Menopause Treatment is Getting Personal

News Flash On Hot Flashes: Menopause has long suffered a double stigma. Not only is it a women’s health issue, and therefore underresearched, but it’s also an aging women’s health issue. For decades, many women opted out of hormone replacement therapy (HRT), due to (now disproven) fears about it causing breast cancer. This meant many of them suffered from hot flashes, disrupted sleep, increased anxiety and depression, painful intercourse, and other symptoms without help for years. But the tide is finally turning, with more open discussion of menopause and more treatment options for symptoms. 

What People Are Saying: Menopause symptoms and severity vary, so personalization is key. HRT can help in different ways in different formulations: patches, pills, creams, vaginal rings. Many are available from new women’s health–specific telehealth companies, such as Midi and Winona. At-home test kits, like from Oova, allow you to track symptoms and detect patterns as hormones fluctuate. Non-hormonal treatments for hot flashes are options for those who can’t or don’t want to take estrogen.

What to Know: Speak to your doctor to review options for your particular symptoms. But not all physicians — even OB-GYNs — are well-versed in menopause care. The Menopause Society offers a list of menopause specialists.