Menopause: Easing the Transition

Menopause: Easing the Transition

By Nancy Ferrari; Leslee Kagan, N.P.; Bruce Kessel, M.D., and Herbert Benson, M.D.

Newsweek, September 27, 2004

Some women glide through menopause without breaking a sweat. For others, hot flashes, mood swings, insomnia and PMS become a constant burden. Short-term hormone therapy can temper severe symptoms, but it carries risks as well as benefits. And though other treatments abound, none of them is a cure-all. A few studies have found that soy and black cohosh (an herbal remedy sold as Remifemin) can help relieve symptoms, though not as reliably as hormones. For women who want relief without risk, mind-body techniques offer another valuable option. These techniques can ease all the core symptoms of menopause—and in our experience, most women get at least some relief from them.

At the heart of the mind-body approach is the relaxation response, a state of calm achieved through exercises such as yoga, meditation, biofeedback, progressive muscle relaxation or a breathing technique called paced respiration. In two clinical studies, researchers trained menopausal women in paced respiration and encouraged them to practice it for 15 to 20 minutes once or twice a day. The participants experienced a 50 percent reduction in hot flashes—as measured objectively by skin temperature—compared with women who didn't receive the training. In these studies, paced respiration improved hot flashes better than progressive muscle relaxation or biofeedback. Some women who learn this breathing technique find that it can even short-circuit an oncoming hot flash. Other studies suggest it may be equally helpful in controlling symptoms of PMS.

In addition to the relaxation response, most mind-body programs use exercise, good nutrition and cognitive behavioral therapy to counter the mood changes menopause can bring. Studies have yet to compare mind-body interventions with hormone therapy. And because every woman is different, we can't tell in advance who will benefit most from a given approach. Finding the right combination often requires some trial and error.

But in our experience, most women can learn the techniques, incorporate them into their daily lives and feel better as a result.

Adapted from "Mind Over Menopause: The Complete Mind/Body Approach to Coping With Menopause" (Free Press. 2004). For more information go to health.harvard.edu/NEWSWEEK.

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