If you begin to experience hot flashes and mood swings before you hit the ripe old age of forty, menopause may not be the first thing that comes to your mind. However, one in every 100 women will experience early menopause symptoms that can hit as the result of a number of different factors. Early menopause is defined as menopause that occurs in a woman before the age of forty. There are a number of early menopause symptoms that you may have to grapple with if you do indeed find yourself in this situation. However, there are also a number of methods to treat early menopause symptoms so that they do not completely disrupt your life.

Causes of Early Menopause

There are a number of reasons why menopause might begin prior to the age of forty. One is genetics, meaning that if your mother or grandmother experienced early menopause symptoms, there is a greater likelihood that you will as well. Another cause of early menopause is the necessity for a hysterectomy. Once the ovaries are removed, menopause will commence. Finally, if a woman has had chemotherapy or radiation treatments for cancer, these treatments can also be the culprit in early menopause. If you have any of these risk factors, and you begin to experience early menopause symptoms, you can visit your doctor to find out if you are indeed beginning the menopause process.

Symptoms of Early Menopause

Most of the early menopause symptoms are similar to what women experience during regular menopause, and can include hot flashes, night sweats and mood swings. Other early menopause symptoms might be headaches, a reduced sex drive, depression and difficulty sleeping. You might also find that you are irritable or have to visit the restroom more frequently. Fatigue and forgetfulness are also signs of early menopause. Vaginal dryness is a common concern, which can contribute to the loss of libido. While all of these early menopause symptoms may seem uncomfortable, they are only temporary in nature and many can be treated effectively using simple remedies.

For example, you can increase your exercise and improve your diet to help with some of your early menopause symptoms, like irritability and fatigue. You can also use an over the counter lubricant to help combat the vaginal dryness. If depression becomes a big issue, your doctor can prescribe medication that will help you to deal with this symptom as well. While early menopause may seem like a huge hurdle to get over in your life, there are many options available to you to help you deal with your early menopause symptoms and offer you a higher quality of life.

Prozac And Menopause: An Effective Alternative Medication

There is little doubt that almost every woman will have menopause because it is a condition that just cannot be avoided, though it can be coped with. This is a period when the woman perceives a transformation in her life since the ovaries cease to produce eggs. Most women may opt for hormone replacement therapy to treat their menopause condition, though some may not, and will decide on alternative practices instead.

Complimentary To One Another

Some of the alternative practices can involve taking to exercising, avoiding beverages as well as foods with caffeine in them, and also steering clear of alcohol and spicy food, which should help them avoid hot flashes. A good alternative is Prozac for menopause, which is known to be helpful. According to studies, Prozac and menopause are complimentary to one another.

Prozac for menopause is known to relieve hot flashes especially in the case of women that also have breast cancer, or who may be at risk of contracting the disease. However, Prozac for menopause may benefit all women with hot flashes problems and it is not confined only to those with breast cancer problems.

An antidepressant like Prozac for menopause has been known to alleviate the sudden temperature changes experienced by women having menopause, and this is why many doctors prescribe Prozac for this condition, though more data is required on the subject of treating menopause with Prozac. Because many women may be somewhat reluctant to use estrogen to treat their hot flashes, Prozac provides an excellent alternative.

According to certain studies, women that have taken Prozac for menopause have reported back that it helped in decreasing the frequency as well as severity of their hot flashes by as much as half, while women in the placebo group only had thirty-six percent decrease in the symptoms. This shows that Prozac for menopause is effective though it has yet to be ascertained how Prozac helps in alleviating the symptoms.

Further studies are ongoing on this subject who will also study how much dosage should be ideal, and also how effective the different dosages are going to be. For more information about treating menopause it may be a good idea to study the Menopause Guidebook which will contain useful information that has been compiled by the North American Menopause Society, which touches on all aspects of menopause such as hot flashes as well as various options regarding getting treated for the condition.