The Benefits of HRT for Menopausal Symptoms

Reaching menopause frees you from monthly periods and pregnancy scares. Even though it comes with a few positives, menopause isn’t always comfortable or satisfying. Thanks to menopause symptoms, you might feel uncomfortable more often than you did before. 

Menopause symptoms happen because your ovaries stop making high levels of the hormones estrogen and progesterone. These hormones support more than just reproduction and sexual function; they regulate your mood, sleep, and bone health. 

If menopause symptoms become too much to bear, experienced gynecologist Asia Mohsin, MD, can help. At Progressive Women’s Health OB/GYN in Friendswood and Mission, Texas, she specializes in menopause care, including personalized hormone replacement therapy (HRT). 

Here’s how HRT can help you handle menopause-related symptoms and complications:

1. Helps you sleep better

A restful night of sleep sets you up for better productivity and a brighter mood the next day. Unfortunately, during menopause, satisfying sleep is often hard to come by. Along with general insomnia, you might experience these nighttime issues: 

2. Hot flashes

Hot flashes involve sudden and intense feelings of warmth. Your menopausal hot flashes might involve a few other symptoms like a racing heart, anxiety, sweating, or headaches.

Unfortunately, hot flashes can disrupt sleep, especially if you sleep best in a cold, temperature-controlled bedroom. 

3. Night sweats

Night sweats can be intense enough to soak through your sheets. Nobody likes to wake up soaked, but you might experience that regularly thanks to your declining hormones. 

HRT helps alleviate hot flashes and night sweats to give you better and more consistent sleep. 

4. Stabilizes your mood and mental health

Hormone changes during menopause can destabilize your mood, causing frequent mood swings and irritability. They might also amplify depressive symptoms. Even if you acknowledge the influence of hormones on your mood, your emotional fluctuations can be hard to control.

Fortunately, HRT can help. HRT balances the hormones estrogen and progesterone to help regulate your mood by increasing serotonin and endorphins in your brain. 

5. Supports your bones

HRT can prevent and treat osteoporosis, a condition that weakens your bones by reducing bone density. Osteoporosis affects as many as 1 in 3 older women. 

Because estrogen plays a part in supporting bone density, menopause can compromise bone density. HRT helps support bone health so you’re less likely to break a bone as you age. 

6. Enhances your sexual health

Many women experience dramatic changes in their sexual health as they enter menopause. You might have lower libido than ever before or even vaginal dryness, which can make sex uncomfortable. HRT can ease some of these symptoms to give you a more fulfilling sex life. 

Consult the experts

Menopause symptoms can range from slightly uncomfortable to downright tiring, but HRT can improve them. However, HRT isn’t the best option for everyone. Dr. Mohsin can help you explore the benefits and drawbacks of HRT so you can make the best decision for your health. 

To learn more about HRT and its benefits for menopausal symptoms, call Progressive Women’s Health OB/GYN or schedule a visit online today.