Learn to Identify the Symptoms of Menopause

Menopause is a time in a woman's life when her ovaries cease the production of estrogen. When her estrogen levels are low, menopausal symptoms begin to appear. If she hasn't had a period for one full year, she is officially in menopause. It's a complicated process, but completely natural and it will happen to every woman. However, each woman will have different symptoms.

Some fortunate women may never experience menopause symptoms at all. However, it's believed that approximately 75 percent of women will have some kind of menopause symptoms. The degree and frequency of these symptoms will also vary according to the individual.

Typically, the symptoms of menopause range from mood swings to hot flashes to night sweats. Mood swings are actually very common in menopausal women, and greatly resemble the symptoms of PMS. Other common indications of menopause are periods that become erratic, as well as urinary tract or vaginal infections.

Irregular periods, both in frequency, intensity and duration, are a common precursor of menopause. In some instances, periods may be shorter than usual, or sometimes much longer. As well, bleeding can range from heavy to light. The amount of time between your periods may also vary considerably.

Hot flashes are another symptom of menopause. A hot flash is an unexpected sensation of intense heat which passes through your body. You will notice that your face becomes red, you start to sweat profusely, and you might become anxious or irritable. A hot flash is highly unpleasant, but completely unavoidable. They can last anywhere from a few seconds to several minutes. Most women swear it lasts much longer than that. Once again, though, it differs depending on the individual.

Generally, hot flashes are predominant in the first two years following the onset of menopause and gradually diminish. However, some women will continue to experience them for several years after menopause. One woman was known to be experiencing hot flashes at the age of 80.

Hot flashes that take place in the nighttime can interrupt your sleep. Indeed, many women find that their bedding gets soaked with sweat when a hot flash occurs during the night.

Vaginal dryness is another symptom of menopause, along with itchiness and irritation. Few women have major problems with these conditions immediately following menopause, but they will progress through time. Medical professionals believe that about half of all women over 60 years of age experience vaginal dryness to some extent. It's interesting to note that having regular sexual intercourse can help keep this problem under control.