1. Understanding Menopause
Menopause is the natural process that signals the end of a woman's reproductive years. It also includes a host of other symptoms and conditions that vary in degree of their severity and duration. As the baby-booming population ages, it is estimated that more than 5,000 American women each day reach menopause.
2. Getting Prepared Through Perimenopause
About 10 years prior to menopause occurring, a woman's body starts to prepare by reducing its production of the female hormones, estrogen and progesterone. These are the two primary hormones that enable every woman to menstruate and become pregnant. During the perimenopausal time, periods start to change: they may become shorter, longer or more irregular. Typically, this transition period of perimenopause starts to occur sometime in a woman's forties although some women may experience signs in their mid to late thirties. It can last from five to 15 years and ends one year after a woman's final menstrual period. The actual duration and severity of symptoms varies from woman to woman.
3. Hitting Menopause
According to the Mayo Clinic, a woman does not technically "hit" menopause until one year after her final menstrual period. In order to reach menopause a woman must not have had a period in 12 consecutive months. In the United States, the average age for menopause is 51 but the symptoms may start before that.
4. Understand Late Versus Early Menopause
If a woman has her final period between the ages of 55 and 60, she is considered to experience late menopause. On the opposite end of the spectrum, if a woman has her final period between the ages of 40 and 45, she is considered to experience early menopause or premature menopause. This occurs because the ovaries cease to function properly. There is some research that suggests having thyroid disease, autoimmune disorders, diabetes, chemotherapy or radiation may cause premature menopause. But the cause of many of the early menopause cases remains unknown.
5. Learn About Postmenopause
Once a woman has reached menopause, she enters into a postmenopausal state. Postmenopause is all the years after menopause or more simply stated, all the remaining years of a woman's life. During this stage, hormone levels can continue to decrease. Therefore symptoms of reduced hormone levels may continue for a few years until symptoms no longer exist. According to the North American Menopause Society, an American woman spends one-third to one-half of her life in postmenopause.
