When you think about menopause, you think about a time period in your life that’s likely to last maybe a couple of years. You feel like it’s a transition that happens, in some ways, almost overnight. The fact of the matter is, however, that your body is starting to change long before you actually hit menopause. A time known as “perimenopause” is a transitional time when your ovaries start producing less hormones. There are some specific symptoms that let you know you may be in perimenopause.

Even if you’re experiencing perimenopause, you need to realize that menopause may be as much as five or even 10 years away. Perimenopause usually begins in your mid-40s, but it may start as early as your 30s or as late as your 50s.

Here are some of the main symptoms of perimenopause:

• Less frequent periods. When you’re in perimenopause, the lower hormone production means that you don’t ovulate as often, leading to fewer periods.
• Fatigue. This is one of the most common symptoms of perimenopause. Many women are used to being fatigued these days simply from balancing a career and running a household, and this symptom may slip in unnoticed. Fatigue in perimenopause is caused by a decrease in the hormone testosterone, which usually helps you to feel energized.
• Mood swings. While you normally think of mood swings as a symptom of menopause, many women experience it earlier. There is less estrogen in your system, which can lead to depression.
• Weight gain. During perimenopause, your weight can shift from your lower to your central body, making it awfully hard to lose weight and easier to gain. While this happens normally with age as your metabolism decreases, perimenopause may cause weight gain because those extra fat cells help to convert androgen into estrogen, which you need during that time.
• Painful intercourse. Around half of women in menopause find that they struggle with vaginal dryness, and this can start during perimenopause. A decrease in lubrication can make intercourse painful.
• Migraines. Some women who have migraines may find relief when they hit menopause or perimenopause, while others who have never had migraines may find that they start during that time.

Other symptoms of perimenopause can include memory problems, fluid retention and sore breasts.

Menopause is something that happens whether you want it to or not. While many women take plenty good care of their health before they hit menopause, many of those same women tend to start to ignore their gynecological health in the years that follow. A wellness plan that’s right for you will include a number of steps, most of which will happen at your annual visit.

Here are some of the medical testing and treatment women in menopause should be getting on a yearly basis:

• An annual breast exam, as well as an annual mammogram as recommended by your doctor.
• Annual gynecological exam. This will probably include a Pap test about every other year or every third year, depending on your overall history.  If your Pap comes back with abnormal cells, you’ll probably be offered HPV testing and you should definitely take advantage of that. After the age of 65, you may not need Pap screenings as routinely, and if you’ve had a total hysterectomy, a Pap screening is recommended against.
• Annual fecal occult blood test. This test is recommended to detect blood in your stool, which is a symptom of colon cancer. It’s recommended for women over 50.
• Regular colon cancer screening per your doctor’s recommendation. This may be via flexible sigmoidosciopy or colonoscopy.
• Cholesterol screening every five years or so, again depending on your history.
• Bone density screenings. These screenings are recommended for women that are over the age of 65, or for younger women who are at a particular risk of osteoporosis. There are a number of different types of screenings, including a DEXA (dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry) scan, PIXA (peripheral DEXA) scan or even an ultrasound of the calcaneus.
• Annual diabetes screening, depending on your risk factors.
• Thyroid testing about every five years.

If you’re having discomfort, pain or other symptoms during menopause, be sure to talk to your doctor about those. Women in menopause can live long and healthy lives, it just means that there are certain medical tests and precautions that they need to take on a regular basis.

Your body goes through a tremendous number of changes when you’re pregnant. While some body changes, such as sore breasts, morning sickness or the growing belly are more noticeable, others aren’t quite as obvious. Still, when you do notice one of those more minor changes, chances are you’re not sure right away whether it’s a normal part of pregnancy or whether it’s something that’s not supposed to happen. This is often the case with vaginal discharge during pregnancy.

Vaginal discharge during pregnancy is often at least a little bit different than it is when you’re not pregnant. During pregnancy, vaginal discharge is usually think, whitish, milk, and may have some mild smell.

It’s important that you follow some basic care rules during pregnancy in regard to vaginal discharge. Never use a tampon during pregnancy, because they can introduce germs into the vaginal environment. Don’t douche, as this can disrupt the normal bacterial balance and cause an infection. You should also not assume that vaginal discharge during pregnancy is an infection and try to treat it as such.

