions between your vitamins and any prescription drugs you may be taking.

Bone loss is another common problem for women going through menopause so it’s important to take a calcium  supplement,  usually 1500 mg daily, added to 500- 750 mg magnesium to help improve absorption.

Menopause is no fun for any woman, or her immediate family, but there are vitamins to relieve menopause symptoms.  Try to find an effective and natural way to relieve, or at least lessen, your menopausal symptoms.

Identifying the major symptoms of menopause is something that every person should do. For women, understanding the different symptoms will help them deal with the change when they experience it. If you are a man then learning about the symptoms will help you be able to identify them when the women you know start displaying them (and it will help you be more sympathetic to what they are going through). Here are some of the major symptoms of menopause.
Men often notice a woman’s loss of sexual appetite long before a women realizes it’s happening. Now remember guys, just because she says “no” tonight doesn’t mean she will another night, she might truely just not be in the mood, rather than going through the change. A dry spell that lasts longer than a short period of time could indicate your partner is about to experience a serious life altering event. Try to understand what she’s going through. Do you think this change is any more pleasant for her than it is for you?

One of the hardest menopause symptoms to find is the irregular heartbeat. Some women will notice that their heartbeat speeds up and slows down without them having to do anything to cause such a reaction. A woman who is sitting still, to use one example, might feel hear heart suddenly start to race and then it might slow all the way back down to a resting rate without her having to move. You might be one of the women who do not have this happen. Some women only find out that they have this symptom when their hearts are observed for other purposes. Usually it is when the doctor is listening to the woman’s heart during a routine exam that he notices the change. If you are of a certain age, this could be a symptom of menopause.

The most obvious symptom of menopause is the deregulation of your monthly menstrual cycle. If your period suddenly stops or changes in any way you might be going through menopause. Remember, it is not always missing your period that signals the onset of menopause. Some women, believe it or not, say their periods actually get heavier right before menopause set in. If you notice any change to your monthly cycle and are getting close to the age when menopause starts to set in, talk to your doctor.

Menopause is not any fun for women. They have little control over their bodies and minds during this time and it is important that the people who are around them understand that, if it were up to the women, they wouldn’t be going through this change. It’s true that most women will be glad to get rid of their monthly cycles but it is also true that menopause is very traumatic for women. Being able to recognize menopausal symptoms will help you be more prepared to help the women you know get through their “change of life.”

The good news is that women no longer have to suffer through menopause (unless they really want to). Now women have their choice of menopause treatments available to them if they want to or decide that they need them. Unfortunately, because every woman goes through menopause differently there is no absolutely successful menopause treatment. That being said, there are lots of popular treatments that are being used all over the place.
If you want to cool down your hot flashes, one of the best things that you can do is to dress in light layers and get regular exercise. Sudden hot flashes can be minimized by wearing the right lightweight clothing when away from your comfort zone.

A regular exercise program will help increase your endorphin levels to a level more capable of assisting your moods to stabilize. Women who are able to pin down their triggers are often able to avoid hot-flashes. As you discover what your hot flash triggers may be, try to avoid them. Different women report different things that cause their hot flashes.

Yoga, believe it or not, has been proven to be an effective menopause treatment. Studies have shown that women who regularly do yoga experience a decreased amount of hot flashes. The intensity of a woman’s hot flashes won’t be as intense as the hot flashes of people who don’t do yoga. Lots of health professionals believe that the controlled breathing and the relaxation techniques of yoga raise a woman’s spirits as well as helping her physical body which is one of the biggest reasons that women say yoga helps them deal with menopause.

Make sure you get enough rest. Do the best you can to get at the very least 8 hours per night of good sleep. Getting enough rest will help you deal with mood swings and energy level fluctuations during the day. It is highly recommended that women having difficulty sleeping discontinue the use of all stimulants including coffee. If you do these two things you are more likely to get the rest you need. Who knew that regular rest could be counted as a menopause treatment?

Making informed, intelligent decisions about the different menopause treatments is very important to your health. Your doctor is your best guide to menopause treatment, consult him often. The reality is you should discuss treatment with your doctor prior to beginning any treatment for menopause.

It is also important to remember that you are not alone.
Every woman goes through menopause. Talk to your girlfriends they will understand even if they cannot relate. Above and beyond any herbal or medicinal remedy a woman’s support group can be the most beneficial treatment.