Today's topic
Today on A.Vogel Talks Menopause, I'm going to be discussing whether it's possible to get period symptoms without a period in the menopause.
Is it possible to get period symptoms but no period during menopause?
So, can you get period symptoms without a period in the menopause? The answer is yes, you certainly can. It is really quite common.
It's amazing how many women come to us wondering whether this is a menopause symptom or not. There are a couple of slightly different scenarios here.
Missing periods
Some of you may start to miss periods. You might find that you miss one or two and then get a couple of periods back. Then, you miss maybe three or four periods and get some back again. In the months where you are missing periods, you may find that you still get all the usual PMS symptoms as well.
Periods stopped
For other women, it could be that your periods may have been stopped for six or seven months or even longer but, each time, at the same time of the month, you still get exactly the same symptoms that you used to get before your periods stopped.
What causes period symptoms without a period during menopause?
So, why does this happen? It's nearly always due to low oestrogen. All that's happening here is that your oestrogen is starting to fall, but it still has a cycle every month, so it still goes up in the middle of the month and down towards the end of the month. It's still high enough to trigger those PMS symptoms but it's not high enough to trigger a period.
So, what kind of symptoms are you likely to get?
Most women will find their symptoms to be very similar to the ones they had before they started menopause. But, sometimes, they can be exaggerated and they can even be worse than they were before, which is not a nice situation to be in.
So, you might find that you get cramping, which tends to be the most common symptom. You can get the bloating. You can get the sugar cravings. You can get the breast tenderness, the irritability, the bad mood, the anger.
You might find that you get constipated, and you might find that you just feel really uncomfortable and heavy in this particular area.
Can periods come back after they have stopped?
This is another question which we are often asked. The answer is yes. Your hormones don't fall nicely and neatly as you go through the menopause. You can have times where your hormones are falling, so you'll get these particular symptoms I mentioned above. But then your oestrogen can start to go up again, so it can end up peaking to the point where it could trigger your periods to start back up again.
So, as I said before, there are quite a few different scenarios where this can happen.
What can help?
So, what can you do about all this?
Magnesium
Look at magnesium. This is great for everything but especially for things like PMS, irritability, and bad mood. It can help sometimes with breast tenderness, and it's really good for the sugar cravings as well. You can top up your magnesium intake with our Menopause Support tablets.
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Vitamin B
You can also look at vitamin B complex. Again, this can help to just even your mood out.
Help your gut
You might get digestive bloating – what might happen is you will get up in the morning with a reasonably flat tummy but, by the time you get to the evening, you just feel as if you've swelled up like a balloon!
This is very often due to your falling oestrogen affecting digestion and the transit time of food, so you end up creating more wind and bloating in the gut. For something like that, we have our Molkosan Fruit. You could also take a good, one-a-day probiotic which can often be very helpful.
Drink plenty of water
Remember the water. That's really important to help with this whole process because dehydration can make everything worse.
Ease constipation
If you are getting constipated, that buildup in the whole pelvic area can be enough to create problems with your monthly cycle and can also influence these sorts of PMS-type symptoms.
So, if you get constipated during the menopause, it's really important to remember the water and also make sure you're just getting plenty of really good, fibre-rich foods, loads of fruits, and loads of vegetables.
When is the point you should contact your doctor?
If you're experiencing pain and cramping to the point where you have to take painkillers, then definitely go and see your doctor. If it's debilitating or affecting your daily regime in any way, please go and see a doctor.
And, if the bloating you're getting is constant (which basically means that you're waking up bloated and you're going to bed bloated), then please go and just get these checked out by your doctor as well.
I hope you found this one interesting, and I will look forward to next week for another edition of A.Vogel Talks Menopause.
