What Are the Benefits of Menopause?

Women sometimes dread or even fear menopause, but the truth is that it has several positive features. Menopause can be a time to relax. Many of the painful, uncomfortable and unpleasant parts of being a woman are over, and women can gain a sense of freedom that they never had before.

No Menstrual Periods

• When women have their menstrual periods, they usually bleed from 3 to 5 days. Pads and tampons can be messy. Tampons have also been linked to toxic shock syndrome. Although it is now evident that tampon use is not the only source of TSS, menstruation is still involved in about half of all cases of this rare disease. Also, pain during menstruation is a problem that can be serious enough to interrupt daily activities for some women. After menopause. these problems are gone.

No More Premenstrual Problems

• Premenstrual syndrome symptoms include headache, bloating, fatigue, sleep and eating irregularities, breast tenderness, irritability and mood swings. The symptoms come along a week or two before the menstrual period. According to Mayo Clinic obstetrician Mary Gallenberg, M.D., around 30 percent of women who are in their menstruating years have PMS. An even more serious premenstrual woe is in store for about 8 percent of those with PMS: premenstrual dysphoric disorder. In PMDD, the feelings of anxiety, being on edge, irritability, and anger are so severe that work and social relationships suffer.

No Pregnancy Worries

• Once a woman has gone through menopause, she no longer has to be concerned about pregnancy. Especially at the age of most menopausal women, pregnancy can be a problem and involves health worries and lifestyle changes. The fact that pregnancy is in the past is a relief for most women. Birth control devices or pills are no longer necessary, making sex more carefree.

Less Prescription Restrictions

• There are many prescription medications that cannot be taken when a woman is still menstruating. There is a concern that the woman may be pregnant and not be aware of it. If the medication is harmful to a fetus, a woman with any possibility of pregnancy cannot take it. For example, a pregnant woman cannot use certain acne medications such as accutane, retin-A, and tetracycline. If a woman is menopausal, she can make a decision about a medication based on her doctor’s recommendations about her own personal health.

Fewer Medical Restrictions

• When a woman goes to her doctor, the doctor will want to know whether she is pregnant or may become pregnant. Procedures that might damage a fetus are not off limits for a menopausal woman. Procedures that would ordinarily affect the woman’s ability to have a baby later are no longer a source of agonizing decision making over whether to give up the possibility of having a child. After menopause, there is a kind of freedom in medical care that gives women more options.