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Pre Menopause - What is it?
Pre menopause is basically the years when a woman's body initiates the transition to menopause. This period of time is typically two years to about eight years in duration and the first year after a woman has received her last period is also added to the pre menopause time frame. Estrogen as well as progesterone levels tend to increase and decrease unevenly during this time in a woman's life.
The menstrual cycles seem to either increase in duration or decrease and menstrual cycles occur occasionally without ovulation. It begins at different ages in women but typically they will notice symptoms such as menstrual irregularities while they are in their forties however it has been reported than women have noticed the pre menopause changes while in their thirties.
Symptoms
Some of the symptoms are not very obvious while some are very noticeable. Women may have symptoms such as hot flashes and difficulties sleeping at night, mood swings, problems with their bladder as well as vaginal problems. Some women will have a reduction in fertility, changes in sexual desires, and loss of bone material and possibly and increase in the bad cholesterol (LDL) and a decrease in the good cholesterol (HDL).
The causes of the symptoms a woman experiences during pre menopause are basically caused by fluctuations in the production of estrogen as well as progestin hormones. Some factors that cause a woman to enter this stage in her life earlier than expected include not having a baby, heart disease, treatments for cancer during childhood such as chemotherapy or pelvic radiation therapy.
Studies have shown that women tend to experience menopause at approximately the same age as their mothers and sisters. Women that have a total hysterectomy and a bilateral oophorectomy have a significant increase in the possibility of having early menopause. In this situation women do not experience pre menopause. Chemotherapy as well as radiation therapy have been known to cause symptoms of menopause for women.
Medical Advice
When pre menopause symptoms occur some women decide to seek medical advice and treatment while other women just tolerate the symptoms. The symptoms and signs in some cases occur quite gradually over time and a woman may not even notice that she has entered the pre menopause state. Doctors suggest that if you are dealing with symptoms that are bothersome and cause problems in your life such as changes in your mood or irritating hot flashes you might want to visit your physician. For some women pre menopause does not interfere with their lives and they may not even realize it has occurred.
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