Mind Over Menopause: The Complete Mind/Body Approach to Coping with Menopause - Softcover

Benson, Herbert

 
9780743236973: Mind Over Menopause: The Complete Mind/Body Approach to Coping with Menopause
Softcover
ISBN 10: 0743236971 ISBN 13: 9780743236973
Verlag: Atria, 2004

Inhaltsangabe

Control Your Menopause Symptoms with a Holistic Mind/Body Approach
Millions of women report the years after menopause as a time of increased confidence and feelings of empowerment. However, the menopause transition can be a difficult one. Maybe you've endured night sweats. Maybe you've begun asking friends and family, "Is it hot in here?" only to get a resounding "No." Maybe you're noticing that PMS is more than a monthly occurrence. If you're searching for a natural or integrated medical approach to navigate the midlife transition and improve your long-term health, you have picked up the right book.
Based on groundbreaking programs developed by clinicians at the Mind/Body Medical Institute, including Dr. Herbert Benson, Mind Over Menopause is the only book to combine the expertise of the Mind/Body Medical Institute, Harvard Medical School, and a leading member of the North American Menopause Society to create a complete plan for coping with menopause symptoms, so that all women can attain that confidence and enhance their midlife experience.

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Über die Autorinnen und Autoren

Herbert Benson, MD, is the Mind Body Medical Institute Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School. He is the author of the mega-bestselling book, The Relaxation Response, as well as ten other trade books. His groundbreaking work established the modern field of mind body medicine. Dr. Benson is the Director Emeritus of the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Leslee Kagan, M.S., N.P., is a clinical nurse practitioner, Director of the Mind/Body Program for Menopause, and Codirector of the Mind/Body Program for Infertility at the Mind/Body Medical Institute. She has had twenty years of experience working in the field of women's health.

Bruce Kessel, M.D., is an associate professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Women's Health at the University of Hawaii and The Queen's Medical Center. He is also a member of the Board of Trustees of the North American Menopause Society.

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Chapter One: Redefining "The Change"

Imagine hovering at the edge of a lake. You know the water is going to be cold, but you ease in (or maybe you plunge in headfirst!). At first it's unbearable, but as you work your muscles, the discomfort goes away and you enjoy the swim. For many women, menopause is like this. The transition can be difficult and there may be apprehension, but when all is said and done, it's not as bad as expected. They may even walk away feeling invigorated and full of life.

Millions of women worldwide report the years after menopause as a time of increased confidence and feelings of empowerment. As Margaret Mead, one of the world's foremost anthropologists, observed, "There is no more creative force in the world than the menopausal woman with zest."

And, that creative force is growing exponentially. The aging of the "baby boomers" means that an unprecedented number of women are reaching menopause now. In the United States, there are approximately 42 million women over the age of fifty. From 1990 to 2030, some 1.2 billion women worldwide will go through the years of "the change." As millions of women look for meaning and seek answers, menopause is truly being redefined. It is long overdue.

Menopause and Beyond

A century ago, most women did not live much beyond the age of menopause. But today, a woman who is healthy at menopause can expect to live another thirty or forty years. That's more than a third of your life! And unlike past generations, women now speak openly about menopause. The increase in communication has come at an important time. Today women are faced with more choices about their health care than ever before. Making good choices regarding lifestyle and health care can help you fill your postmenopausal years with happiness and health.

Menopausal symptoms, heart disease, and osteoporosis are all major concerns for women at midlife because all are linked to declining levels of the hormone estrogen. One of the biggest decisions in the past -- and probably the most confusing -- has been whether or not to take hormones. Yet research is proving estrogen is only part of a much larger and complex equation, still not entirely understood.

What is becoming increasingly evident is that the way we feel, how we handle symptoms, and our risk for disease are dramatically linked to our lifestyles. The advice we offer in this book is the same that we provide to participants in our mind/body program for menopause called Mind Over Menopause. The framework for all of our programs is based on the philosophy that your attitudes, health care choices, and lifestyle behaviors can significantly affect your overall well-being. Some women enter our programs simply seeking information to help them make decisions. Some express sadness at the loss of their youth and are looking for ways to change their perceptions of getting older. Others want the tools to manage menopause symptoms. And still others seek support from women facing similar life-stage issues.

