Menopause is generally not a phase of a woman’s life that she anticipates with joy. Some women see it as an inconvenient reality while other women have a harder time with the prospect of menopause. It’s understandable why a person might dread the idea of menopause; it comes with a lot of physical and emotional changes. Our thermostats seem just to go awry, leaving us with hot flashes and night sweats. Emotionally we may feel all over the place and mentally we may feel foggy and forgetful. After all, menopause is a change in the body’s chemistry, and chemistry is what controls the way things work. Hormones that our bodies have depended on for decades are suddenly not there regularly anymore. It’s no wonder there are some mental and emotional changes for most menopausal women.
The most common emotional concern that women face during menopause is mood swings. Emotions are affected by hormones. Our brains produce and regulate hormones that can make us feel joy, sadness, rage, affection and more. When those hormone levels fluctuate, as they do during menopause, it’s not uncommon to feel as if we no longer have the same level of control over those emotions that we once did. For some women, this means menopausal depression.
The depression that some women face during menopause is not just a “bad day” like the kinds that we all experience from time to time. Saying that menopausal depression is just “feeling sad” is like comparing an atomic blast to a firecracker. The idea that depression is equal to sadness is inaccurate and outdated. For some people, depression manifests itself as sadness, for others, it is a feeling of “nothingness” as if any ability to feel any emotions has been wiped away. In some women, menopausal depression manifests itself as a feeling of complete and constant exhaustion; tasks that were once simple seem like they require more energy than they can muster. Some women will sink into a deep depression during menopause, and no matter how much they want to, they simply cannot “snap” out of it. Their thoughts may tell them that what they are feeling doesn’t make sense, but their brains are filling their bodies with hormones that negate that message. In other words, they know what they are feeling makes no sense, but they cannot stop feeling that way.
When this kind of depression associated with menopause is present, whether it is present in yourself or a friend, there is truly no need to suffer. There is help available for you. Consulting with a physician can help women with menopausal depression find the best possible solution for them. Be encouraged, good days can be ahead as post menopause has its advantages! You won’t be shopping in the tampon isle anymore!!
Of course, you know that I make sure to enjoy my soy shake every day, providing 20 grams of soy protein and 160 milligrams of isoflavones!
