What do I need to know about Menopause?

Have you ever heard of “The Change”? Whatever you have heard it called before, it has always had an obscure ambiance. Growing up, it always led me to fear what would happen one day when Menopause approached. 

Women do not talk about it much, and when they do, there are no solutions offered for their discomfort; it just occurs, and women are expected to live with it. Hopefully, this post will give you some new tips, information, and encouragement to not walk through this season alone.

There are three stages of Menopause. 

Perimenopause (pre-menopause)

Usually, it occurs three to five years before the menopause stage begins. During these years leading up to Menopause, you may have irregular menstrual cycles and fluctuations in progesterone and estrogen. 

•Estrogen helps stimulate the growth of the egg follicle in the ovaries, thickens the vaginal wall, and promotes lubrication. Fluctuations in estrogen can cause an increase in vaginal dryness and irregular periods. Estradiol (E3) is a type of estrogen that is present during puberty and interesting enough during the onset of Menopause as well. 

•Progesterone is an anti-inflammatory hormone that is helpful for stress resilience and fertility and balances out estrogen so we don’t have an excess. Progesterone is pro gestation. It thickens the uterine lining to aid in egg implantation and is one of the main hormones in supporting pregnancy. Progesterone plays a significant role in our menstrual cycles, fertility, and pregnancy. (Kirst, 2024).  

Menopause

After having 12 consecutive months of amenorrhea (no period), you can conclude that Menopause has more than likely begun. 

“During this time, the ovaries begin to atrophy which causes a decline in the production of the hormones that stimulate the menstrual cycle; estrogen and progesterone.” (Ferris, 2023.)

During this stage and post-menopause, there may be more chances of hot flashes occurring. 

Post-menopause 

Due to the hormonal changes in progesterone and estrogen, the menstrual cycle will cease. There are no longer eggs released to be fertilized. This begins the end of reproductivity. 

Due to the decrease in estrogen, it puts many women at risk for osteoporosis. 

Osteoporosis is an irreversible bone disease that usually occurs in women who are fifty years old and older. It can also occur in men, but it is less common. It makes your bones weak and brittle, putting them at higher risk for bone fractures. Our body constantly engages in osteogenesis (bone production), replacing old osteocytes (bone cells) with new ones. Bones are weak in osteoporosis because the body cannot keep up with this process. 

Fun fact: the chronic use of steroids also increases the risk of brittle bones and fractures. 

A healthy diet with protein, vitamin D, calcium, and Weight-bearing exercises are the best ways to combat/prevent osteoporosis. 

What are hot flashes? 

I am sure you have experienced the sudden heat overcoming you out of nowhere. You begin to sweat, and your skin reddens. Hot flashes are usually more intense in your upper body, like your face, neck, and chest. Other symptoms women describe are increased heart rate, feelings of anxiety, and increased perspiration (sweating). When our body loses body heat through perspiration, it can lead to cold chills. 

Hot flashes usually last from a minute to 5 minutes, but these minutes can feel like forever when one hits, and you are trying to find relief. 

The best natural ways to combat hot flashes may sound obvious, but drinking cold water should help, as well as cold showers, wearing layers so you can discard layers when it happens, carrying a portable fan, deep breathing, and I have even heard from some that peppermint essential oils help with a cooling effect. 

What physiologically happens to cause hot flashes?

 The reason why hot flashes occur has yet to be understood entirely. We know that during Menopause, our bodies have many hormonal changes, which could cause these symptoms. “But most research suggests that hot flashes occur when decreased estrogen levels cause your body’s thermostat (hypothalamus) to become more sensitive to slight changes in body temperature. When the hypothalamus thinks your body is too warm, it starts a chain of events — a hot flash — to cool you down.” (Mayo Clinic, 2023.) Remember earlier when I said the body causes us to perspire to decrease our body temperature?

I have another blog that goes into more detail about how important the hypothalamus is for homeostasis. I will link it here: https://wonderfullymade-kmk.com/what-causes-us-to-be-afraid/

The psychosocial effects of Menopause

Sadly, many women feel as if their Womanhood is being taken away in their menopausal years. Their hormones feel as if they are all over the place; they have hot flashes and irregular periods, some report an increase in weight gain due to hormonal changes, they can no longer bear children, and usually, their kids are grown and off to college at this point. A once-massive part of their life of raising children has abruptly come to an end as kids leave home. This isn’t every woman’s story, but many lose their identity and try to find a new purpose for their daily walk. 

But let me gently remind you, sister, that though birthing and raising children is a beautiful gift the Lord has so graciously given us, it isn’t the only gift he has given to women. 

Biblical Womanhood

According to Titus 2, women are to be:

“reverent in behavior, not slanders or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good, and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled.”

What a gift it is to train up younger women in the church to love their God and his word, their husbands, and their kids. To teach them all the Lord has taught you so they can glean from the wisdom and teach other ladies.

If you are a mature woman and you are nervous about speaking with a younger lady because you think, “She probably would get annoyed and awkward about me asking questions, or she wouldn’t want to hear any advice from me.” 

Please do not refrain from doing something because you fear it being awkward or being turned down. The enemy works hard to keep you quiet and discourages you from investing in the lives around you. When you feel pressed to speak to someone, it is probably the Holy Spirit working on you to be obedient. 

Encouragement all around

This also encourages the younger ladies who are afraid to speak with the more mature women at church who have lived a little more life than them. I get it; I want to ask hard questions and see from wiser women what they would advise in my circumstances. I don’t always ask, but I always regret it when I don’t.

Hopefully, this encourages you to invest in the ladies around you, do life with one another, encourage each other, and spur one another on in the faith. This is what God calls us to do! 

Lord, thank you for the opportunity to not live our lives for ourselves but to invest in the lives around us for your glorification. Lord, please help us not to be selfish with our time but to freely give it up for your kingdom because this time we do have is not ours to begin with but is an instrument for your glory. We love you, God; thank you for each day. To you all glory, God. Amen. 

SOURCES

Ferris, E. (n.d.). Preparing for Menopause: Understanding the signs and symptoms in all three stages. Summa Health. https://www.summahealth.org/flourish/entries/2023/04/preparing-for-menopause-understanding-the-signs-and-symptoms-in-all-three-stages

Kirst, K RN-BSN. Why Is My Hair Falling Out? (2024, January 16). Wonderfully Made – KMK Blog. https://wonderfullymade-kmk.com/why-is-my-hair-falling-out/

Mayo Clinic Staff. (2023, December 12). Hot flashes. Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/hot-flashes/symptoms-causes/syc-20352790