Women in perimenopause.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The peri-menopause  is the stage in a woman’s life when she begins the long journey into the menopause. The menopause is also called the transition or the change of life.

The peri-menopause ,  when the production of the female hormones estrogen and progesterone begins to decline starts from the age of forty and can last for as short as 5 years or as long as 10 years. Though the menopause is a new phase in a woman’s life and every woman should look forward to it, the perimenopause  however is something else because it comes with a lot of symptoms that  could be both disturbing and  debilitating if not well managed.

HORMONE THERAPY

Hormone therapy, also called hormone replacement therapy means when a woman is given estrogen or estrogen with progestin to help her cope with or relieve her of the symptoms of menopause or peri-menopause,  which include, vaginal dryness, hot flashes, mood swings, brittle bones, to mention a few, which are all as a result of lower hormone levels.

TEN FACTS ABOUT BREAST CANCER

·         For every 100,000 women, about twenty five will suffer from breast cancer.

·         Every woman whether young or old is at risk of breast cancer. It is easier to treat all cancers, including breast cancer if discovered early through routine self-examination, mammography, ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging. In other words, check yourself regularly and see a doctor if you notice anything strange.

·         Statistics reveal that about 1% of men have breast cancer. When they do, it is more deadly because men's breasts are smaller and have fewer nerves in them. So it is not an exclusively female disease.

HEALTHY DRINKS

FILL YOUR BODY WITH EXTRA VITAMINS, NUTRIENTS AND ANTIOXIDANTS THAT WILL BOOST YOUR ENERGY, STIMULATE WEIGHT LOSS AND FIGHT ILLNESSES AND ALLERGIES WITH THESE  HEALTHY DRINKS;

DYSMENORRHOEA

A woman who suffers from painful crampy  periods is said to have Dysmenorrhoea. Dysmenorrhea can be defined as menstual pain that interferes with a woman's daily activities.It  is also referred to as menstrual cramps.
Most women experience some sort of discomfort during their menstrual period but in dysmenorrhoea, the discomfort is marked with excessive pain which is enough to affect the woman's daily activities.

BREAST CANCER

Cancer can be defined as a disease whereby there is an uncontrolled division of abnormal  cells in a particular part of the body and these cells are able to invade other  tissues.There are different types of cancers but breast cancer is the second most common cancer in women.

FIBROIDS

Fibroids are non- cancerous tumours of the muscle fibres which make up the uterus. For some unknown reasons, one or more of the muscle fibres  which make up the uterus start developing and quite soon a few small pea-sized tumours appears deep in the muscle walls of the uterus. At this stage no one can detect them, but as the months or years pass, the tumours become the size of a golf ball, a tennis ball or a grape fruit

CAESAREAN SECTIONS

The word caesarean is a latin word which means to cut.The caesarean section often abbreviated to CS is a surgical procedure in which an incission or incissions is made in the lower part of the abdominal wall and through the lower part of the uterus. The baby is removed through the incission and then the incission is carefully repaired with stiches.

PREMENSTRUAL SYNDROME

 Premenstrual syndrome is a collection of  mood changes and physical symptoms that occur during the two weeks preceding the menstruation. In majority of women these changes are minor but in some women the changes are serious enough to affect  their well- being. as well as affect their inter-personal relations

LABOUR

The process of  child birth is called labour. It is labour because it is a time of work when the expectant mother  exacts a lot of energy in order to bring forth her baby.
Labour is the period from when a pregnant woman starts having contractions to  the time she finally delivers the baby.
Labour can also be defined as  the period of time from when the uterus begins to contract to the time the woman delivers.

MISCARRIAGE

A  miscarriage is the spontaneous  expulsion of the fetus  from the womb before it is fully  matured enough to live outside the womb.
A  miscarriage is when the  fetus is lost in the  first 20 weeks of pregnancy. 80%  of miscarriages  happen  before the 20th week of pregnancy. If a woman miscarries  after   the pregnancy has passed 20 weeks is called late miscarriage. Most  cases of miscarriages are due to the fact that the fetus has not formed  properly and nature is getting rid of it. Miscarriages could also follow  after a severe  or viral infection or because of some abnormality of the uterus particularly a cervix which is incompetent.