You can use panty liners during pregnancy if you wish in order to make yourself more comfortable. There are also some signs of an abnormal vaginal discharge during pregnancy that you should watch for.

If your vaginal discharge during pregnancy is green or yellow in color, has a strong smell or is also accompanied by itching and redness, it can indicate that there is a vaginal infection. Yeast infections are especially common during pregnancy, and they are easily treated by your doctor. Don’t try to treat a yeast infection on your own during pregnancy.

Another possible cause of an abnormal vaginal discharge during pregnancy is an STD. In some cases, spotting can also be possible during pregnancy, but you should always mention it to your doctor. If you have spotting, or if you have bleeding at all, talk to your doctor right away. This is especially important if it lasts for more than a day or if it is also accompanied by pain or abdominal cramping.

A changing body is a necessary part of pregnancy. While some women relish the experience, many women may see a change in their body image during pregnancy. In some cases, that changing image may not be entirely positive. There are some things you need to keep in mind if you want to maintain a healthy body image during pregnancy:

• Remember that it’s not all about you. Your body is doing what it needs to for someone else. Someone you haven’t even met yet. It’s going through all of those changes so you can bring a new life into the world. How could you not love your body when it’s giving you a baby?
• Get some exercise. Exercise during pregnancy helps in so many ways. It can help with morning sickness. It will help you be better prepared for delivery. It will help with postpartum weight loss. Exercise means that you’ll be the healthiest you can be, and that your body will be much better prepared to recover after you give birth. Exercise also releases endorphins, which will help you feel better about your body
• Eat right. You’re not eating for two in terms of volume or calories. You’re eating for two in terms of composition. Eating a balanced diet and getting enough of those important vitamins and nutrients will not only help your body, it will help your baby be healthier as well.
• Pamper yourself. Have a makeover, or get a massage. If all else fails, go shopping and find the most attractive maternity outfit you can find. Avoid the temptation to go through those nine months in sweats and t-shirts.
• Surround yourself with positivity. Pregnancy is one of those times that most women are especially vulnerable to negativity, particularly negative self-talk. Try to limit your time with those negative influences, and go out of your way to find people who can support you.
• Be realistic. Understand that it will take time for your body to snap into place after your baby is born, and that this is normal and natural. The fact of the matter is it’s all worth it, even if you struggle with body image for a while.

One of the most common (and most annoying) symptoms of pregnancy can be hemorrhoids. While not every woman will have hemorrhoids during pregnancy, many do. In fact, many women who’ve never experienced hemorrhoids before will suffer from them significantly when they’re expecting. Understanding what causes them and what you can do to treat them, however, can reduce the level of frustration that they cause you.

A hemorrhoid is, essentially, a swollen or “varicose” veins in the rectum. These swollen veins are typically very painful. Hemorrhoids during pregnancy occur most often during your third trimester. In many cases, hemorrhoids are caused when you’re constipated. When you combine the pressure of constipation with the pressure that your growing baby is putting on your body, it’s no surprise that you may have hemorrhoids during pregnancy.

Fortunately, there are some things that you can do that may help to give you some relief from hemorrhoids when they break out:

• Avoid sitting down for long periods at a time, as this can make for more pressure in the rectal area.
• Consider using witch hazel medicated pads to offer some relief when hemorrhoids are flaring. They can also help reduce swelling.
• Take a warm bath using baking soda in order to help treat hemorrhoids during pregnancy.

There are even some things you can do that may help you from getting hemorrhoids during pregnancy, or at least help to reduce their frequency. These include:

• Avoid straining during bowel movements
• Make sure you get a sufficient amount of fiber during the day
• Drink enough liquids and stay hydrated
• If you don’t mind the taste, have a glass of prune juice each day
• Eat a balanced diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables, especially leafy green vegetables.

Talk with your doctor if your hemorrhoids during pregnancy are particularly severe or painful. Try to stay away from hemorrhoid medications unless you talk to your doctor first and know that they’re safe to be used during pregnancy.

