Stress And Menopause
Older Women And Stress
So stress and menopause are connected, no surprise there I’m sure many of you would agree. After all one of the major causes of stress in our lives is change and the menopause is definitely a big change in any woman’s life.
Unfortunately no woman can avoid going through the change”, it’s just a fact of life we all have to face at one time or another. However how we handle this change will determine how stressful we find it and how it affects us.
Stress And menopause – How are they connected
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| picture by Pizzodisevo flickr.com |
This is an easy question to answer as basically when we go through menopause the female hormone Oestrogen starts to dramatically reduce in our systems. This means that;
- We have less protection for our hearts against heart disease
It can cause symptoms of:
- Hot flushes
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Loss of sex drive
- Feeling flat
- Risk of osteoporosis
Everyone a stressor which we would prefer not to experience if possible. Unfortunately we may not be able to avoid some of these but by practicing stress relief techniques and strategies we can reduce there affects.
Stress relief for the older woman
The two best ways to tackle stress and menopause symptoms is to:
- Learn how to slow yourself down and relax often. Meditation and other mind and body relaxation techniques can help with this.
- Keep yourself fit with exercise. This exercise should include strength training to help keep the bones and muscles strong.
The senior woman and stress
There are other emotional stresses which the older woman will encounter. Things like:
- The loss of a partner or friends
- Children leaving home
- More aches and pains
- Feelings of uselessness
This is why it is important that as you get older you start to put yourself first more often and find time for life’s little pleasures.
Things to consider are:
- Make sure you cultivate a social support network. This might mean joining new clubs or societies or rekindling old friendships.
- Make sure you do not become house bound, find things which will get you out of the house and engages with life.
- Take up a hobby, something that will also have a social aspect are the best ones. So perhaps joining a knitting circle or helping with organising local fetes.
- Stay active, make sure exercise is a part of your everyday activities. Yoga or Tai chi are very good exercises for the older person.
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