Due to the pain and distress that symptoms of menopause can cause, women want it to end as quickly as possible. A common anxious question that women ask their doctors is: “How long does menopause last?”
Menopause duration in women
Every woman has a different physiological frame, being so, the severity of menopausal symptoms and its time span varies greatly. For most women, menopause roughly lasts from four to five years, covering all the stages. However, few symptoms associated with menopause like hot flashes and night sweats can remain from one to eight years and women may find this distressing as they have already been in pain for many years.
Before women actual begin menopause, they start to experience the symptoms of menopause and wonder when it will end. There is no fixed time for the period that menopause lasts though some people believe that those who have heavy periods have comparatively longer span of menopause and those who have lighter ones, for them menopause does not last that long. Moreover, there is another belief that suggests if any woman experiences early onset of menopause, she may also experience the prolonged span of menopause.
The average time span
There is no substantial proof alluding to the timeframe of menopause. All women are different and experience menopause at different times. Moreover in the case of some women their perimenopausal span may last up to four years before they actually begin menopause but again symptoms like hot flashes and night sweats may take longer to finish.
Treatments to get relief from symptoms
There are many methods which can be used to provide relief from menopause. Some are listed below:
- Medications like Hormone Replacement Therapy using bioidentical hormones or synthetically produced hormones to restore the imbalance. These also include estrogen supplements that are available in the forms of creams, patches and pill.
- Herbal supplements like Black Cohosh and Chaste Tree Berry have been proved to be beneficial in treating menopause symptoms
- One of the worst and often overlooked symptoms is anxiety, continuous irritation and depression and stress is identified as the trigger for this. Reduction in stress helps a lot to alleviate the severity of symptoms. It becomes highly important for a woman to keep herself free of any potential stress.
- Weight loss is often associated due to hormonal imbalances in this stage. Woman going through the phase of menopause must keep herself active. Light exercises are often preferred; however, avoid heavy exercises as they can trigger symptoms like hot flashes
- One of the most important ways to treat menopausal treatments incorporates right eating. Whatever treatment you choose, it should be well supported by right diet. Perhaps time has come that you get rid of your bad eating habits. Intake green vegetables, fruits, plenty of water, curbing intake of processed food, caffeine and alcohol will help you in long run.
Value of Family Support
At this time in a woman’s life, family support and care really counts. Those women who have supporting families are much more likely to go through a fairly peaceful menopause than those who exert themselves to be heard and understood.
As stated before, there is no specific time frame for menopause although some women may experience menopause symptoms for only a few years while others may take longer. It also depends on how women are able to handle themselves during menopause; some may feel no pain at all while other may find it as a very painful time in their lives. Menopause is something all women will go through at one point in their lives and it would be really helpful if they had a supportive and understanding family to help them go through the process by understanding their mood swings and offering support. In addition to this, relief can be found through continuous exercise, a healthy diet and various herbal remedies.
