Menopause is inevitable, but life goes on<\/p>\n
By Rita A. Widiadana<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): As a top executive, Lidya Budiman (not her real
\nname) spends most of her days attending various business
\nmeetings.<\/p>\n
On the eve of her 46th birthday early this month, she attended
\na very important meeting with her company's board of directors.
\nDuring the meeting she suddenly felt heat rush to her face and
\nshe broke out in a sweat.<\/p>\n
\"I felt so embarrassed to go through menopausal symptoms in
\nfront of male colleagues, even though they probably didn't
\nnotice,\" she recalled.<\/p>\n
She experienced hot flashes, headaches and back pain several
\ntimes a day. At first she had no idea it was menopause, thinking
\nher symptoms were due to her high-stress job as a director at a
\nfast-paced corporate company. Besides, she had always thought a
\nwoman went through menopause in her late 50s.<\/p>\n
\"I was totally in denial and went into a horrible emotional
\nand physical state for the first two months of my menopause. I
\ndidn't know how to share my feelings with others, even with my
\nhusband. But, now I find that it was just a part of being a
\nwoman,\" said Lydia who still maintains her heavy work schedule.<\/p>\n
Millions of middle-aged women worldwide share Lydia's feelings
\nwhen the inevitable happens.<\/p>\n
In the past, menopause was something women themselves didn't
\nwant to discuss -- not with their husbands, mothers, daughters,
\ndoctors or their closest friends. Many women still fear that
\nbroaching the subject could affect their relationships and they
\nprefer to think their mates do not notice what is happening. Even
\nsupportive husbands are not sure how to broach the topic.<\/p>\n
Even women who want to know more about what is happening to
\ntheir bodies hesitate to ask questions because menopause carries
\nthe unspoken social stigma: \"You are getting old\".<\/p>\n
A century ago few women lived very long after their ovaries
\nstopped functioning. Today, many women may live another 20 years
\nafter menopause and most are determined to make the best of the
\nyears.<\/p>\n
In the West, menopause has become a hot issue. The United
\nStates government, for instance, has paid serious attention to
\nmenopause by launching a special project called Women's Health
\nInitiative. The project focuses on various studies and research
\nto help the rocketing number of aging female baby boomers facing
\nmenopause. In the next decade, the number of aging women in the
\nU.S. will reach 40 million.<\/p>\n
High-profile magazines such as Time and Newsweek have had
\narticles on menopause as their main features. New informative
\nbooks including The Silent Passage written by Gail Sheehy and New
\nPassage by anthropologist Margaret Mead are now on the market to
\nhelp women better understand various menopausal symptoms and ways
\nto deal with them.<\/p>\n
Embarrassing<\/p>\n
In Indonesia, menopause is still an embarrassing subject to
\ntalk about, and information on the subject is scarce. But in the
\nlast few years people have started to discuss menopause in
\npublic.<\/p>\n
Recently, local medical magazine Higina and the organization
\nof civil servants' wives Dharma Wanita jointly held a seminar on
\nhow to cope with menopause.<\/p>\n
Does menopause require medical intervention, or should it be
\nviewed as a natural passage that should run its course? Is it
\nthe beginning of inevitable decline or the start of a great new
\nphase of life? Some women mourn the end of their reproductive
\nyears even if they are long past wanting children. Others are
\ndelighted to be free of monthly periods and the fear of unwanted
\npregnancy.<\/p>\n
According to Dr. Ali Baziad, a gynecologist at University of
\nIndonesian in Jakarta, menopause usually strikes women in their
\nlate 30s to 50s. But women are often shocked when menopausal
\nsymptoms strike in their early 40s. The average age of menopausal
\nwomen is 51, he said.<\/p>\n
Menopause is mainly cause by the decline of estrogen and
\nprogesterone in a woman's body. Estrogen plays a major role in
\nfemale physiology, affecting more than 300 body functions.<\/p>\n
The decline in hormones is hardly noticeable, except in
\ndecreased fertility, until the early 40s when women enter the
\ntransitional period known as perimenopause. Menstruation becomes
\nless regular, the skin dryer, and hair becomes more brittle. Some
\nwomen feel a loss of libido and many suffer mood fluctuations.<\/p>\n
The doctor said that as soon women enter real menopause, they
\nwill most likely suffer from hot flashes, night sweats,
\nsleeplessness, irritability, mood swings, short-term memory loss,
\nmigraines, vaginal dryness, urinary incontinence and weight gain.<\/p>\n
Most of these symptoms can be traced to the drop-off in the
\nfemale hormones estrogen or progesterone, both of which govern
\nthe ovarian cycle. But every woman starts with a different level
\nof hormones and loses them at different rates, he explained.<\/p>\n
Many women say that menopause is just a transitional period
\ninto second adulthood, but the menopausal experience is shaped by
\na women's self esteem, physical and emotional condition as well
\nas culture. Every woman reacts differently.<\/p>\n
Social worker Marina Sudirjo, 49, for instance, experienced
\nfew symptoms when went through menopause a year ago.<\/p>\n
\"I didn't experience severe symptoms. I just realized that
\nmy had menstruation stopped and I knew exactly what I was going
\nthrough,\" Marina said.<\/p>\n
She said she had absorbed a lot of information about menopause
\nas she entered her 40s. In addition, she takes part in reki,
\nJapanese self-healing method which, she said, has contributed to
\nher present stable physical and mental health.<\/p>\n
\"I think women should think positive. To have a supportive
\nhusband, children and friends is worthwhile. But the most
\nimportant point is our inner self, whether we accept or reject
\nit,\" she said.<\/p>\n
Once a woman accepts that menopause is natural, she will most
\nlikely have a smooth transition to a new and, hopefully,
\nfulfilling life, she said.<\/p>",
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