Anxiety and Menopause

The stresses of life alone can cause a great deal of anxiety, but then pair that with menopause and you’ve got the makings of a fun time.  Seriously though, either of these issues would be enough to handle alone, but when a woman has to deal with anxiety issues plus menopausal symptoms it can almost be unbearable at times. 

Studies have shown that for women in perimenopause, the time leading up to actual menopause, anxiety levels were directly related to the severity and frequency of hot flashes.  Women with the highest levels of anxiety reported almost five times as many hot flashes as other women who experienced less stress and anxiety.  Even those women with a moderate amount of anxiety suffered three times as many hot flashes as the less stressed women.  These findings are interesting because it seems that women may have some control over the severity and frequency of hot flashes by getting their stress level under control.  Other things that may need to change are being overweight and cigarette smoking as both can also increase hot flashes and other symptoms during menopause. 

Women who have battled anxiety, depression and panic attacks before starting the menopausal phase may suffer these to a greater degree during this phase.  It has been found that regular exercise before menopause and during menopause helps to lessen the likelihood of anxiety symptoms during menopause, as well as not taking in too much caffeine and getting too little sleep.  Counseling may also help some anxiety sufferers learn coping techniques to help manage their anxiety better and hopefully relieving some of the menopausal symptoms.  If the anxiety symptoms are very debilitating antidepressants may be recommended for a short period of time to help relieve the symptoms of anxiety and possibly helping the menopausal symptoms as well.  The perimenopausal time has a way of bringing things to the surface that have not been dealt with to that point, so for some women who have very few unresolved issues menopause may not be as stressful of a time as for other women who may have unresolved issues. 

Trying some of the methods above, as well as trying to reduce your stress load during menopause may help to curb the symptoms of menopause to some degree.  It may be best to cut back on activities and demands for your time and attention and don’t feel guilty about it!  It is for your own health.