Menopause is the end of menstruation and fertility in females. According to MayoClinic.com, it is a natural biological process that often comes with both physical and mental symptoms that can be a big disruption to your body and life. There are a few prominent mental symptoms that can result from menopause.
Mood Swings
According to Harvard Health Publications, mood swings are more common during perimenopause -- which is the period after regular monthly menstrual periods cease but before it has been a year without a period -- because hormone fluctuations are higher at this time. Women during this time can often go from one mood extreme, such as being giddy with happiness, to the other end of the scale, such as crying. These mood swings may arise from a variety of factors, including insomnia and disrupted sleep patterns that often afflict women during this time, causing fatigue and irritability. However, Harvard Health Publication says that there is scientific link proven between menopause-induced estrogen lowering and mood swings.
Memory and Concentration Problems
According to Harvard Health Publications, women often complain of short-term memory problems and difficulty concentrating during the perimenopause phase. At one point, this was attributed to lower estrogen levels, but other research indicates that stress could be a bigger factor. The Women's Health Initiative found that estrogen treatment increased the risks of later mental problems. Harvard Health Publications recommends that women challenge the brain in a wide variety of new ways to keep it functioning at optimum levels. As of 2010, it is unclear as to what causes memory issues during the menopause cycle.
Depression
The Massachusetts General Hospital Center for Women's Health says that doctors and scientists were already trying to link depression to menopause over a century ago. It is unknown even as of October 2010 as to what causes or triggers some women to develop depression during menopause, though some theorize that hormonal changes alter the equilibrium in brain neurotransmitter systems. This seems reasonable because the rates of depression are much higher during perimenopause than later when estrogen levels are low and stable. Another theory is the domino effect of physical changes like night sweats and sleep disturbance, all of which combine and lead to mental problems.
