Fatigue during menopause: This helps against constant fatigue in midlife

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Even simple everyday activities literally drain you. Instead of going to the cinema or theater after work or meeting up with friends for a glass of wine, you prefer to stay home and look forward to going to bed early. Where have all your energy and enthusiasm gone? Yes, fatigue is a common symptom of menopause .

Fatigue during menopause: What are the causes?

In the five to ten years before and after menopause, your last period, you experience enormous hormonal changes . During this phase of life, your body has to adjust from a time with a cycle to a time without. Sounds exhausting? It is.

Hormones play a major role in this. More specifically, the female sex hormones estrogen and progesterone . Their production declines significantly before, but especially after, menopause. And the declining hormone levels affect sleep quality .

Progesterone , the so-called chill hormone, has an anxiety-relieving and sleep-promoting effect. It's the first thing to decrease during menopause. Even in the early stages of perimenopause, progesterone levels drop, which can lead to sleep disturbances during menopause and increased fatigue (learn more about the importance of progesterone in menopause here).

Estrogen also influences the sleep-wake cycle , as the low estrogen levels after menopause lead to correspondingly less melatonin production. Too little of this sleep hormone in the blood contributes to sleep problems and thus impairs nighttime rest.

As side effects of hormonal changes, other factors contribute to women experiencing increased fatigue during menopause. These include:

• Hot flashes and night sweats – Women who wake up drenched in sweat and perhaps even have to change their sweaty nightclothes and bedsheets are missing out on crucial hours of sleep for recovery. It's no wonder they then feel exhausted and less productive during the day (read all about hot flashes during menopause here).
• Dehydration – It sounds obvious, but excessive sweating causes your body to lose fluids, which you need to compensate for by drinking more. If you don't adjust your daily fluid intake, symptoms like fatigue or lethargy can become noticeable.
• Emotional stress – During menopause, many things come together: the physical changes, the feeling of aging, unfamiliar irritability – all of this can take a toll on your mental health and lead to depression. A leaden weight settles on your life, you lie awake at night, brooding, and become discouraged and listless.
• Iron deficiency – Especially in early perimenopause , when periods become more irregular and often much heavier than before, increased blood loss can lower iron levels. Because this negatively impacts oxygen transport in the body, energy loss occurs. A blood test with your doctor will provide information.
• Thyroid – What's causing it, menopause or thyroid? It's also about hormone levels, but specifically thyroid hormones. If the levels aren't right, it can also cause fatigue or exhaustion. Have your blood tested for this. Thyroid hormone tablets can then provide relief.
• Liver – Fatigue is the pain of the liver, they say. Because the liver doesn't have its own pain receptors. When it's suffering, i.e., overwhelmed with detoxifying the body or utilizing nutrients, you don't feel pain, but rather weakness. Ask your doctor about this possibility if they don't mention it themselves.

If you don't feel rested, it affects various areas of your life . You lack exercise, which boosts your circulation and metabolism. Your risk of high blood pressure and diabetes increases, and you might even gain a few pounds. Reading tip: Why weight gain is usually to be expected during menopause anyway.

The longer this fatigue persists, the more irritable you become . Dizziness, poor concentration, and headaches are not uncommon in this context. Aside from the fact that it makes you uncomfortable, it can also lead to relationship problems or even impact your job.

These professional consequences are only slowly gaining public attention. A recent study in Great Britain found that 42 percent of women surveyed were considering cutting back on their work hours or leaving the workforce altogether due to menopause . A full 99 percent reported negative effects on their jobs. Now, for the first time, a German research project has addressed this taboo subject. The MenoSupport study, conducted at the Berlin School of Economics and Law, confirms the strain on working life. According to the study, one in four women reduces their hours during menopause . When asked about the symptoms that negatively impacted the workplace, these top five statements emerged (multiple answers possible):

1. Physical and mental exhaustion (78.1 percent)
2. Sleep disorders (65.8 percent)
3. Irritability (53.6 percent)
4. Depressive mood (46.3 percent)
5. Hot flashes, sweating (44.8 percent)

The women surveyed reported difficulty concentrating (74.3 percent), feeling more stressed (73.8 percent), and being more impatient/irritable with others (50 percent). It's high time companies paid more attention to this issue (reading tip: Menopause at work ).

Want to stop feeling so tired and regain your strength? Or better yet, avoid letting it get that far? What helps combat fatigue:

• A vitamin-rich, wholesome diet. Particularly helpful foods include vegetables, fruit, high-quality oils, legumes, and whole grain products. Tip: Always fill half of your plate with vegetables, with the remaining two-quarters consisting of proteins and carbohydrates (learn more about healthy eating during menopause here).
• Drink enough. When you feel thirsty, your body is already deprived. So get into the habit of drinking throughout the day to get the recommended two liters of fluid, ideally water, unsweetened tea, or even fruit juice spritzers.
• Regular exercise: A regular exercise routine, ideally outdoors, gets your circulation going. But be careful: Don't overexert yourself right before bedtime.
• Sleep Routine/Sleep Hygiene: If you can't fall asleep despite being tired, it can be helpful to establish a sleep routine. For example, consciously avoid using your smartphone, tablet, or television for the last hour before bedtime, dim the lights, perhaps jot down three things you enjoyed during the day in your journal, and then ideally go to bed at the same time every day. Over time, your body will learn to wind down and switch to nighttime rest.
• Targeted stress reduction: With relaxation exercises such as yoga, autogenic training , or progressive muscle relaxation , you can shake off the stress of the day and find peace. Try out the methods and see which one works best for you.
• Hormone therapy: Talk to your gynecologist about your symptoms. If they are related to low hormone levels, hormone replacement therapy may be helpful. In the early stages of menopause, the sex hormone progesterone can reduce sleep problems and alleviate daytime fatigue.
• Herbal sleep aids If your tiredness can be attributed to difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep, proven medicinal plants – in the form of dragees, tablets, or teas – can improve the situation as natural sleep aids , for example valerian, lemon balm, lavender, passionflower, or hops.

Don't worry, menopause is a natural process in a woman's life and not an illness. However, you don't have to simply resign yourself to the symptoms. Just don't try everything at once; that puts too much pressure on you. Tweak one of the adjustments. If it works, fine. If not, you can try the next tip.

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Brigitte

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