The "Beast" of Menopause
I think its appropriate at this time of year around Halloween, to refer to Menopause as a "beast" that needs to be tamed. it is not uncommon that I hear from men,"I don't recognize my wife anymore." Women too complain that after hitting menopause they begin to act in a way that is uncontrollable and equally as unacceptable. Many women experience changes in their personality and behavior that are extremely damaging to relationships with loved ones including ageing parents, children or their male partners. Often this can lead to significant unhappiness and needless suffering. Women have said to me that they are afraid to interact as they are unable to control their emotional outbursts. This is what I am referring to as "the Beast" of menopause as these women feel that they have been "possessed". Suzanne Somers has said that she believes menopause is the cause for most of the divorce in our country. Christiane Northrup refers to this as the "Wisdom of Menopause". I don't see much "wisdom" when relationships are irreparably damaged, families are blown up, and careers destroyed by the emergence of "the Beast". What is going on here? Many women feel out of control, and do not like it. Could this all be due to changes in hormone levels? The simple answer is "yes"!
When I replace women's missing hormones with bioidentical equivalents, women often thank me for giving them their life back. Luckily, we now have bioidentical hormones that are derived from wild yams. They are not synthetic and are not extracted from animals. They are chemically identical to human hormones and physiologically work the same. The body can't distinguish them from the originals. My Approach is to replace "missing hormones" in the same pattern they existed previously. By doing so normal body function is restored, especially in the brain. Hormones are messengers. They tell cells what to do. When they fall to very low levels as in menopause, cells in the body are suddenly cut off from the control center. The brain suffers especially severely. This accounts for much of the mood and behavior changes associated with menopause. The same happens with men as they age ,but not as dramatically. I frequently hear women mention that they don't know what happened to the fun loving guy they used to know. As he has transformed into a grouchy old "bear", who no one wants to be around.
What about breast cancer?
I hear this a lot too. The incidence of breast cancer goes up AFTER menopause. Why don't women with high hormones before menopause get breast cancer? Could it be possible that hormones makes the body healthier, and boosts the immune system to fight off cancer cells? Two studies in Europe right now have been going on for 7 years with women starting bioidentical hormones right at the time of menopause. So far those studies show no increase incidence of breast cancer. One arm of the Women's Health Initiative study,following over 100,000 women on the artificial horse hormones premarin and provera showed that the women who had hysterectomies and were not given the provera(the artificial progesterone) had NO INCREASE in breast cancer. This leads us to believe that perhaps it was the CONTINUOUS ARTIFICIAL PROGESTERONE and not the estrogen at all that caused an increase incidence of breast cancer.
I believe hormones are health enhancing if replaced correctly and monitored closely. Certainly, considering all the benefits of mood,behavior,body function,improved bone density,lower heart disease risk and improved cholesterol, it seems evident that the benefits far outweigh the risks.
Well, if you want to be a grouchy,irritable,'Beast', this is the best time of year to "wear that costume".
Just remember, there are some excellent options.
HAPPY HALLOWEEN !
All my Best in Radiant Health,
Howard Liebowitz,MD
310.393-2333 TOLL FREE (877) 397-4953
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