Navigating Menopause During the Holidays: Tips for Managing Symptoms

You’ve always enjoyed the holidays, but now you have menopause symptoms that are interfering with daily life. You may be experiencing hot flashes, night sweats, mood swings, insomnia, and/or brain fog. These new, unwelcome ailments can worsen when you’re stressed over accomplishing extra tasks engendered by the winter holidays. 

Letrice Mason, board-certified FNP-C with Her Down There, provides comprehensive women’s health services that help you manage troublesome menopause symptoms. Here are helpful strategies to keep symptoms to a minimum during this busy season.

Hormone replacement therapy

If you have severe menopause symptoms that lower your quality of life, you may be a candidate for hormone replacement therapy (HRT). During menopause, the female hormone estrogen plummets quickly. While some women aren’t affected, you may suffer ailments that impact your ability to enjoy life. Whether we prescribe estrogen or a combination or estrogen and progesterone, we find that many women who take HRT report immediate positive effects. 

Prescription medication 

FNP-C Mason reviews your medical history and medications and lets you know whether HRT would be right for you. If you’re not able or don’t want to take HRT, new medications on the market, as well as some anti-depressants, can help with debilitating menopause symptoms. 

Lifestyle adaptations  

These lifestyle changes can help manage your troublesome symptoms, especially during the holidays. 

Share your experiences with family and close friends

Don’t try to carry on as usual without telling your family and friends that you’re experiencing distressing physical symptoms during menopause. Describe the changes you’re feeling. Tell them if you’re going to need to alter some of the family holiday traditions. 

Change holiday routines that cause you stress 

Have you hosted holiday feasts in the past? Preparing for guests and a crowd places extra stress on you. 

Stress worsens menopause symptoms. For example, it makes your body release stress hormones. Blood flow to your skin increases. Your body temperature rises. Then your body produces a hot flash, which makes you sweat but cools you down. 

Start new holiday traditions. Let the next generation take the lead. Enlist family members to host or prepare the main holiday dishes and wash and dry the china. Let grandchildren take the lead in decorating the tree, if you decide to have one. Have a young person help get out the holiday decorations and put them away.  

Limit alcohol 

Holiday festivities are usually loaded with alcohol selections: eggnog, spiked punch, wine, and more. Unfortunately, alcohol inhibits your body’s ability to maintain its temperature. It can lead to hot flashes and make them worse. If you find this is true for you, change your drink of choice to a tasty mocktail. 

Exercise to reduce holiday stress

Are you beset with insomnia in menopause? Getting regular exercise helps improve your sleep and lower your stress level. Set boundaries so that you don’t give up your exercise routine. 

Use deep breathing, meditation, or mindfulness 

Meditation, mindfulness, and deep breathing strategies all help to calm your stress and lower your blood pressure. Try apps such as “Calm” and others to “lower the temperature” during the holidays. 

If you’re feeling more stressed than usual this holiday season, thanks to unwelcome menopause symptoms, call Her Down There or book an appointment online. We have offices in Houston and Arlington, Texas, and offer telehealth appointments through our Arlington office.