After menopause: 4 questions about post-menopause symptoms – Part 2

Today's topic

Today on A.Vogel Talks Menopause, I take a look at what happens after menopause, I answer 4 more questions that have been asked about post-menopause.

Last week, I answered four common questions that I get asked regularly about post-menopause. And today, I am going to look at four more, this time focusing specifically on certain symptoms and what happens to them after menopause.

1. What is the most common cause of bleeding after menopause?

There can be so many reasons for this. If you're still within the two years post-menopause stage, very often, it's hormonal. Our hormones don't fall gracefully and slowly towards where they're going to go. Sometimes, for some reason, you can get a sudden spike. Your hormones can just go up for no reason. You could have been a year and a half without any periods, and suddenly, one appears. Very often, that could be the last surge.

It could be to do with stress or it could be due to a change of diet. For some women, when they start to improve their diet, it can cause a resurgence in hormones.

If, however, you're two years after your periods are finished, three years or onwards, and you get a bleed, this is the point when you do need to check with your doctor.

After menopause, your womb can get a lot thinner, and many women don't realise that they could have fibroids. Now, these are little benign growths in the womb. They can be there for years and years causing absolutely no problem at all. But when your womb starts to thin, these little fibroids can be exposed. They can be irritated, and they can bleed, and it can feel like a period. You can sometimes get cysts or polyps in the womb as well and these can bleed too.

It could be what's called a prolapse. So, this is where the pelvic girdle muscles, so these are muscles that hold the womb, the bladder, and the bowel in place. If these muscles weaken, then the womb, the bowel, or the bladder can shift position. And sometimes, the womb can end up being squashed. It can be pushed sideways, or backward, or even forward. And that can be enough to irritate it to cause a bleed.

It can sometimes just be a non-hormonal shedding of the lining of the womb. But, if after the two years, and I normally say after one year just to be on the safe side, if you get a period back, if you get a bleed, then please just double-check with your doctor to make sure that nothing else is going on.

If you get spotting, if just suddenly out of the blue you start to spot, this could indicate other issues. It could be a vaginal tear. This can happen if the wall of the vagina gets irritated, which can often happen after sexual intercourse. It could be a little spotting. And all that it means is that the very thin walls of the vagina have been irritated or split, and they will bleed, causing spotting.

It could also be a bladder infection. Many women panic if they see a little bit of blood when they go to the toilet, and think it's a period, when, in fact, it's coming from a bladder infection. So again, with these, just double-check with your doctor to make sure that nothing else is going on.

2. Does libido return after menopause?

This is quite a difficult one to answer because again, it's different for every woman. Some women tell me that because their periods have stopped because they're not worried about getting pregnant anymore, they feel liberated. They suddenly find that they have a much more enjoyable and active sex life.

For other women, they find that fatigue, hot flushes, night sweats, and decreasing emotional ties to their partner can still have an impact on their libido after menopause, which can all have quite a profound effect on the way they feel sexually.

Sometimes too, if we put weight on, if our body changes, we can get caught up in not looking like our youthful self. And again, that can affect our confidence. And many women tell me, they don't even want their partner to see them naked anymore because they just feel so bad, their self-esteem has gone down quite a lot.

So, with low libido, it can be emotional issues, in which case you can maybe chat with friends, maybe try and realise that you are changing but you're still a beautiful women. If it's physical, it may well be due to low hormones or to do with fatigue. So, look at your lifestyle. Are you running yourself ragged? Are you not making time for an intimate life with your partner?

You can look at herbs. Some herbs are nice at gently boosting libido. It would be things like maca, Siberian ginseng, and there is a herb, believe it or not, called horny goat weed. Yes, it is true. So, these are herbs that you can find at your local health food shop that may be helpful for you.

But again, it's about making time. It's about talking to your partner because I do know so many women, for various reasons, they just don't feel like it and their partners can get a bit annoyed by that because they just feel that they're maybe not being loved enough, or they're being ignored. And all the time, the poor woman is trying hard to please everybody and is just not being happy with herself. So, it's about talking to your partner and explaining what's going on with you, either physically or emotionally.

Some women tell me that what they've done is they've gone back to dating and started having date night maybe once a week or once a fortnight, where proper time has been set aside. And it's the anticipation that can sometimes be a really good aphrodisiac. You're looking forward to a time when you can spend with your partner. You can go out for a meal, go for a walk, just spend time together, and get that intimacy back, and just make time for it.

3. Are moods better after menopause?

From personal experience, absolutely. Menopause was like a yo-yo or a seesaw of emotions every month which was quite hard to cope with sometimes. But I found post-menopause, it was just so nice for everything to be on a nice level the whole time. So, for the majority of women, yes. You will find that your moods can be much more stable, you're less likely to get reactive. You can sometimes control your moods a lot better post-menopause.

Having said that, your nervous system can take a real beating during menopause when all the hormonal changes are going on. Sometimes, our nervous system doesn't bounce back, which means that you can fall into flight-or-fight much more easily.

I know, for me, my moods are much more stable. I feel great generally. But if I get stressed, it can start the panic and anxiety all over again. So, it's about being much more aware of what sets you off. For me, I have to watch if I get extra stressed or extra busy, if I don't drink enough water, if I don't look after myself, then the mood swings can come back. It's being a little bit self-aware about what's going on but generally, for most women, you will feel better emotionally post-menopause.

4. Will hair regrow after menopause?

This, again, is a difficult one because it depends on what was causing the hair loss or the deterioration in hair quality to start with.

We do know that for a lot of women, the thyroid can be affected. You can end up being borderline low thyroid function. That can affect your hair quite dramatically, both in terms of poor hair growth and also, the hair can become much more brittle and thinner.

During the menopause or even the peri-menopause, if you find that your hair is changing, this is the point that you need to take steps to prevent further deterioration years down the line.

So, you're looking at diet – this is very important. You need loads of protein for good hair growth so make sure you're eating plenty of good quality protein.

If you're vegetarian or vegan, it can sometimes be difficult. You can only eat so many plates of tofu, beans, and lentils. But, you can get really good quality plant-based protein powder from health food shops and just adding one of these into your daily diet can make a difference to your hair, your nails, your skin, and your energy. It's worth investing in something like this if you're just not too keen on adding protein into your regular diet.

Again, get your thyroid checked, even post-menopause if you suddenly notice your hair falling out. A classic sign of thyroid issues is if you start to lose the outer edge of your eyebrows or if your eyebrows completely disappear, then definitely get these checked out by your doctor.

It can also be stress. Stress eats up minerals and vitamins that we would otherwise use for our healthy hair. So, if you're under a lot of stress, under a lot of pressure, then maybe look at taking a multi-vitamin and you can now get really good supplements that are aimed specifically for your hair. Again, pop down to your local health food shop and they will point you in the right direction. These supplements can often make quite a difference.

The other thing to remember is water. If you're dehydrated, that will affect hair growth as well, so remember just to include your daily dose of plain water.

So, I hope you found this one helpful. If any of you have other questions about anything that's happening to you post-menopause and you're wondering why, please do ask by commenting below or asking me privately and I will be happy to help.

Until next week, take care.