The time when the ability of reproduction comes to an end in a women’s life is called the time of menopause. It is said to be an inevitable crucial part of every woman’s life because they have to suffer from a lot of troubles (both physical and mental) at that point of time.

Menopause mood swings occurs due to the shifting and diminishing of hormone levels. The hormonal changes along with the emotional fallout are the major causes of mood swings during the time of menopause. The fluctuation in estrogen levels creates instability not only in body functioning, but also in mental state of a woman. Other changes at this point in life, such as children leaving home, career disappointments, or fear of aging can be considered as some ingredients of emotional fallout that causes menopause mood swings of a woman. This can sometimes lead to irritability, anxiety, and even periods of depression. Besides that, exhaustion, nervousness, headaches, insomnia, depression, irritability, joint and muscle pain, dizziness, and heart palpitations are among the other symptoms which women frequently experience.

Menopause mood swings can create a lot of difficulties in daily life including career and family. Generally, a healthy diet, consistent exercise, and adequate sleep can be helpful to a large extent. Complex carbohydrates found in peas, beans, hot milk and other foods help to raise serotonin levels. Eating small meals and a number of snacks throughout the day can also be helpful since it gives required energy to deal with fluctuating emotions. However, there is no such instance of severe psychiatric illness in women during or after menopause.

Three levels of treatments can be prescribed for treating menopause mood swings

LIFESTYLE CHANGES

It can be considered as the easiest as well as the hardest way of treating mood swings problem. Some techniques for stress reduction such as yoga, meditation, massage, acupuncture, regular exercises, a diet which includes estrogenic food like soy, alfalfa, cherries, rice, wheat, yams and a strong mind set and a positive attitude is needed at this level of treatment. Besides that, 20 minutes of sun exposure every day can also alleviate the mood and the day. It involves no risk.

ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE

Alternative approaches can be considered as the safest way to treat Menopause Mood Swings since it involves little or no risk. Basically there are two types of herbs to treat Mood Swings during menopause:

Phytoestrogen :- It contains plant estrogens which help to replace the missing estrogen in the body.
Non-estrogenic herbs:- Non-estrogenic herbs don't contain any estrogen. Instead, non-estrogenic herbs nurture the hormonal glands for healthy production of one’s own natural hormones. This ultimately ends up in balancing overall hormones levels.

DRUGS & SURGERY

It involves the highest risk and the highest costs. The most common and popular drug therapy for the treatment of Mood Swings in the US is called the hormone replacement therapy (HRT). This is considered as the quickest and strongest way to resist hormonal imbalance; but it can create serious side effects and increases the risk of different types of cancer among women.

Women suffering from menopause mood swings should consult with the doctor and also speak and discuss with friends. One should try to accept the symptoms of menopause and deal with them appropriately with a strong and positive mind set.