If you are a woman navigating perimenopause, menopause, or post-menopause, several helpful tips may make your transition easier.

This blog discusses menopause tips and lifestyle adjustments a woman can make to stay healthy before, during, and after menopause. Learn how these changes can help alleviate the severity of symptoms and ease the transition.

Helpful Lifestyle Changes for Menopausal and Postmenopausal Years

Challenges and triumphs exist in every stage of a woman’s life, and the years before, during, and after menopause are no different. But there are some helpful menopause tips and lifestyle changes that can help you transition through menopause gracefully.

When it comes to this transition, some of the most common symptoms associated with menopause are night sweats, hot flashes, weight gain, fatigue, headaches, and mood swings, which can be attributed to the decline in estrogen levels and other hormone changes. These symptoms can begin as early as four years before menopause (perimenopause) and last several years after a woman has reached menopause.

Menopause also increases the risk of heart disease and osteoporosis. Staying healthy by making dietary changes, getting adequate exercise, and managing stress can help reduce this risk and relieve bothersome menopause symptoms. We review these menopause tips in more detail below.

Menopause and Diet

One of the most common complaints women have during menopause is weight gain. Weight gain occurs during menopause when there is a drop in estrogen, causing a slower metabolism. Other troublesome side effects of unwanted weight gain include lowering a woman’s self-image and putting her at risk of high cholesterol, heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes.

Eating a healthy diet low in fat, high in fiber, and filled with fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and high-quality protein can help manage weight. It can also ensure you get the nutrition you need to keep a healthy body and mind while preventing diseases.

Other ways you can improve your diet during and after menopause include:

• Increasing your Vitamin D and Calcium intake – Vitamin D and Calcium in dairy products, such as milk, yogurt, and cheese, and green leafy vegetables like spinach and kale are essential for bone growth and preventing serious bone fractures. Talk to your doctor about vitamin supplements if you’re having trouble getting enough of these vitamins through your diet.
  
  
• Eliminating processed foods – Processed foods with added sugar and simple carbs are inflammatory foods that spike blood sugar and make hot flashes more frequent and severe. These foods have also been associated with a higher chance of anxiety and depression.
  
  
• Limiting alcohol and caffeine — A lack of sleep is a common complaint with menopause, and eliminating alcohol and caffeine from your diet can help improve sleep quality and reduce hot flashes. Alcohol and caffeine can also trigger anxiety and depression and intensify hot flashes.

Are you eating healthy but still gaining weight? Find out what could be hindering your weight loss here!

Menopause and Exercise

Exercise can benefit women of all ages, especially menopausal women. Staying active is a great way to keep a healthy mind and body, improve sleep, and alleviate menopause symptoms like hot flashes. Strength training can also help with weight loss as this builds muscle, and muscle burns calories more efficiently than fat.

Exercising can also help:

• Improve depression and anxiety
• Weight loss or maintaining a healthy weight
• Strengthen bones and prevent osteoporosis
• Reduce emotional stress and physical inflammation
• Prevent heart disease
• Strengthen muscles and balance
• Encourage an overall healthier lifestyle and self-care practices
• Boost self-confidence

Exercise can be fun, and there are many ways to incorporate it into your daily routine. It’s never too late to join a weightlifting class at your gym, try a yoga class, or start a walking group with a few friends – whatever motivates you to get moving!

Don’t know where to start? Take a look here for restorative and supporting yoga poses for menopause.

Menopause and Smoking

You can add menopause to the many reasons you should quit smoking. Research has shown that women who smoke can go into menopause about a year earlier than nonsmoking women and two years earlier for heavy smokers. Early menopause has been linked to an increased risk of heart disease, stroke, and osteoporosis.

Smokers are also more likely to have severe and frequent menopause symptoms like hot flashes and difficulty sleeping, making the transition through menopause more difficult and uncomfortable than nonsmokers.

Quitting an addiction can be scary, but know you are not alone. If you smoke and find quitting hard, resources and support are available to help.

Read about the five reasons why calling a quitline could be your key to successfully kicking your smoking habit.

Menopause and Stress

Another common complaint from women during menopause is an increase in stress. Cortisol levels increase during menopause, which can trigger stress. Stress can wreak havoc on our hormones, making menopause symptoms worse. While eating a well-balanced, healthy diet and daily exercise can help relieve stress, this may not be enough.

The following are additional ways you can ease your mind and body by managing stress during and after menopause:

• Yoga and meditation
• Creating a relaxing bedtime routine
• Getting enough sleep
• Regularly treating yourself to a massage
• Getting your hair and nails done
• Talk therapy
• Limiting alcohol and caffeine intake

Sex can also help you relax and relieve stress. Although, many women find that menopause negatively affects their sex life due to vaginal dryness caused by a drop in estrogen.

If vaginal dryness is causing painful sex, don't hesitate to contact your doctor. Over-the-counter lubricants, as well as localized estrogen therapy, can help ease vulvovaginal discomfort.

You don't have to live with vaginal dryness and painful sex. Call us today to set up an appointment to discuss your treatment options!

Preventative Health

If you have reached menopause, scheduling annual wellness exams with your Moreland OB-GYN provider is still important. Your doctor will continue to screen for breast cancer, thyroid disease, osteoporosis, diabetes, and more! They will continue to be an excellent resource for answering any health questions.

It’s also important to know that while you can no longer get pregnant, it’s still possible to contract a sexually transmitted infection (STI) after menopause. Routine check-ups are a great opportunity to discuss the signs and symptoms of an STI and schedule screenings if you are not in a monogamous relationship.

Learn more about the preventative steps you can take today to care for your health in the future!

Consider joining our Moreland Midlife Facebook group! It's a great way to connect with others who are going through similar experiences and challenges.

Talk to your Doctor

If these menopause tips have helped, but uncomfortable symptoms still disrupt your everyday life, talk to your Moreland OB-GYN provider. Other options and treatments are available to help, including hormonal replacement therapy and non-hormonal options like antidepressants, which have been shown to ease hot flashes.

At Moreland OB-GYN, we proudly have Menopause Practitioners certified by the North American Menopause Society on staff. Our trusting and caring providers are dedicated to helping women transition through menopause with ease and comfort.

We hope you’ll contact us today to schedule an appointment. Don’t deny yourself the healthcare you deserve and need to live your healthiest and most fulfilling life before, during, and after menopause!