The Feel Good Guide to Menopause by Dr Nicola Gates

Author:Dr Nicola Gates
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: ABC Books
Published: 2018-12-23T16:00:00+00:00

Stress, as we have already seen, causes a reduction of progesterone and oestrogen, and both of these female hormones influence mood. Oestrogen is described as ‘nature’s psycho-protectant’ because of its de-stress effect. In men under stress, testosterone that enters the brain is naturally converted to oestrogen, which lowers their stress. Similarly, when people are given oestrogen replacement they experience lower stress too. Progesterone too has a sedative, relaxing and anti-anxiety effect, which also reduces stress responding.

The interwoven complexity continues. Serotonin is important for normal mood. Stress reduces serotonin, and oestrogen influences how much serotonin we have. Oestrogen affects serotonin levels via different pathways so when oestrogen goes down during menopause serotonin goes down too. When stress goes up oestrogen, progesterone and serotonin go down. Now enter menopause. In peri-menopause, oestrogen, progesterone and serotonin fluctuate and menopause starts, and when oestrogen and progesterone go down, serotonin dips and stress goes up. Taken together, no wonder the fluctuations and ultimate reduction of these hormones during the menopausal transition can leave some women feeling stressed, anxious or sad, or that their mood goes up and down like a roller coaster. It is believed that it is the fluctuations that cause the most detrimental impact – a slow reduction is less problematic.

Added to this are the knock-on effects to other hormones. The increased production of cortisol during stress means that there are fewer resources available to make other vital hormones for a healthy body and mind, along with decreased immune function and increased inflammation. A group of hormones that particularly suffer are those associated with positive mood. These are the four feel-good hormones of blissful endorphins, pleasurable dopamine, connection oxytocin and normal mood serotonin. Going in the opposite direction are the negative consequences of increased adrenaline, which impairs sleep, which increases fatigue, which contributes to brain fog, and all of this reduces the body’s ability to rest and restore. Not surprisingly this exacerbates your stress load and the whole negative cycle starts again.

For some women symptoms, and their responses to them, and possibly a lack of compassionate support, can make menopause stressful. A six-year study published in the journal Menopause found that stress and anxiety preceded hot flushes and that higher stress levels were related to increased flushes – both in frequency and intensity. Stress levels are also related to night sweats. The interpretation is that women who worry suffer more. It can also become cyclical, whereby the prospect of flushes occurring causes stress and anxiety which leads to them occurring.

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