So...That's Why I'm Bonkers!: A girl's guide to surviving the menopause by Sheila Wenborne

Author:Sheila Wenborne [Wenborne, Sheila]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2016-02-10T23:00:00+00:00

The Male Menopause

While much has been made of how women change in older life, there’s mounting evidence to suggest that men have their own type of mid-life crisis.

Not just the type that gives them personal permission to buy a motorbike, unsuitable underpants and grow a ponytail, but a genuine hormone-related, debilitating kind of trauma that could have a dramatic effect on quality of life.

The symptoms aren’t necessarily the same. If men suddenly gained weight around the middle, lacked energy, were irritable and lacked virility we’d either be accusing them of a hangover – or an affair – rather than worrying about the natural signs of aging.

However, according to various reports there are an increasing number of men who are suffering from their own hormonal imbalances, most of which are going undiagnosed and untreated.

Known as Testosterone Deficiency Syndrome, or Andropause, it is still relatively unrecognised in the UK although more official bodies are popping up to at least talk about it, if not treat it. For example the Andropause Society has undertaken considerable research and offer some hope for men who want to improve their hormone levels.

The advice isn’t dissimilar to that given to women – moderate alcohol intake, reduce stress and generally follow a healthier lifestyle. According to the Society, if a man is diagnosed as being testosterone deficient then these measures should be adopted alongside any treatment prescribed to assist a man to return his hormone levels to what is deemed the normal range.

Regardless of diagnose, a recent Angus Reid survey found that 70% of the general public share the belief that men experience a mid-life stage similar to women’s menopause.

However, whether the term ‘male menopause’ is accurate is a debatable point among medics such as Dr Geoffrey Hackett, sexual health specialist at Good Hope Hospital in Birmingham, and the former chair of the British Society for Sexual Medicine.

‘Only twenty per cent of males experience low levels of testosterone whereas all women go through the menopause,’ he said.

However he does believe that male hormone replacement therapy is valid and worthwhile particularly when treating libido and erectile issues – citing it as both safe and effective.

This view may give reason to why the more medical term of ‘Andropause’ isn’t categorised as dramatically as it is in women – there are no periods to stop or obvious physical changes – but a more gradual decline in mood and energy as well as a lower libido and lack of physical agility.

There are also more serious health risks implied as the drop in testosterone can also contribute to problems such as heart disease and weak bones.

At about the time I was evaluating my life as a woman, my husband confessed to having a similarly cathartic experience regarding his age.

Although he couldn’t list quite the same physical symptoms, his mid-life event happened when he was taking stock of his achievements and evaluating his life. He woke up to the fact he was 50, not so much in crisis mode, by facing a crossroads. It was time to take stock, and take advantage of a new era.

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