Treating Your Menopause Symptoms: Know Your Options

Going through menopause can be a difficult and confusing process. Your body is changing, and you may feel as though you are out of control of your body and emotions. In many ways, it is much like puberty. The symptoms you feel can include emotionality, mood swings, depression, irregular menstruation, hot flashes, and hormone surges that can leave you feeling sick, just to name a few. These symptoms can be disruptive to your daily life, and can be just plain frustrating. However, there are several treatment options available to you that can help you through this transitional period in your life. All you need to do is learn what those options are and choose the ones that are right for you.

Bio-Identical Hormone Replacement Therapy

Hormone therapies have come under scrutiny in recent years for their sometimes questionable side effects. Conventional hormone treatments use either animal or artificial hormones to replace those hormones lost during menopause, bio-identical hormone replacement therapy uses the same hormones made by your own ovaries.

This is thought to be a safer alternative to artificial and animal-based hormones because they are more natural and are human-based. You are replacing the estrogen lost during menopause that your body can no longer produce. This can help alleviate symptoms such as fatigue, emotional instability, and the like.

However, hormone replacement therapies have linked with an increased risk of stroke, breast cancer, and other health problems. These tests were performed on conventional hormone replacement therapies, though. Long-term research is still pending on bio-identical therapies.

If you are interested in bio-identical hormone replacement therapies or other medical options to replace your missing hormones, your obgyn will be able to advise you of all of your options and prescribe you with the appropriate medications.

Get Your Vitamins and Other Nutrients

If you do not feel comfortable with the risks associated with hormone replacement therapies, there are other, more natural ways to treat menopause symptoms. Among these is making sure that you get proper amounts of vital vitamins and nutrients on a daily basis.

Vitamin D is particularly important when you are dealing with menopausal symptoms. It helps to balance and regulate your hormones, keeps cells and bones health, and is a natural mood booster.  You can be sure to get plenty of vitamin D by eating salmon, tuna, or eggs or even by drinking fortified milk. Vitamin D is also absorbed in the body through direct exposure to sunlight.

Beyond just vitamins, you can also relieve your menopausal symptoms with other foods and nutrients. Ginseng, for example, is a natural mood booster. It also relieves symptoms such as fatigue and mental cloudiness that can accompany shifts in hormone levels.

Yoga

Yoga is an ancient Eastern practice that focuses upon the connection between the mind and the body. The exercises, poses, and controlled breathing help foster calm and relaxation that can help you to handle the mood swings and depression that accompany menopause.

Additionally, any form of exercise (including yoga, of course) is beneficial to your overall health. Exercise releases endorphins that elevate your mood. Additionally, physical discomfort of menopause can be relieved through regular exercise and stretching.

As you can see, there are several methods ranging from medical interventions to nutrition and exercise. All you need to do now is give one or all of these options a try to help you through the transitional period of menopause.