On average, women enter menopause at age 52. This is the period in women's lives when the ovaries produce fewer and fewer hormones. You will notice that your menstruation becomes irregular and eventually stops. You may also experience menopausal symptoms. Usually, this change is slow. Some women have few symptoms, other women have many menopausal symptoms.
General menopause
Typical menopausal symptoms: Of these, hot flashes are the most well-known. A hot flash is when you suddenly feel very hot and start sweating. Sweating at night is also a well-known complaint. Some women also suffer from fatigue, mood swings, joint pain, skin changes or changed body perception. It is difficult to predict how much someone will suffer from these symptoms, this is different for every woman.
Sexuality: Due to the low amount of female hormones, women often have less sexual desire (medical term: libido). The mucous membrane of the vagina also becomes thinner and the vagina becomes drier. This can cause a sensation of dryness and/or pain during intercourse.
Early menopause
By removing the ovaries, the production of hormones stops immediately. The main disadvantage of removing the ovaries is early menopause. You enter the menopause 10 to 15 years earlier than when you do not have surgery. The typical menopausal symptoms can then appear suddenly, while they appear gradually during natural menopause. In addition to the symptoms of the normal menopause, early menopause also increases the risk of diseases in later life:
- Osteoporosis: After the menopause, there are fewer hormones and therefore less bone formation. This increases the risk of osteoporosis. The chance of bone fractures is therefore also greater.
- Cardiovascular disease: Due to the absence of female hormones after the menopause, the risk of cardiovascular disease, and death from it, is higher.
- There may also be a greater risk of memory problems.
There are ways to reduce these disadvantages of early menopause, including taking hormones.
Hormone replacement
We recommend using hormones from surgery until the age of about 50. This can be done, for example, with tablets, a spray or with patches combined with a hormone-containing intrauterine device. However, not all women want or are allowed to use hormones. For example, hormones are not recommended for women who have had breast cancer. You and your doctor will decide if you can and want to use hormones.
Hormone replacement often helps to alleviate menopausal symptoms. The typical menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes, night sweats and sexual symptoms often decrease, but do not always disappear completely.
Hormone replacement therapy does not work as well as the hormones of your own body would. Nor do they work equally well for all women. Sometimes it takes a while before the right hormone replacement therapy is found. In addition, it has not yet been proven that hormone replacement helps against all menopausal symptoms. They probably do prevent some of the osteoporosis. They may also work against cardiovascular disease and memory problems, but we don't yet know that for sure.
Women who have had breast cancer are better off not using hormones and there is no evidence that these hormones can be used safely. However, there are reasons, for example with severe menopausal symptoms, to discuss hormone replacement with your doctor.
After having hormone-sensitive breast cancer, hormone replacement is almost never an option. After hormone-INsensitive breast cancer (triple negative), hormone replacement is also not recommended. However, if you had hormone-INsensitive breast cancer a long time ago (for example, more than 5 years) with a lot of menopausal symptoms, you may still be able to try hormone replacement therapy. You can discuss this with your doctor.
Non-hormonal treatment
Some women do not want or are not allowed to use hormones. There are other ways to deal with menopausal symptomse. These include lifestyle recommendations (healthy diet, exercise, no smoking, less/no alcohol) that can apply to every woman.
There are also medications without hormones that can reduce hot flashes and sweating. These medications are less well researched and less effective than the medications with hormones. You should therefore discuss this with your doctor. Sexual problems can be reduced by using a lubricant or Premeno Duo. Use of vitamin D is recommended to reduce osteoporosis.