One of the more common ailments that women who are pregnant experience is constipation. Constipation is essentially defined by infrequent and difficult bowel movements. About half of pregnant women will have some degree or another of constipation during pregnancy. Understanding what causes constipation during pregnancy can help you to take some steps to prevent and treat it, as well.

For most pregnant women, constipation during pregnancy is triggered by a relaxing of the intestinal muscle. This happens because of specific hormones that increase in a woman’s body during pregnancy. This phenomenon means that food and waste will progress through your digestive system at a much slower rate, leading to constipation.

In addition, some women may experience constipation during pregnancy as a side effect of taking prenatal vitamins with iron. In some cases, switching to a different type of prenatal vitamin or iron supplement may help alleviate things.

Here are some things you can do to get some relief from constipation during pregnancy:

• Get enough fiber. You should take in between 25 and 30 grams of fiber each day as a minimum. Great sources of fiber include whole grain breads, vegetables, and bran.
• Stay hydrated. Dehydration can lead directly to constipation. Make sure you’re getting enough fluids throughout the day during pregnancy.
• Exercise. Exercise can help with constipation during pregnancy in that exercise tends to help stimulate your digestive tract. Exercising during pregnancy has the added benefit of helping you build up your stamina for the labor and delivery experience.
• Keep an eye on those iron supplements. If you think that your iron supplement may be responsible for your constipation, talk to your doctor. In some cases, you may be able to take several smaller doses of iron over the course of the day to make up for it.

Be careful with constipation remedies from the store. Some of the medicines used for constipation are perfectly fine to use during pregnancy. Some, however, may not have been tested for safety during pregnancy and probably should be avoided. (Laxatives, for example, are thought to cause uterine contractions and therefore should be avoided during pregnancy.

There are a number of different ways in which pregnancy affects your body. There are the obvious temporary changes, of course, such as increased breast size and the ever-growing belly. There are also more long-term changes that you’ll notice after pregnancy.

One of the areas that you’ll see changes in both the short term and the long term is in your skin. Here are some of the pregnancy skin changes that you can expect to see when you’re expecting:

• The “glow.” We often hear people talk about how a pregnant woman “glows.” The fact of the matter is that there are skin changes that do actually cause a difference of appearance. During pregnancy, your body makes more blood to circulate through your body and to provide to your baby. This can make your face look brighter in color. In addition, your hormones are all out of whack, which often leads to a higher production of skin oils. These two things together give you the glow.
• Acne. Unfortunately, all of that extra skin oil production can often cause your skin to become more irritated and to break out. Many women who haven’t had any acne in years find that it comes back with a vengeance during pregnancy. The key to managing acne during pregnancy is to keep your skin clean, don’t let it get dried out and to talk to your doctor about specific skin care products as some aren’t considered safe to use during pregnancy.
• Stretch marks. This is one of those skin changes that tends to stick around for a very long time after pregnancy. About nine out of ten women will experience stretch marks due to pregnancy. They show up as streaks of pink or red that cross the abdomen or the breasts. You can help to mitigate the impact of stretch marks by exercising. In addition, there are some skin treatments available for stretch marks that you might try. Here again, talk to your doctor about their safety first.
• Varicose veins. Often, you’ll see the appearance of large blue veins on your legs during pregnancy. That extra blood flow through your body often expands those veins, making them visible. You can reduce their impact by avoiding sitting or standing for a long time, propping your feet up when you’re sitting, using support stockings and by getting enough Vitamin C.

Pregnancy mood changes are a very common occurrence. There are so many physical changes going on, right down to the hormonal level, that anyone would be thrown off by them. Add in the emotional factors that come from the fact that you’re going to have a baby, and you have the perfect recipe for some serious mood instability.

Early pregnancy mood changes tend to peak between about week six and week 10 of pregnancy. That’s the time that your estrogen and progesterone levels are rising the fastest, which directly impacts the way you feel. That’s also a time where you’re settling into the whole concept of becoming a mom (or becoming a mom again) so it’s not unreasonable that you’d have some mood fluctuation during that first trimester of pregnancy.

