Mood Swings & Menopause

When you think of menopause symptoms hot flashes & thinning hair usually come to mind for us first. We don't often think about how menopause can affect our mood swings & emotional wellbeing.

If you or your partner have experienced a sudden change in mood or depression and anxiety KEEP READING!

How Your Hormones Could Be To Blame

Going through menopause can often be accompanied by mood swings so bad it may have you wondering what on earth is going on! Estrogen levels can be partially blamed for these mood swings that seemingly come out of nowhere.

One minute you're up and one minute you're down but how you treat. your mood swings will depend on how severe your mood swings become.

So what causes these mood swings?

As we age our estrogen levels fluctuate from one day to another and they are quite erratic. Estrogen helps your body boost serotonin levels which is a mood-regulating neurotransmitter. In addition, fluctuating progesterone levels block serotonin production which unfortunately leads to more mood swings.

Depression & Anxiety During Menopause

If you experienced signs of depression and anxiety in your life you are more at risk to start experiencing these symptoms again during menopause. Women appear to be more vulnerable to depression during perimenopausal years & the years that directly follow menopause.

Taking care of your emotional health during these times are crucial. It's also important to let your doctor know you suffered from depression or anxiety earlier on in life if you find yourself start to display other symptoms related to hormone imbalance or menopause.

It's also important to reflect on if what you're feeling is, in fact, depression or if mood swings may be to blame for the emotions that you're feeling. Does the sadness you're feeling come on out of seemingly nowhere or are you living in a constant state of fog & sadness?

Have other people pointed out a change in behavior? These are all things you will want to discuss with your doctor.

Common Symptoms

Knowledge is power and the more you educate yourself about the symptoms the better you will be able to deal with the symptoms.

Let's outline a few NORMAL symptoms that you may be experiencing.

Irritability
Increased impatience or total lack of patience
Aggression
Lack of motivation
Difficulty concentrating and forgetfulness
Feelings of increased stress or tension
Nervousness and anxiety
Feelings of sadness, depression and melancholy
Fatigue (may be caused by lack of sleep)

These emotions can be frequent or easily triggered. It's important not only you understand what's going on but to also share these symptoms with your loved ones. By letting your partner know what's going on they can come from a place of love and understanding rather than take this personally.

What Can I Do About These Symptoms?

Mood swings may be unavoidable during menopause, but there is hope!

Here are a few natural ways you can regulate mood swings in addition to seeking medical help:

Eating a healthy diet
Try and stay away from sugar, caffeine & alcohol as these may worsen symptoms
Fit a regular exercise routine into your day
Try practicing self-calming practices such as yoga or breathing
Reconnect with your loved ones & partner
Find a hobby or creative outlet you can fall back to when you don't feel like yourself

Tried everything thing on this list with no luck? Take the first step by taking our hormone self-assesment quiz. for yourself or your partner.

Bioidentical hormone optimization may be the answer you've been looking for if you want to safely & naturally help with menopause symptoms.

Find an Hormone Therapy Provider

For Information: (323) 986-5100 Email: info@sottopelletherapy.com

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