The techniques and advice we offer in this book are designed to give you the power to manage menopause symptoms while reducing your long-term risk for disease. They have been backed by scientific research, and women in our programs have found them to make a profound difference in the quality of their lives. Our patients report a decrease in intensity of hot flashes, improved sleep, a significant decrease in tension and anxiety, and a decrease in depression. In addition, they are successful at making long-lasting changes in their health habits. However, none of the information in this book is designed to supplant advice from your clinician. Rather, we hope it will help you ask the right questions, make informed decisions, and move through this transition smoothly as you build a foundation for lasting health.

A Natural Transition

Contrary to popular belief, menopause is not a medical problem that requires treatment. It is a natural biological event that marks the permanent end to your menstrual periods and, thus, of your childbearing years. It is not a disease and, for the majority of women, does not require medical intervention.

When you've gone a full year without a menstrual period, you've officially reached menopause. Some women will hit this stage in their forties, some in their late fifties. The average age of natural menopause in the Western world is fifty-one. But menopause can occur naturally at an earlier age or can be induced as a result of surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy.

The transitional time leading up to natural menopause is called perimenopause. During this time, which can span several years, the production of hormones that have regulated your cycles for years becomes erratic. Jumps and starts can cause you to experience subtle and not so subtle changes related to these fluctuating hormones. It's this changing and often unpredictable hormonal milieu that sets the stage for symptoms like hot flashes, night sweats, headaches, and mood swings.

For many women, symptoms are mild; for others, they interfere substantially with daily life. Each woman's experience of this transition is unique. And how you feel is not simply a matter of hormone levels. Biology plays a role, but so do the interactions among your mind, body, and environment.

The Mind/Body Link

The term "mind/body" refers to the many complicated interactions that take place between your thoughts, your body, and the outside world. It is based on the idea that our thoughts, attitudes, and lifestyle choices play a major role in our overall health.

Mind/body medicine, also known as behavioral medicine, got its start in the late 1960s when Dr. Herbert Benson, joined by other researchers, provided the first convincing scientific evidence that it was possible to alter the physiology of the body simply by quieting the mind. At the time, Dr. Benson was working with colleagues at Harvard Medical School to determine the cause of high blood pressure. During the study several practitioners of transcendental meditation arrived at the center claiming that they could lower their own blood pressure by meditating. Such ideas were met with skepticism in the medical community. Few believed there was even a link between stress and high blood pressure.

Dr. Benson eventually agreed to take a series of physiological measurements to determine the effects of meditation on the body. Meanwhile, a separate team of doctors in California was simultaneously conducting similar experiments. Both teams reached similar conclusions: meditation slows heart rate and breathing, reduces metabolism, lowers blood pressure, and even changes the type of brain waves generated. The findings paved the way for a great deal of insight into how the mind affects the body. It prompted Dr. Benson to describe a phenomenon he called the relaxation response (RR), a physical, natural state that is the opposite of a state of stress. (See Chapter 3 for information on how to elicit the relaxation response.)

The Many Faces of Stress

You may have heard of the fight-or-flight response. This stress response enables us to escape a threatening or dangerous situation by fighting or running. Heart rate and blood pressure increase dramatically, and adrenaline and other hormones surge through the body.

In daily life, various stresses challenge us. It is estimated that many of us trigger some type of stress response up to fifty times a day. Simply thinking about a stressful or threatening event can trigger the same chemical cascade. Scientists have demonstrated that up to a certain point, stress is useful and helps us take the action to perform necessary tasks. Harvard researchers Robert Yerkes and John Dodson have observed that as stress and anxiety increase, so do performance and efficiency -- up to a point. When...

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Verlag
Atria
Erscheinungsdatum
2004
Sprache
Englisch
ISBN 10 
0743236971
ISBN 13 
9780743236973
Einband
Taschenbuch
Anzahl der Seiten
368
Kontakt zum Hersteller
Nicht verfügbar
Verantwortliche Person
Simon and Schuster Netherlands BV, GPSR Europäische Union
info@simonandschuster.nl

Herculesplein 96
Utrecht
3584 AA
Niederlande