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Menopause – elephant in the room

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Menopause is not to be feared, but to be confidently understood and discussed openly. Searching for quality guidance and support as we transition through these inevitable cycles can leave women feeling exhausted. Fear and doubt find their way in, clouding our good judgement. We have the propensity to panic, feeling abandoned, judged, dismissed as we confront an avalanche of overwhelm. All we ask for is wholesome guidance.

Menopause is not taboo or an old woman’s disease. Open, direct, and honest conversations are well overdue at all levels from government to medical.

We assume medics, including specialists, are educated to some degree, providing females reasonable emotional, physical, and dietary support. As a postmenopausal female, I believed I was sufficiently educated acquiring tools to manage an inevitable transition. I was wrong. I was hit for one big six way over the boundary, ball never to be found! Medics and other practitioners failing me that created a path to unnecessary discomfort.

Let me peddle back a little. If you are female born with a reproductive system, menopause is on its way. The first stage is perimenopause then menopause and lastly postmenopause. Think of it as a mature form of puberty. Remember those days?

At the end of this article I provide a list of resources opening a pathway to self education and thus confidence.

Menopause to me is a feeling of being rewired internally, as if someone has unexpectedly ripped out my motherboard (serving me for most of my life) and replaced it with a new one without a manual of ‘how to navigate through a new cycle’. A big shock to the system.

Unfortunately, not all medics (regardless of gender) receive education in this field. Here is our first obstacle assuming they can help us. We visit our GP – they may refer us to a qualified practitioner, dismiss our symptoms, or offer a valium script or similar. Classic diagnosis is “it is in your head,” “you are too young to experience menopause,” “you are depressed,” “put up with it,” and the list goes on. We are left to fend for ourselves. 

I fail to understand why menopause is underdiagnosed. Is it a lack of education funding? Of all the females on earth soon to enter the menopause cycle we need better guidance and support from medics and various health practitioners. In my experience journalling symptoms helped me to monitor them and build confidence conversing with health practitioners.

We need our GPs and I seriously appreciate that many are overworked and in short supply. Treat them kindly and respectfully. They too are people and many are great at their profession. Patient and practitioner benefit in creating a healthy working relationship.

Family and Partners

This article is relevant to everyone – mothers, daughters, sisters, grandmothers and male partners. Menopause symptoms affect men as they witness the many changes in their partners. Fellas, please support your partners. Accompany them to doctor appointments to learn of these changes and better support your family; be open to listening. Menopause affects everyone in various ways.

A few symptoms

Fatigue, not feeling right – sense of inner change, weight gain, loss of libido, anxiety, moodiness, itchy skin, feeling inflamed, erratic sleeping patterns, not feeling fresh upon waking, bleeding gums, hair thinning, facial hair (get it lasered), craving unhealthy foods, tinnitus, acne, change in cardiovascular health, low metabolism, stress levels (check cortisol) and any unusual sudden unexpected symptoms.

Get your thyroid tested TSH – T3 – T4; check for insulin resistance, cholesterol markers, biochemistry, hormone markers.

What can we do?

Strength training, change eating habits – reduce intake of processed foods. A qualified nutritionist can guide you to better health. Set healthy boundaries, educate ourselves, ask questions and continue asking. Do not give up!

Does your local medical centre have information posted on their notice board? Pamphlets?

Listen to a variety of podcasts but caution who you listen to – influencers are not a good source.

Consider practitioners in different fields to support your body and mental health:

Naturopath/homeopath, osteopath, qualified nutritionist, counsellor, acupuncturist (not sure, may be worth a try to manage pain symptoms), GP specialised in menopause, yoga.

Remember that menopause is a change of life, not a death sentence. 

Resources / Books

Australian Menopause Society (great fact sheets and infographics)

Latest clinical research by Dr Vonda J Wright et al., The musculoskeletal syndrome of menopause, published online 30 July 2024.

The M Word. Dr. Ginni Mansberg. 2020 revised edition 2024 (Australian)

The Invisible Load. Dr. Libby Weaver. 2019 (Australian)

The Menopause Brain. Lisa Mosconi PhD., Neuroscientist. 2024 (Italian/American)

The Glucose Goddess Method. Jesse Inchauspe´. 2023 (French biochemist)

The New Menopause. Dr. Mary Claire Haver. 2024 (US Ob-Gyn)

Estrogen Matters. Avrum Bluming, MD and Carol Tavris, PhD

The Menopause Cookbook Magazine. Publisher Universal Media Co., available from local newsagent

Menopause The Musical, Athenaeum Theatre, Melbourne October 2024

Give away! 

Send us a note and in a few words tell us what your thoughts are of menopause to win a copy of The Menopause Brain by Lisa Mosconi PhD. Email the editor at editor@trafnews.com

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