Managing menopause

Menopause happens at a time in life that can be stressful for a number of reasons. You might be caring for ageing relatives, children, managing work or home related stress while at the same time dealing with a significant life event.

Remember to be kind to yourself, inform yourself as much as and you can and know that there is help and support available such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) a treatment that is used for menopause care. Your GP can direct you to Silvercloud, a virtual mental health platform.

Every woman experiences menopause differently. You should talk to your GP if:

• you have menopausal symptoms that are worrying you
• you're experiencing symptoms before age 45
• your periods have stopped for a year or more before age 45
• you experience new onset of heavy periods after the age of 45 years

Your GP will be able to help you and can recommend treatments, including HRT. The Irish College of General Practitioners (ICGP) has assembled a helpful list of resources about menopause. This includes a video with Dr Nóirín O’Herlihy explaining the risks and benefits of HRT, and if HRT is a suitable option. More than 90% of women going through menopause experience symptoms. While the majority will be able to self-manage their symptoms successfully, 1 in 4 will need medical management.

There are a range of actions and lifestyle changes you can take. Eating well, exercising and looking after your mental wellbeing can all help during perimenopause and menopause while also helping to keep you as well as possible in the future. Below are some helpful tips:

• be active. Remember, not everyone enjoys high intensity or vigorous workouts, and others prefer exercising alone rather than in teams. Any sort of movement is good for you. Try and find an activity that you enjoy. Weight-bearing activities where your feet and legs support your weight like walking, running or dancing, or resistance exercises (for example, using weights) help protect your bones
• get plenty of rest and try keep to regular sleep routines. Generally, people need between 5 and 9 hours a sleep a night. The ideal amount is 8 hours, but this can be different for everyone
• eat well. Healthy eating is important to help maintain overall good health and physical and mental wellbeing. Try and eat more healthy and varied foods and more calcium-rich food like milk, yogurt and kale
• talk to other people going through the same thing, like family, friends or colleagues
• if you are a smoker, try to stop smoking by visiting www.quit.ie
• do not drink more than the recommended alcohol limit