Stages of Menopause

There are two stages of menopause namely, perimenopause and postmenopause in between which menopause exists. These stages of menopause actually are based upon the reason due to which the menopause period starts in women who are 45 plus. The above stated stages are the stages of natural menopause. But sometimes, menopause is not naturally induced in the body. For instance, when menopause starts due to a surgery, radiation, or drug therapy causing damage to the ovaries, these stages of menopause tend to be different. However, in this article, we are concentrating on the natural stages.
 

• Perimenopause Stage The transitional period in which the body begins to witness a fluctuation in the production of hormones is called perimenopause or pre-menopause starting several years before menopause (5 to 10 years). This stage is the first step that leads to menopause when the production amounts of estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone decrease in the body. When a woman enters the period of late thirties, the amount of progesterone produced by the body starts to decline. The up and down of hormone levels is a cycle to which many women need to adjust to and they are even successful in doing so. With this decrease in the hormone production, the body also witnesses a decrease in libido as compared to the experience in her twenties and early thirties. In addition, the reduction in the level of progesterone also leads to a decrease in fertility.
  
  Perimenopause is also seen as the arrival time of common menopausal symptoms irrespective of whether a woman is ovulating. Early symptoms of perimenopause witness an irregular ebbs and flows of hormone levels. These all of a sudden changes in hormones lead to menopausal symptoms like mood swings, irritability, and sensations of heat called hot flashes.
  
  You will definitely agree with the women who turn on the fan at the highest number or keep the AC on the lower temperature while suffering from hot flashes. These actions can be certainly understood to fight hot flashes as many women have gone through these changes before and that many are yet to bear these changes. The night sweat is the nocturnal cousin of hot flash, which involves a lot of perspiration on the skin. Mood swings are also common in perimenopausal women, which can be quite embarrassing.
• MenopauseA perimenopausal woman, before entering postmenopause, witnesses the clearest transition into menopause period characterized by variations in the menstrual cycle. A woman is said to enter menopause when she does not go through any menstrual cycle altogether. However, this might take some time between one and five years to prepare the body to adjust after the cessation of menstrual cycle. But until the cessation, you witness many changes in your menses. I mean your flow can be heavier than normal or lighter than normal or your period might come at closer or longer intervals. In addition, many women notice spotting between periods. Further, some women might undergo shorter or longer periods of bleeding than normal.
  
  It is only when 12 months have passed and you did not experience a single period, you have said to come out of perimenopause and entered menopause. In this stage, your ovaries stop producing estrogen or progesterone and that no eggs are now released. Now, there is a shift from rise and fall of the hormonal levels to a decreased production of hormones. This produces its own set of menopausal symptoms that become more prevalent in the postmenopausal years such as vaginal dryness and thinning of the vaginal walls.
• Postmenopausal StageThese are the years after menopause. In this stage, the symptoms of the perimenopausal stage tend to ease out as the body is now adjusting to the decreased fertility and hormone levels. Besides the symptoms of vaginal dryness, there are more symptoms that persist in this stage such as urinary tract infections, bladder weakness, and difficulty in controlling urine. Further, health risks due to the loss of estrogen can also be seen as the age of the woman increases.
  
  The various stages of menopause, perimenopause and postmenopause, cannot be induced by a woman. Therefore, they always are natural.