Health Conditions

What are the symptoms?

Menopause is usually associated with distinctive symptoms. Although many women have very little trouble dealing with menopausal symptoms, about 40% of American women report symptoms that disrupt their normal functioning to some extent. Approximately 85% of women experience vasomotor symptoms ? most often hot flashes. Vasomotor refers to the interactions of muscles and nerves that cause blood vessels to shrink and expand. Although the exact causes of vasomotor menopausal symptoms are not yet known, they are associated with disruption of the body?s temperature regulation by changing hormone levels. Hot flashes are sudden, unprovoked feelings of heat ? usually on the face, head, neck, and chest. They may be accompanied by rapid heartbeats, reddened skin, and/or heavy sweating. Typically beginning a year or more before menopause, individual hot flashes may last for a few seconds or for several minutes; they may occur singly or in groups; only a few may occur per day or they may occur frequently; they may happen at any time of the day or night; and they may persist for several years. Generally, however, both the length and the number of hot flashes decrease gradually until they disappear eventually for most women.

Other symptoms of menopause may include:

• Decreased interest in sexual intercourse
• Difficulty in concentrating
• Dry, thin, easily bruised skin
• Inability to control urine
• Insomnia
• Mood changes (such as anxiety, depression, and/or irritability)
• Night sweats
• Spotting (small amounts of blood from the vagina) and/or abnormal vaginal bleeding
• Thinning or lost hair
• Vaginal dryness
• Urinary Tract Infections
• Vaginal infections
• Waking up earlier than usual