menopause

[anthea66]

I am going through the menopause, I am 52 years old and work full time, eating healthy diet counting calories and exercise 3 times a week and often more depending on how tired I am. I am suffering badly with fatigue and lack of energy and have to push myself to do normal things. I do have good days and sometimes a week of really pushing myself to stay awake at work and to go to the gym after work. I am on anxiety pills which has helped as I was feeling anxious about stupid things since starting the menopause but the main thing is the fatigue and energy. My mother took HRT and died of breast cancer so i am a little reluctant to take HRT, please can you let me know what may help.

[Fran McElwaine]

Hi Anthea,

Do you have any other symptoms? Such as brain fog or itchy skin?

How is your sleep at night? Do you wake up feeling refreshed and get tired later on in the day? Or do you wake up feeling tired as well?

I would love to know more about the type of exercise you are doing. Sometimes too much exercise (depending our our own particular needs at any given point in time) can cause as many problems as it solves. Strenuous exercise when we are tired, could be an additional stress on the body which could make the fatigue worse. I wonder whether you need to push yourself to go to the gym after work? Maybe taking a walk or a yoga class would be a better options for you at the moment?

I am also interested that you say you are counting calories. Does this mean you are on a low fat diet?

Our food requirements change as we get older and, although we need fewer calories, we need relatively more protein than we did when we were younger to keep our energy levels up. Also eating a lot of starchy carbohydrates and grains can make us tired by causing our blood sugar to spike and then it drops very low which makes us feel exhausted (often the cause of that mid-afternoon slump in energy).

Menopause is a unique experience for every woman who goes through it. What works for one person, may be completely irrelevant for someone else! But our symptoms are there for a reason - and that is to tell us that something needs to change. Nine times out of ten that something is to do with our diet, but there are also other potential causes as well.

I would love to know a little more about your situation before I make any hard and firm suggestions.

Thinking of you!

Fran