Menopause
What is menopause?
Menopause is a point in time 12 months after a woman’s last period when estrogen levels begin to decrease. There are 3 stages – Perimenopause when the hormones start to decline and menstrual cycles become irregular; Menopause, which occurs once hormones are no longer being produced and Post-menopause, the time following menopause.
Research shows that around 3 in 4 of us will experience symptoms during the time around menopause and beyond. Common symptoms experienced during perimenopause include changes in your ‘normal’ cycle, like more frequent or irregular cycles and heavier or lighter periods, as well as other physical and emotional symptoms, such as:
Hot flushes and night sweats
Muscle and joint pain
Changes in metabolism resulting in weight gain
Mood swings, including anxiety and irritability and other psychological symptoms
Fatigue
Changes in memory or ‘brain fog’
Whilst the symptoms experienced during perimenopause might reduce as you reach menopause, a range of other symptoms and health conditions might be present post-menopause because of low hormone levels, including:
Increased risk of osteoporosis
Urinary incontinence
Increased risk of heart disease
Issues with memory, including an increased risk of dementia
Difficulty sleeping
Sexual issues, such as reduced libido, vaginal dryness, and atrophy.
There are several treatments available to help with menopausal symptoms such as Hormone Replacement Therapy but there is also a role for lifestyle changes. Research shows that making healthy food choices, taking part in regular exercise, managing stress, and getting enough high-quality sleep can help with symptom management.
At Platinum Physiotherapy, we have a few top tips for keeping active during this stage of your life.
Optimise your bone health
During menopause, bones become brittle and weak with loss of tissue due to the hormonal changes in the body. Oestrogen plays a vital role in the development and maintenance of bone mineral density. When oestrogen levels decline around menopause research highlights that women can lose between 2 to 3% of bone mass per year, which can result in reduced bone health making us more susceptible to conditions, such as osteoporosis. Regular weight-bearing and muscle-strengthening exercises can help to reduce the risk of poor bone health and negative health conditions. Studies have shown that post-menopausal women can not only maintain but increase BMD with rigorous strength and high-impact training. As such, taking part in high-impact and weight-bearing exercises, such as walking, running and bodyweight exercises is advocated to be one of the best tools to increase bone mass and prevent its loss
Minimise strength loss
Oestrogen plays a key role in muscle function, maintenance, and overall strength. As such, when your oestrogen levels begin to decline around perimenopause so too can our muscle mass and strength, which can increase our risk of conditions, such as sarcopenia. Therefore, regularly partaking in muscle-strengthening exercises is essential to prevent muscle mass and strength loss.
Additionally, oestrogen plays a vital role in muscle repair and recovery. Declining oestrogen levels around menopause might affect our body’s ability to adapt to training and increase recovery times. As a result of this, we often see an increase in tendinopathies in women during this time. In this scenario, it is important to stick to a tailored Physiotherapy regimen as the tendons will adapt and recover differently during the perimenopause and menopause stages than they would have previously.
Protect your pelvic floor
Urinary incontinence is a common effect of menopause which relates to the inability to control urine flow. Oestrogen helps to keep your bladder and urethra healthy and functioning properly. As you near menopause and oestrogen levels begin to decrease, the pelvic floor muscles can weaken as a result. Your pelvic floor muscles are located at the bottom of your pelvis and help to keep your pelvic organs (i.e., bladder, uterus, and bowel) in position. If the muscles begin to weaken, they may no longer be able to control your bladder as they did before. As your oestrogen levels continue to drop throughout and after menopause, your urinary incontinence symptoms may become worse. Importantly, this does not have to be an inevitable part of ageing, and there are things you can do to improve your pelvic floor health. For instance, keeping your pelvic floor muscles strong and active through pelvic floor exercises (i.e., Kegels) can help reduce the likelihood of dysfunctions.