I. Menopause is a physiological process
Menopause is also known as perimenopause, as a woman, as long as you live long enough, everyone must go into menopause, is a transitional period in which women’s ovarian function gradually decreases to disappear, can show a series of symptoms of maladjustment, generally between the ages of 45-55 years old, about 85% of menopausal women can appear the disorder, 25% of symptoms are more serious, some people have very light symptoms and short duration, through psychological Some of them are mild and short-lived, and can be reduced or disappeared through psychological adaptation and heart activity adjustment, but others have more severe symptoms and require pharmacological intervention to manage them. The average life expectancy is increasing, and women spend 1/3 of their lives (or more) in menopause and postmenopause. Improving the quality of life of menopausal and postmenopausal women is a problem for everyone and an important issue for the medical community to face.
Second, the most common clinical manifestations of menopause are
1. Menstrual disorders: mostly irregular menstrual cycle, varying duration and volume, gradually lengthening menstrual cycle, gradually decreasing menstrual volume until it stops completely.
2. Mental and neurological symptoms.
① hot flashes and sweating, which are typical symptoms of phytonadic dysfunction.
(2) Mental allergy, unstable sleeping mood, agitation and irritability, or depression, or anxiety and suspicion, often unable to self-control.
③ sleep disorders, insomnia, difficulty in falling asleep, early awakening, and excessive dreaming.
3. Changes in the urinary and reproductive tract: dry and wrinkled vulvar skin, thinning of subcutaneous fat; dry vagina, shrinking uterus; often recurrent urinary tract infections, or intermittent urinary incontinence.
4.Osteoporosis, easy to have limb and body aches and pains, easy fatigue.
5.Menopausal women also have anxiety, pessimism, hypochondria, suspicion and some other bad psychological states.
6, menopause will have a number of diseases begin to gradually appear, the common are.
①A variety of geriatric diseases: such as hypertension, coronary heart disease, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, osteoporosis, obesity, etc.
②a variety of gynecological tumors: uterine fibroids, vulvar tumors, ovarian tumors, breast tumors.
③ other gynecological diseases: vaginitis, menopausal hemorrhage, menopausal depression, etc.
Third, concern about early menopause
In recent years, due to many factors, early menopause is becoming more and more common, generally at the age of 45-50, but outpatient clinics often see women around 40 years old with menopausal symptoms. This is what we call “early menopause”. The causes of early menopause may be related to the excessive pressure of modern women’s work life, overwork, disharmony in sexual life, unreasonable use of contraceptive drugs, excessive weight loss, multiple abortions and other factors.
To treat premature menopause, women should discover it early, pay attention to it early, diagnose and treat it early, and regulate it early.
Chinese medicine’s understanding of menopause
According to the Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Internal Medicine, “Women …… have a weak Ren pulse, a weak Taichong pulse, and a weak Tianjue, and the earth is not accessible, so the form is bad and childless. ” We believe that menopause is a time when the liver and kidneys are deficient and the function of the Chong Ren pulse is gradually declining.
The treatment of menopause in Chinese medicine is based on the adjustment of qi, blood, yin and yang, nourishment of kidney yin, draining of liver and qi, and the application of Chinese medicine to treat the symptoms of menopause with the combination of dietary regimen, appropriate exercise and psychological adjustment to reduce symptoms, delay aging, enhance physical fitness and improve quality of life. There are many kinds of Chinese medicines in common use, such as: Yi Yao Wan, Di Huang Wan series, Gui Shen Wan, Kun Tai Capsules, Gynecological Yang Rong Capsules, etc..
If you can go to the hospital and ask the doctor to take your pulse and treat the symptoms according to your situation, the effect will be better.
V. About estrogen replacement therapy
In western countries, about 40% of menopausal women are using estrogen replacement therapy, there is a survey in China, among postmenopausal women, the proportion of applied hormones is less than 2%, probably with the therapy the therapy has many contraindications and has the advantage of causing endometrial hyperplasia, making many people unable, or unwilling to use this method. Our obstetrics and gynecology scholars are also definitive on this issue, and believe that estrogen replacement therapy can relieve the symptoms associated with menopause.
There are several principles to follow when supplementing estrogen.
1. Whether estrogen supplementation is needed. Always go to the hospital for a physical examination before using estrogen to see if estrogen supplementation is needed. Doctors advocate the safe and individualized use of estrogen.
2. Can estrogen be supplemented. Estrogen replacement therapy has many contraindications, such as those with unexplained vaginal bleeding; severe liver and kidney dysfunction; and lupus erythematosus. Cautionary symptoms such as migraine, epilepsy, asthma, hypertension, gallbladder disease, etc.
3. How to supplement estrogen. Must be treated under the guidance of a doctor.
Sixth, the correct and frank face of menopause
Of course, we should face menopause correctly. It is a natural law that every woman has to go through, and the dysfunction of the body during this period is not always a disease, but an imbalance of endocrine regulation in the body during the transformation process. We should be prepared for this natural physiological change. The best choice is to age gracefully and healthily!