BREAST FEEDING

Breastfeeding is when a baby is feed by sucking on the mother's breast instead of using infant formulars. Below are some of the  benefits associated with breastfeeding;

1. Breast milk is sterile, balanced and appropriate for the human body.
2. Breast feeding enables the mother and baby to interact more fully than bottle feeding.
3. Breast  milk supplies substances which protect the baby against infections especially gastro-intestinal infections, respiratory infections and viral infections

THE MENSTRUATION

Menstruation is the periodic discharge of blood and mucuse tissues from the uterus and vagina.
Menstruation is the uterus weeping because pregnancy did not occur.It is the monthly shedding of a female's uteral lining It lasts from three days to one week and contains blood and tissue that leaves her body through the cervix and vagina.

FACTS ABOUT MENSTRUATION;
Few days before menstruation starts, many women  feel off colour. She  may feel  bloated, tired, irritable or have a headache.All  these may disappears  after menstruation sets in .
Menstrual cramps are common when a woman is experiencing her menstruation. Doctors think  that cramps are caused Prostagladin, a chemical that causes the muscles of the uterus to contract.
Some women crave certain foods while some develop acne.

PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH  MENSTRUATION
There are some problems women encounter in relation with menstruation. This include pain, heavy bleeding and irregular periods.
Some women have painful periods. This is called DYSSMENORRHOEA. This can be relieved with over the counter painkillers.
A woman's period may become excessively heavy. This  problem may be aggravated by clots being expelled too which leaves the woman exhausted. If this remains unchanged for a long time, the woman should consult a doctor who will examine her to find out if she has become anaemic, has high blood pressure, has fibroid or a tumour in her ovary.
Irregular periods may be as a result  of emotional upset, pregnancy, excessive exercise or by strict dieting. It could also be as a result of  a tumour of the pituitary gland or because she stopped taking birth control pills. The woman should see a doctor for examination and if necessary a specialist so that they can find out  why she is not menstruating. 

THE START OF WOMANHOOD

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Soon after a child is born, parents behave differently towards the child depending on its sex. The way parents  behave towards a child because of its sex as well as their expectations from that child has an impart on the pattern of behaviour of a child. This impart makes the child to behave in a feminine or a masculine way. Once the child's behaviour is conditioned in such a way, it is very difficult to change.
A child's masculine or feminine behaviour, depending on its sex has two components.  The first is the way a person behaves to others to demonstrate he or she is a male or female. The second is the person's own awareness that he or she is a male or female.

THE MENSTRUAL CIRCLE

This is the various changes that occurs in the uterus and ovary for the purpose of sexual reproduction. The menstrual circle is essential for the production of eggs and for the preparation of the uterus for pregnancy.It only occurs in fertile female humans and other female primates.
The length of a menstrual circle varies among women ranging from 21 to 35 days with 28 days being the average.
The menstrual circle can be divided into 3 phases. A circle is counted from the first day of one period to the first day of the next period. The way and manner the hormones rise and falls during the month controls the menstrual circle.
In the first phase of the menstrual circle, the level of the female hormone called the estrogen rises. Estrogen also makes the lining of the womb grow and thicken.
The second  stage is called the ovulation. This is when an egg is released from the ovary into the fallopian tubes.  A woman can get pregnant at this time  if sperm fertilizes the egg. A woman with a 28 days circle will ovulate on the  fourteenth day of her circle
The last phase  is the phase after ovulation. Hormones are further released  to thicken the lining of the uterus in preparation for a fertilized egg. If  a woman becomes pregnant, the fertilized egg attaches itself to the lining of the uterus, but if she doesn't get pregnant,  the lining is shed off and this comes out as  the menstruation and another circle begins.