Each year in the United States, one million women begin their transition through menopause. While the lucky few can sail through this hormonal journey with ease, most women face changes that can have no small impact on their quality of life.
From sleep loss to night sweats to vaginal dryness that’s putting a serious dent in your sex life, menopause can leave its mark in some small and big ways.
This is why scores of women choose to make their journey through menopause a little less rocky with hormone replacement therapy, which we offer here at Capital Women’s Care. Our compassionate team of women’s health specialists understands the widespread impact that menopause can have on women, and we’re here to help.
In the following, we explore some myths and facts about hormone replacement therapy so you have the information to help figure out whether it’s right for you.
When we talk about hormone replacement therapy (HRT), it isn’t one treatment. There are many ways we can replenish reproductive hormones lost to menopause.
For example, if you only want to address vaginal dryness, we can get you set up with a topical estrogen cream, vaginal ring, or suppository that limits the treatment to your vaginal walls.
If, however, you're dealing with a wide range of symptoms, we might recommend a more systematic approach using patches, pills, or injections that increase your system-wide levels of estrogen and progesterone (or progestin).
About 75% of women who transition through menopause experience hot flashes and night sweats, which can be very disruptive. Hormone therapy is a fantastic way to turn down this heat.
Another very common side effect of menopause is vaginal dryness. Your estrogen hormones regulate ovulation, but they also encourage good vaginal tissue health and lubrication to encourage intercourse and facilitate childbirth.
So, when the hormones dry up, so can your vaginal tissues — more than half of women between the ages of 51 and 60 report vaginal dryness.
Through HRT, we can reestablish lubrication in your vagina and also improve the tone and texture of your vaginal walls, which should help make sex more comfortable.
Another unfortunate side effect of transitioning through menopause is a loss in bone density. Up to 20% of bone loss in women occurs after menopause, and 1 in 2 postmenopausal women will develop osteoporosis, placing them at great risk for fractures.
Through systemic HRT, we can delay this bone loss and help you maintain stronger bones in your 50s and 60s.
While hormone therapies can work extremely well in helping women to better weather the transition through menopause, it doesn’t eliminate the issue. Changes will still take place in your body as part of the natural aging process and the shift in hormones. Not to mention, you may still experience some of these symptoms when you stop your HRT.
Ultimately, the decision to undergo hormone therapy is one that only you can make. Our role is to ensure that you have the information you need to make an informed decision.
If you have more questions about dealing with menopause or you’d like to find out how hormone replacement therapy can help you, please don’t hesitate to contact one of our three offices in Frederick and Mount Airy, Maryland, to schedule a consultation.
