Great Sex: A Man's Guide to the Secret Principles of Total-Body Sex by Michael Castleman

Author:Michael Castleman [Castleman, Michael]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Self-Help, Sexual Instruction, General, Health & Fitness, Sexuality, Psychology, Human Sexuality, Family & Relationships, Love & Romance, Men's Health
ISBN: 9781594869914
Google: po2omMPAzXIC
Amazon: 159486991X
Publisher: Rodale Books
Published: 2008-03-31T18:30:00+00:00

THE SEXUAL CHANGES OF MENOPAUSE

Many men believe that menopause involves a few weeks of hot flashes around a woman’s 50th birthday. Menopause actually happens gradually over many years. And while hot flashes—sudden feelings of uncomfortable heat—are a hallmark of menopause, there’s a lot more to it, including important sexual implications.

Menopause is a perfectly natural passage, but some women have a harder time of it than others. You should know what to expect and how to help when the woman in your life goes through it. If you’re well informed and supportive, you can help minimize the upsets of this life transition and minimize disruption of your lovemaking.

Medically, menopause marks the end of women’s fertility. Production of the female sex hormone estrogen gradually declines. As this happens, her ovulation and menstrual periods become less regular, and eventually cease.

Menopause is a fairly new phenomenon. As recently as 1900, American women’s life expectancy was around 48, so few women lived long enough to experience menopause. Today, women’s life expectancy is about 80 years, so most women live for decades beyond menopause. For much of the 20th century, physicians mistakenly considered menopause an illness that required treatment. Some women do, indeed, benefit from treatment of its symptoms. But in the last 25 years, women’s health activists have reclaimed menopause for what it really is: a normal transition into a new stage of life, often one of productivity, wisdom, and personal fulfillment—including sexual satisfaction.

The first thing men need to know about menopause is that estrogen production begins to decline during a woman’s late 30s or early 40s. During their 40s, most women notice some menstrual irregularity—skipped periods, heavy periods, spotting between periods, periods lasting longer than 7 days, or periods happening more frequently than usual. After age 45, most women notice the beginnings of the two major menopausal complaints: hot flashes and vaginal dryness, which become increasingly noticeable as they approach 50.

The second thing men need to know is that a woman’s menopausal experience is unique. About 20 percent notice no physical changes, other than a gradual cessation of menstruation. About half of women experience mild discomforts. And 30 percent endure considerable distress. The reason? Women’s broad range of reactions to hormonal changes.

Then there’s “chemical” or “surgical” menopause, sudden loss of estrogen because of chemotherapy, usually for breast cancer, or removal of both ovaries, usually during hysterectomy or for treatment of ovarian cancer. Because chemical and surgical menopause occur suddenly, they tend to cause more severe discomforts—and often well before age 50.

Here’s what often happens when a woman experiences menopause.

Hot flashes. These sudden feelings of heat occur without warning and last from 30 seconds to 5 minutes. Usually the face, neck, and chest are most affected. Hot flashes often cause significant sweating. They can strike anytime, day or night. At night, they often disrupt sleep, spurring women to kick off the covers. Women who develop significant hot flashes typically have them for a year or two, though some experience them for longer. The cause of

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