Originally Posted by lia_matos I'll talk what i know about menopause (it's not much, since i'm just in the 3rd year of medicine - here in brazil are 6 years):
1. Don't be afraid of it.
2. The whole process of menopausa can take from 10 to 15 years, and the last period can be anywhere between this time
3. The main reason that one of the ladies here friend is still cycling may be because she still has eggs (i'm not sure if it's the name in english) to release. but one day it will finish (it's sad... only men produces spermatozoids constantly, an egg from a 41-old woman has 41 years...)
4. Why some doctors say that if you have a fibroid thing in your uterus you should remove it: even though most of time they won't never become a cancer, since they're hormone-dependent , if you get pregnant or start to have hormonal variation it can grow a lot and make damage by pressing the area around (in the pregnancy case, it's even worse, because it fights with the baby for the pelvis space).
4.1. But like most of you said , it's not the case. Everyone should be followed carefully and the surgery should be the LAST LAST LAST option, after all it also has its risks (like a mom of a friend that had to make an abortion - the baby died in the uterus - and the doctor made such a mess and the poor lady died)
5. Yeah, estrogens are a little bad for the body, but like all of things in life, just in excess (or in the menopause case, when it's not supposed to exist).
5.1. Estrogen is what make the women feel sexier in the 1st part of the cycle, when the ovulation occurs , making the women ready for sex and etc...
5.2. Progesterone , in the other hand, predominates in the 2nd half, it's what makes us become more like "mother" (because like its name says - in portuguese and latin languages it makes a lot of sense - pro - promove - promotes - gesterona -gestação - pregnancy). And in the last 4 days before the period has a little raise in the estrogen levels and 1 day before the period both hormones fall
6. If menopause is hard on you (like it's been with Shera) why not take hormones for a while? Yes, they can do harm , but it's all about life quality. Why she has to suffer so much if there's something that can help?
7. There are synthetic hormones that are not made from horse estrogen. But they're a lot more expensive (like that, my mom used to use one - animal-based - that costed like 30 dollars ,now the synthetic non-animal based costs around 80)
8. Natural things are a good choice, but you always have to be careful. Most of them don't do any harm at all, but you never know for sure... Like that, here in my city there is a plant that a lot of people use to lose weight, but it causes a HUGE liver damage, so it's not safe
9. I don't know for sure, but the way that medicine is getting in the USA make us afraid. Most of the doctors are afraid of a law suit, so they avoid much contact with the patient, and if something goes wrong the doctor get sued (even if it's not him/her fault - like an allergy caused by an anesthesia).
Kisses to everyone. Notice that i only try to do my best, i'm just a little girl learning about everything (do you believe that i'm already 18 and i didn't kiss anyone yet?)
I agree that you need to be careful taking certain herbs. They can be toxic. Best to work with an herbalist in some cases, or do a lot of your own research.