Recognising Menopause Symptoms

October is Menopause Awareness Month and so we wanted to provide a series of pieces about the menopause to help educate and raise greater awareness of the many menopause symptoms.

What is Menopause?

Menopause is said to have occurred when a woman has stopped menstruating for 12 continuous months as a result of lowering oestrogen levels. It can take as many as 10 years of lead up time to reach this point, a period known as perimenopause, in which many women start to show menopause symptoms, some of which can be difficult and distressing. Menopause typical occurs around age 50 (median age is 51 years old), but a small percentage of women experience it earlier, from age 40 onwards.

About the Menopause Symptoms

There really is quite a wide variety of symptoms and many of them can be addressed though various approaches, holistically, as well as medically. If you are finding you have these symptoms and want to explore options, it is definitely advisable to speak to your gynaecologist. Both myself, Dr Madhavi Manoharan, Obstetrician and Gynaecologist (OBGYN) and my colleague, Dr Lisa Joels, Obstetrician and Gynaecologist, are experienced menopause doctors, working from our dedicated Women’s Health Suite here in Grand Pavilion.

Common symptoms can include:

  • Body odour
  • Breast tenderness and loss of breast fullness
  • Burning mouth sensation, and dry mouth
  • Dental problems & metallic taste in the mouth
  • Hair loss or thinning hair
  • Dry skin
  • Itching
  • Vaginal dryness and itching
  • Fatigue and inability to concentrate
  • Sleep problems or insomnia
  • Mood changes
  • Chills
  • Night sweats
  • Irregular periods and/ or skipped periods
  • Weight gain and slowed metabolism

There is considerable variation from one person to the next, from almost no symptoms to many, and with big differences in the frequency and severity of symptoms. Often women don’t associate many of the above menopause symptoms with menopause until they start seeing irregularities in their periods, and hence the need for greater awareness of just how menopause can affect you.

Are there consequences to menopause symptoms?

For many women, the consequences relate more to the distressing and disruptive nature of the symptoms, for instance the effects of fatigue or say night sweats. However, there is some recent research suggesting women who have two or more serious menopause symptoms are at greater risk for heart disease and stroke. Besides this, the loss of oestrogen production can also lead to other health issues, some of which can be quite serious. This is a topic in its own right, and the subject of our next piece.

In the meantime, if you have any concerns, we’d be delighted to help:

Menopause Care Cayman Islands

Lisa-Joels

Dr Lisa Joels

Obstetrician & Gynaecologist
MB ChB, MD, FRCOG, FHEA
Tel: +1 (345) 745 7450 (clinic)
Email: [email protected]

Dr Joels has 36 years’ experience in obstetrics and gynaecology including 19 years as a Consultant working in Swansea (2001-11) and subsequently at the Royal Devon & Exeter NHS Foundations Trust in the UK (2011-20). She was lead clinician for prestigious Fertility Exeter and is passionate about women-centred care.

Services

  • Obstetric Services (Pregnancy)
  • High-Risk Obstetric Service
  • Fertility Services
  • Gynaecology Care & Surgery
  • Paediatric & Adolescent Gynaecology

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Madhavi-Manoharan

Dr Madhavi Manoharan

Obstetrician & Gynaecologist
MBBS, MD, MRCOG
Tel: +1 (345) 745 7450 (clinic)
Email: [email protected]

Dr Manoharan has 23 years’ experience in obstetrics and gynaecology, including more than a decade at tertiary level, 7 years as consultant at the prestigious Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust and a number of years as Assistant Professor at the world-renowned Weil Cornell Medicine, located in their Qatar campus, part of Cornell University.

Services

  • Obstetric Services (Pregnancy)
  • High-Risk Obstetric Service
  • Fetal-Maternal Medicine
  • Gynaecology Care & Surgery
  • Coloposcopy (Accredited)

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Clinic Location & Open Times

The Grand Pavilion Commercial Centre, Hibiscus Way, 802 West Bay Road.

  • Monday to Friday: 8.30am first appointment, 4.30pm last appointment
  • Saturday: 8.30am first appointment, 12.30pm last appointment

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