Increased Depression during Menopause
Many women may experience some form of depression at some point during menopause. In order to effectively deal with increased depression during menopause, one should be aware of the underlying factors that cause it. Take a few minutes to read over the information below to help you learn and deal with depression during menopause.
What is depression?
Depression is a disease that is caused by biological factors. Hormones (serotonin) in the brain regulate your mood. When serotonin levels drop, it causes fluctuations in mood and severe episodes of depression. Someone suffering from depression will experience intense feelings of sadness and hopelessness. Depression can lead to a variety of symptoms and can have a horrifying effect on a person´s life, including physical ailments and even suicide.
Why do I experience increased depression during menopause?
 While everyone will experiences feelings of sadness through the course of everyday life, menopause can exacerbate women´s feelings of sadness due to frustration with the body´s symptoms and sadness at the loss of the ability to carry children. Increased depression during menopause can therefore be identified as a more prolonged feeling of general unhappiness, often unexplained and never felt before. The severity and duration of this depression is what distinguishes it from ordinary.
Of course it is extremely difficult to classify something as complex as. Depression can affect anyone of any age, and affects close to 19 million Americans each year. Many factors influence a person´s emotional wellbeing - this article will try to pinpoint why women experience increased depression during menopause.
What causes increased depression during menopause?
The causes of increased depression during menopause are typically classified into two different areas, the psychological and the physical. Physical causes tend to be more responsible for depression as a menopause symptom.
 Psychological causes are also grouped into two classifications. Those related to specific psychological disorders (hereditary), and those associated with things such as too much stress (environmental). The former group involves those who suffer from rare hereditary diseases and are depressed due to a chemical imbalance in the brain. The latter is related to stress, work, and constant fatigue, which can destabilize one´s emotional state.
Quick
Fact:
Menopause can trigger feelings of sadness and episodes depression in a number of women. It is though that somewhere between 8% and 15% of menopausal women experience some form of depression.
The foremost explanation for increased depression during menopause is hormonal imbalance. Estrogen hormones have a proven effect on our mental state, given they regulate the body´s levels of serotonin, which is the chemical in the brain that controls mood. Depression is often a result of a drop in serotonin due to a decline in overall estrogen levels.
What can I do about increased depression during menopause?
Identifying whether the depression is a symptom of menopause or by psychological or physiological factors is vital in selecting an effective treatment. Depression caused by a psychological disorder should, immediately, be treated by a medically certified practitioner. If however, the depression is being caused by lifestyle stresses, such as overwork and lack of sleep, these are problems that can be handled through a change of lifestyle habit.
Quick
Fact:
If you are feeling depressed you should seek help immediately. There is no need to handle depression on your own.
If the depression is being caused by physical changes, a hormonal balancing program could the best solution, particularly for increased depression during menopause. Alternative medicine treatments have been shown to work naturally, and often target the hormonal imbalance causing the depression. Naturally, the most optimum results are achieved with both lifestyle and alternative medicine treatments. More information about alternative medicine treatments for depression during menopause can be found through this link.
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