How We Can Help You Better Weather Menopause

Some people believe that the transition through menopause might involve some hot flashes, but these are easy enough to deal with, right?

That perception is far from what the 2 million American women who enter menopause each year face during this hormonal transition. The reality is that menopause can cast a very wide net over a woman’s health and overall wellness. While hot flashes are the most common side effect, they’re joined by a host of other serious issues that range from vaginal dryness to bone loss.

As gynecologic specialists who help women through every stage of their reproductive lives, Dr. David Seil Kim and our team at Yunella Women’s Health recognize that the transition through menopause is often very challenging for women. It’s for that very reason that we offer comprehensive menopause management services that are designed to ease the journey through menopause and beyond.

Menopause: Beyond hot flashes

We already mentioned that hot flashes are the most common complaint during and after menopause. About 75% of women experience vasomotor symptoms, which includes night sweats.

Beyond this common side effect, many women also contend with a spectrum of other menopause symptoms, which is why we’re now grouping them under a new term: genitourinary syndrome of menopause (GSM). Any time you see the term syndrome, it means that there are many possible side effects, which is certainly true of menopause, and include:

• Vaginal dryness, which affects half of women
• Bone loss: women can experience a sudden loss of bone density during menopause
• Urinary incontinence
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Cognitive symptoms, such as word-finding and memory
• Dry skin
• Hair loss
• Weight gain and weight redistribution
• Joint pain
• Pelvic organ prolapse

This list is far from complete, but it gives you an idea of the potential breadth and scope of GSM, which can have an extensive reach. Most women deal with at least one or two side effects during and after menopause, and often many more, and here’s how we can respond.

Easing your menopause journey

If you’re finding that menopause is upending your life and impacting your health, there are steps that we can take to offset certain complications.

Hormone therapy

The front-line treatment for menopause symptoms are hormone therapies that replenish lost reproductive hormones. There are several ways in which we can introduce hormones into your system, typically with patches, slow-release pellets, or pills.

Hormone therapy is a great solution for reducing vasomotor symptoms, preventing bone loss, and improving vaginal health.

Spot hormone therapy

If the idea of systemic hormone therapy doesn’t appeal to you, we can try spot treatments, such as topical estrogen creams that restore health to your vaginal tissues.

Medications for vasomotor symptoms

If you’re only dealing with hot flashes and night sweats, there’s a prescription medication that can turn down the heat without relying on hormones.

Lifestyle changes

Alongside medications and hormone therapies, it's important to implement a few lifestyle adjustments to deal with the changes in your body, such as:

• Exercising more, including strength resistance for bone strength
• Staying hydrated, which can help with dry tissues
• Performing Kegel exercises to strengthen the pelvic floor
• Reducing alcohol consumption, which can trigger hot flashes

A great way to approach menopause and its aftermath is to come see us for a baseline evaluation. From there, we can figure out which menopause treatments will work best for improving your quality of life and health.

To get that ball rolling, please call our office in the Mid City West area of Los Angeles, California, at 424-404-8832. You can also schedule a visit online today.