TACKLING MENOPAUSAL HOT FLUSHES

I have only just recently come to realise, that there are many things that women are reluctant to talk about….

We don’t talk about what we are going through….

Especially when it comes to our health and our bodies.

PERIODS – SEX – POSTNATAL DEPRESSION – MENOPAUSE are all topics merely whispered about behind closed doors.

For us who are on the other side of 45…..

We don’t tell our families about how we have trouble sleeping ,or about our new palpitations….

We hide our anxieties about getting older…or even about finding directions and successfully navigating our way to the doctor’s office…

We are embarrassed to admit to forgetting the neighbours first name…the one who has lived next door for the last 20 years…

We laughingly tell our friends, that we have misplaced the car keys (YET AGAIN),this time eventually finding it them in the freezer next to the ice tray that was replaced when making that breakfast smoothie.

And let’s not forget to mention those hot flushes…

If you were living in Roman Times, hot flushes would not concern you.

YOU WOULD BE DEAD BY THE TIME YOU WERE 25!

Today we are expected to live much longer.

It is estimated that a women will spend a third of her life living in the menopause.

Let me clarify this upfront…Menopause is not a temporary state. We enter into this phase in our lives when our bodies move away from being able to produce children naturally.

Menopause literally means the “cessation of menstruation”- when your period stops and has not happened for at least 6 months to 1 year.

The time leading up to this point is called the PERIMENOPAUSE. This phase can start many years before the period actually stops.

Now HOT FLUSHES can occur at any of these phases. They can last for a few weeks or even a few years.

Scientists have not been able to figure them out completely…

 

We know that they occur when our estrogen levels drop…We also know that estrogen therapy relieves them…how or why this happens is not quite so clear.

They occur because hormone levels around menopause fluctuate and then drop. This change, will trigger events in our brain– The area that controls how we regulate our body temperature seems to get temporarily reset. Almost like a short circuit.

FLASH!!!!!

POWER SURGE or HOT FLUSH

They can be happen very occasionally, or even every few minutes.

5 SURVIVAL STRATERGIES

1. RECOGNISE THEM: A feeling of heat will start in your chest and rise upwards. You may feel like you need air. The back of your neck and forehead may get sweaty. Your hair may go damp .It comes in short bursts. Remember it will pass. You are not going mad!
2. GET TO KNOW YOUR TRIGGERS: Coffee, red wine, very hot weather, any extreme emotional state all make it worse. Try to figure out your own triggers and avoid those when it is essential not to flush.
3. DRESS IN LAYERS: Removing layers one by one is easy if the hot flush strikes anyway. Once it passes you may feel cold again and need to return the layers.
4. CARRY A FAN: Keep one in your handbag and whip it out when necessary. Remember, do so with attitude, confidence and a smile
5. TRY A HOMEOPATHIC REMEDY: always only after seeking advice from your doctor or pharmacist. Black Cohosh, Red Clover, Don Quai, Evening primrose Oil, and soya isoflavones have all been shown to be of benefit. All of these can have unwanted harmful effects if not used under the correct supervision.
6. GET EXPERT HELP: So you have tried it all .But you are still struggling. Make that appointment with your gynaecologist. Discuss hormone replacement therapy. It may work for you.
7. G

Don’t let HOT FLUSHES get you down and damp!

Get informed and ask for help!

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