Today's topic
Today on A.Vogel Talks Menopause, I'm going to be talking about five serious menopause symptoms that really shouldn't be ignored.
Now, we get thousands of emails and phone calls from women, month after month, asking about their menopause problems. And, on the whole, we are usually able to help in some way. It may be recommending herbs and supplements, or complementary therapies, or even just changing lifestyle and managing stress.
But there are some situations where our only answer is "please go and see your doctor about these symptoms", because we consider these to be too serious for home remedies and self-help.
What’s not normal during menopause?
So, I'm going to talk about five of these today.
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1. Prolonged bleeding
Now, the first one is prolonged bleeding. This is very common as you approach the menopause. A lot of women find that, as their hormones start to change, their periods get a little bit longer, they might get a little bit heavier, they might get a little bit closer together. This is just the way the hormones are changing.
But, for some women, these symptoms end up becoming extreme. We have had women contact us who have been bleeding continually for three months, and then they're asking us if this is normal. We're having women who're saying they're getting three periods a month. Is this normal?
Now, on the whole, yes, it can be. It's just the fact that these women's hormones have just gone completely crazy. But it's really important to seek medical advice, first of all. There can be a number of causes for this, and we don't know what they are.
It could be to do with fibroids. Now, a lot of women have these little growths in the womb. They don't do anything. They don't even know that they've got them. But, with the hormonal changes going on, the womb lining and the thickness can change. It can either get thinner or thicker. And this change can irritate these fibroids.
Fibroids as well can actually start to grow. If there's a lot of oestrogenic action going on, then these little fibroids can get bigger, and these can cause a lot of the bleeding.
You can also have things called polyps. These are other types of little growths that can appear in the womb.
You can also get what's called a prolapse. This is where the organs in the pelvic area start to shift and, very often, the womb can end up tilting or it can get squashed, which doesn't sound very nice, but that can trigger the bleeding, too.
So, these are instances where, please don't delay, get straight down to see your doctor:
- If the bleeding goes on for more than 7 days
- If you are getting more than one period a month
- If your periods are occurring more frequently than 24 to 28 days
- If you are getting clots
- If you are bleeding so profusely that you're having to change tampons or towels every hour or so
- If you're getting a lot of cramping, pain or a dragging feeling.
We do know that some women, very sensibly, have gone to the doctor about these symptoms. The doctor has told them, "This is completely normal. Let's just wait and see what happens". But please don't take this. This is one situation where you need some kind of proper diagnosis as quick as possible, in order to treat it properly.
You know, I always say to these women, "If you were bleeding from anywhere else in your body for more than seven days, no doctor would tell you just to hang on and wait and see what happens. So, just because you're bleeding vaginally, extra-long or for a lot longer than usual, doesn't mean to say that this is okay."
If the doctor won't take it any further and you are still bleeding, then please go straight to A&E and, hopefully, they can sort things out. And it's amazing how many women have done that, they have gone to A&E, they've got a thorough check-up, and everything has turned out to be all right. But at least it's put their minds at rest, and this is the important thing because worry is going to make everything worse, too.
The other thing that can happen with prolonged bleeding is that your iron levels can really dip. You can become anaemic. And anaemia will trigger fatigue, low mood, anxiety, poor sleep, joint aches, and pains. It can affect your hair, and your skin, and your nails, so this is not something that you want.
So, any extra bleeding, also just ask to have your iron levels checked, too.
2. Continual bloating
Now, we know that bloating is another really common menopause symptom. All the hormonal changes going on can affect your digestion. It basically just slows everything down, and that causes bloating. It can cause wind and it can cause constipation or sluggish bowels.
Digestive bloating tends to come and go. Very often, women will find that it's down in the morning, especially after they've opened their bowels. But then it tends to get worse during the day and then, by the evening time, that's when you feel your clothes are really tight.
You might have days where the bloating doesn't occur, and you feel absolutely fine. However, if you are getting continual bloating, which means it does not go down at all, it's there when you sleep, it's there when you wake up, it's there during the day, if you are getting a lot of cramping, if you are getting pain, and, again, if you're getting any kind of dragging feeling, then this does need investigating. It could be a prolapse.
There may be other things going on here too, so this is another really important one, especially if you have had it constantly for more than two weeks. Anything over two weeks, please go and get this checked out by your doctor as well.
3. Hot flushes years after the menopause has stopped
A few unlucky women do find that their menopause can go on for 8 to 10 years, and they will continue to get hot flushes. But, if you are through the menopause and everything has calmed down, then you suddenly start to get hot flushes or other menopausal symptoms, very often, this is due to other health issues.
So, it could be things like low iron, it could be low thyroid function, which can happen a lot in post-menopausal women.
It could be low vitamin D. Again, this is so common in women, especially in the UK. And it could also be low B12 levels, which we're finding more and more women are getting post-menopause here. So, in this situation, if you're getting flushes and sweats or other menopause symptoms that just seem to have suddenly appeared years later, please get this checked out by your doctor.
Ask for these tests just to rule them out. The other thing that can cause hot flushes and night sweats at any point of your life is ongoing stress and anxiety. So, again, if you're in a very anxious state, if there's a lot going on for you emotionally, then you can certainly look at some of the calming herbal remedies to add into that as well.
4. Severe low mood, severe anxiety or depression
For some women, the hormonal flux, as we call it, is so severe that it can cause really distressing emotional symptoms. So, anything that is getting you down every single day, any emotional symptom that is causing you distress, that is affecting your daily life, your work, your relationships, and your quality of life (especially if you get to the point where you feel that you're in a really deep hole and you cannot get out), this will need medical attention.
Over the counter, herbal remedies and supplements can work wonderfully well for normal anxiety, for general low mood, and if you're just feeling a bit fed up and a bit down. But these really severe emotional situations will need some kind of help.
So, again, don't sit there. Don't put up with these symptoms. Go and speak to your doctor, please.
5. Headaches
Headaches are another really common symptom in the menopause. And we were really quite surprised when we started looking into them because it wasn't something that was on our radar.
Menopausal headaches, very often, are caused by a sudden drop in oestrogen affecting the blood vessels, which go into a spasm and then that ends up causing tension up the back of the neck. And that can trigger headaches or even a migraine.
We know that fluctuating blood sugar levels can trigger headaches. We know that dehydration can trigger headaches. And these, as I say, are just the sort of common symptoms.
So, if you are getting regular headaches and you've tried to sort the dehydration, you've reduced stress, you've taken extra magnesium (because low magnesium can be a trigger, too), if you've done all of the self-help things and nothing has worked then, again, please get this checked out.
Remember, don't always blame everything on the menopause. Constant headaches (especially if you're having to take painkillers every single day), need to be checked out as well.
So, I hope you found this one interesting. As much as we want to help everybody, sometimes, symptoms are too severe and we really are happy when you go and get things checked out by your doctor. If any of you have any other questions at all, we're more than happy to hear from you.