For many women, pregnancy mood changes tend to slow down a bit during that second trimester of your pregnancy. You’re past the point where you’re dealing with morning sickness. You’re not as worried about miscarriage. You’ll probably start to feel your baby move at this point, as well. Yet, your baby isn’t so big that it hampers your movement or makes you uncomfortable in most situations.

Things tend to pick back up during the third trimester in terms of pregnancy mood swings. The third trimester is often a time of anxiety. You start to stress about labor, about parenting and about everything else. You are probably becoming more and more physically uncomfortable, tired and even irritable. Sleep can be difficult, exacerbating the problem.

If you experience severe mood swings or if they seem to last for a very long time, you should consider talking to a doctor. Your doctor may be able to identify another cause, in addition to pregnancy, that may be contributing to those mood swings. In addition, it’s often useful to visit a therapist during pregnancy to help work through some of the psychological impacts. Watch out especially for depression, of course, as severe depression can cause trouble with your pregnancy and can, at the very least, steal some of that joy you ought to be feeling during this time of your life.

Pregnancy is often a time of aches and pains for many women, and rightly so. Your body is going through so many changes, in terms of hormones, shape, center of gravity and more. One of the most common complaints of women, especially later on, is sciatic nerve pain during pregnancy. Sciatic nerve pain during pregnancy can be tremendously frustrating, and in some cases can be difficult to deal with.

It’s important to understand, first of all, what causes sciatic nerve pain during pregnancy. The sciatic nerve is the body’s largest nerve. It helps to give both motor function as well as sensation to your lower body. It gives sensation to the back side of your thigh, the lower region of your leg and even your foot’s sole. Having sciatic nerve pain during pregnancy means that you’ll feel periodic pain, varying in severity, throughout your legs.

There are a number of reasons why you might have sciatic nerve pain during pregnancy. The most common reason is that your growing baby is positioned perfectly to put pressure on the nerve, causing you pain.

When you experience this pain, the best thing to do is to lie down on the side opposite the one that’s hurting. This can help to take some pressure off of that sciatic nerve. You should also try to keep from dong any heavy lifting or any standing for more than just a few minutes at a time.

Some women experience relief from sciatic nerve pain during pregnancy through swimming or other forms of water therapy. Others may have some degree or another of success with applying either heat or cold to the area. Your doctor may be able to recommend other treatments that can relieve that pain, too.

If your sciatic nerve pain increases dramatically or if it doesn’t let up at all, talk to your doctor. In some cases, sciatic nerve pain can be an indicator that there is a muscular, vascular or other problem, and that should be taken care of before it causes a long-term problem.

Pregnancy changes your body around in so many ways. When you’re pregnant, your body responds differently to your environment, your diet and even to itself. These things manifest themselves in a variety of pregnancy symptoms, such as morning sickness or back pain. One area that some women experience some body changes is with swollen gums during pregnancy.

During pregnancy, swollen gums can be sore and they can be more likely to bleed. When they become inflamed, it’s known as “gingivitis.” Pregnancy gingivitis is a situation where you have swollen gums caused by pregnancy. This happens because of specific hormonal changes in your body. Those hormonal changes make it so that more blood flows to your gums, which makes them more sensitive and can cause them to swell.

In addition to causing swollen gums during pregnancy, those hormonal changes also affect your gums in another way. Those hormonal changes make it so that your body responds differently to bacteria in your mouth. This means that plaque is more likely to build up on your teeth, which in turn then leads to swollen gums. During pregnancy, you’re most likely to experience gingivitis during the second trimester.

Taking care of swollen gums during pregnancy requires a few basic steps. Taking good care of your dental hygiene is key if you’re going to reduce the swelling and maintain good dental health. If you don’t take good care of your teeth during pregnancy, you can wind up with periodontitis. This can actually contribute to a risk of premature birth.

Here are the things you need to do to keep swollen gums during pregnancy under control:

• See your dentist. You should have at least one regular checkup and cleaning during pregnancy. Make sure the dentist knows you’re pregnant before taking any x-rays or using particular types of treatment.
• Rinse daily with a warm salt water rinse.
• Brush your teeth at least twice a day. This is especially important after vomiting due to morning sickness.
• Watch what you eat. Avoid sugary foods, and avoid salty foods that make it more likely that you’ll retain water, too.