Peri-menopause

SYMPTOMS INCLUDE:

 

  • Heavy or painful periods

  • Breast tenderness

  • Irritability

  • Anxiety

  • Weight gain

  • Foggy thinking

  • Memory loss

  • Hair loss/thinning

  • Sleeplessness

  • Vaginal dryness

  • Weak bladder

  • Frequent urinary tract infections

 

Peri-Menopause

Fifty percent of women beyond the age of 35 are no longer ovulating consistently each month. This fact is important because women rely on their ovaries to produce both estrogen and progesterone.

It is only with ovulation that progesterone is released in the latter half of the menstrual cycle to balance out estrogen. Prior to menopause, the ovaries continue to produce estrogen throughout the month. In addition, we are exposed to environmental estrogens known as xeno-estrogens that are found in pesticides, plastics, personal care products, the food we eat and the water we drink. In other words, we are exposed to considerable amounts of estrogen at all times.

Estrogen needs to be balanced by progesterone. Progesterone comes from the ovaries with ovulation, and continues to be produced for the latter two weeks of a menstrual cycle. So, if a woman is not ovulating reliably in peri-menopause (the years leading up to menopause), in many cycles she will be estrogen-dominant – or, from another perspective, progesterone-deficient. This can manifest itself in the form of heavy or painful periods, breast tenderness, irritability, anxiety, foggy thinking and sleeplessness. These symptoms are often exaggerated in the one to two weeks leading up to menstruation and often dissipate within one or two days of menstruation starting. Fortunately, with physiologic dosing of bio-identical hormones, these symptoms can be significantly reduced, and in most cases eliminated.

During the transition to menopause, many women also begin to experience thinning tissues in the vagina leading to symptoms like painful intercourse, vaginal dryness or irritation, increased bladder urgency and frequency, burning with urination and recurrent urinary tract infections. These symptoms can also be reversed or significantly reduced with new state-of-the-art treatments.

 
 

Treatment of Peri-menopausal Symptoms:

The degree of the sex hormone imbalance dictates the choice of treatment.

 

Minor imbalances can often be corrected by addressing an underlying cortisol dysregulation or the use of essential oils or herbal remedies may also suffice. 

Bio-identical hormone replacement therapy may be administered to restore hormone levels and reduce or eliminate symptoms. And since the cause of urogenital tract symptoms are often a hormonal condition, replacement of these hormones can be of benefit for some woman.

 

New urogenital (vaginal and bladder) restoration treatments are now available and are very effective in rejuvenating these tissues.

Symptoms can be reversed or greatly diminished using CO2 fractional laser therapy (MonaLisa Touch®).

Photo-biomodulation therapy (vSculpt Pro®) is another effective option for treating these symptoms.

Microcurrent point stimulation therapy can be utilized to effectively relieve pelvic pain.