Health Guide

Menopause, or “the change”, when a woman’s child bearing abilities diminish, is a long process than can take years.  And then there’s surgical menopause.  When you have to get a complete hysterectomy due to cancer or another illness, you not only save your life by losing the infected organs, but you wake up smack-bang into menopause.  This can be a shock to a woman’s body, especially if they are below fifty when they need their hysterectomy.  Knowing in advance what to expect while you recover from surgery can take some of the fear and discomfort away.

What’s The Difference?

Most of the hormones put out by your ovaries controls your menstruation cycles. These hormones are estrogen, progesterone and testosterone. In normal menopause, this diminishes gradually, since the ovaries are still chugging away.  But when the ovaries are completely removed, a vast majority of the hormones are gone.  There is some evidence that your adrenals and even your belly fat puts out traces of hormones, but not enough to stop surgical menopause.  It takes about a month for all of the hormones put into your body before your operation to disappear.  Considering that you’ll be recovering from major invasive surgery, you shouldn’t notice any changes for several months due to your painkillers.

Is It Hot In Here?

You’ll know when surgical menopause really takes a hold of you.  You get the hot flashes made of in comedy routines, your body hair grows even crazier than usual, your voice may deepen, you may get insomnia and your sex drive will go up and down like a rocket.  Just like with your period, some women get more cramps than others.  It can be really annoying to be going through surgical menopause and know a woman who shows barely any symptoms whatsoever.

This Pill Is Made Out Of Horse Pee

Many women going through surgical menopause find relief with hormone replacement therapy.  These come in pills, patches and creams.  The most infamous drug is Premarin, which is made out of pregnant mare’s urine.  There are many questionable practices in the making of Premarin, so many women want an alternative.  If you have ever used a patch successfully to get your medication, hormone replacement patches may be for you.  Patches react differently for different women.  There is also a cream available.  These hormones are made from plants.  Before taking any of these, discuss it with your doctor.

Sadly, you still need to take mammograms, cervical smears and eat healthy even without the ovaries.  You can’t get out of that.  Being physically fit can help reduce the discomfort of surgical menopause.