It is unlikely that you can find two women whose menopause would go exactly the same. One can constantly experience hot flashes that can melt steel, and the other can chill all the time or feel any other of the other fifty symptoms of menopause, which are manifested by changes both on the psychological and physical levels. In the past, most menopausal women had a rather limited choice — suffer silently or swallow hormonal pills. At the initiative of Women’s Health, a study was conducted, the results of which surprised and alerted both patients and specialists: the use of Prempro and drugs created on the basis of a combination of estrogen and progesterone is potentially unsafe for health. The US National Toxicology Program has classified estrogen as a carcinogen, which also did not add confidence to women who have menopause problems. Women approaching this period or already feeling its symptoms, ask the question: “What to do now?” – and understand that the answers are not so easy to find.

If you look at the problem more broadly, the interest shown by the public in the research results and reports of the Sanitary Supervision Authority has had many positive consequences. In particular, the very topic of menopause finally ceased to be something indecent and began to be discussed openly and without false modesty. If, for example, an article on menopause is on the front page of Time magazine, then it is certainly easier for a woman to start talking about this with her doctor and with her relatives, while in the past the woman was forced to suffer alone and fear of the future. In addition, today doctors have come to the conclusion that alternative therapy is necessary. For example, now doctors are telling patients about soy as a means to stabilize “hormonal storms”, about a variety of phytotherapeutic drugs to alleviate menopausal symptoms. They are ready to use different approaches – both traditional and non-traditional – to solve emerging problems. Finally, the attitude of women themselves to this period of their life has changed: instead of perceiving menopause as a disease, as an inevitable sign of old age, they are now configured differently. The best-selling books by Christiana Northrap “The Wisdom of Menopause” and Mary Jane Minkin, “What Every Woman Should Know About Menopause,” have become pioneering publications that paved the way for positive change.

One thing is not in doubt: more than ever, women during perimenopause, menopause or post-menopause should take an active life position, because choosing a lifestyle today will affect our health and vitality tomorrow. The inertness of our worldview, our unwillingness to adapt to our new “I” can cause a feeling of helplessness. It is in order to help women not to be in this situation, we wrote this book. The purpose of this guide is to show the woman the next path after menopause. To achieve this goal, we turned to the best specialists in this field, used the latest research results and tried to clarify contradictory facts as much as possible. It doesn’t matter how old you are – only thirty-five, and you experience some disturbing symptoms, or a little more, and you are faced with the need to make some decisions regarding your health – this book will help you adjust your diet and annoying mood swings, stress, and your appearance, and even your sex life, based on the advice and recommendations of specialists!

Referring to the special section of the reference book “Symptoms of the manifestation of menopause and options for solving problems”, you can find the symptoms that you are experiencing and read about traditional and alternative approaches to solving your problems and measures to prevent their development. The chapters on traditional methods of treatment analyze in detail the advantages and disadvantages of each of them, indicate under what circumstances the method works best, and how to enhance its effectiveness. It is also said about which treatment agents are not acceptable for combined use. In our opinion, the chapter “On Menopause Frankly” will also be useful for a wide audience, since it contains the most frequently asked questions that women ask. The list of “10 mandatory steps during menopause” we consider to be a significant help for every woman.

Menopause is akin to testing: our body makes us experience new sensations for us, and they do not always give us pleasure, sometimes bringing our mood, our emotions out of control. Weight gain for no apparent reason leads to isolation, irritability and loss of interest in sex. Sometimes we begin to notice wrinkles, which also does not add optimism to us. The chain closes when we are struck by the thought that old age is just around the corner. The handbook you are holding is designed to help you meet this challenge with dignity, defeat each of the dangers that await you, defeat stress and perk up your spirits! You will realize that you can remain beautiful, attractive, energetic and healthy.