Menopause and Depression

Most of the menopausal women I know have experienced depression at some point. It’s a common symptom of menopause– the hormonal shifts during this phase of life impact both the body and brain. Our hormones regulate everything in our bodies: reproductive health, circulation, metabolism, digestion, et cetera. Just like your heart or stomach, your brain is a major organ, and hormones play a role in how it functions. Menopause can change the way our brains work for cognition, memory, temperature regulation and MOOD. The hormonal roller coaster of menopause affects our emotions. I remember back to my high school years when PMS caused me to lash out in anger one minute, then feel fine, only to end up crying uncontrollably the next. It caused riffs in my relationships with family, friends, coworkers, and my boyfriend. When I first experienced menopause, the same thing happened– I felt like I was right back on that roller coaster ride, and I was terrified that all of my significant relationships would begin to unravel… just like they did in my teenage years.

I knew there was a problem when I screamed at my dear husband and snapped at my darling daughter for no reason. Afterward, I always felt terrible, but the damage was done. I'm generally a very easy going person. It takes a lot to ruffle my feathers, so when I express anger, my loved ones take it very seriously. Then I would feel terrible about myself and fall into a slump. I didn't want to see anyone, do anything, or even get out of bed. Nothing brought my mood back up, and I sank into a prolonged sadness, but I couldn't tell you why. I racked my brain for the reason I was sad, because then I could take action with a solution, but I kept coming up blank. I had a great life– I enjoyed my job, my husband's physical and mental health had improved by leaps and bounds, and my children were both thriving in their own lives. I couldn't understand why I was feeling mad one minute and sad the next. Like the rest of my symptoms, these mood swings seemed out of control, and I felt completely helpless. For me, this was such a reversal of my usual disposition: I dreaded the onset of prolonged sadness, or sometimes it felt like a feeling of “not happy.” Those of you who have been through this will understand what I mean. It was almost like a numbness had set in. I felt like nothing would lift my mood, and I settled into a cycle of feeling bad, refusing to do anything, then feeling even worse about that. So, what to do? I HAD to find a breakthrough, but if I traveled the traditional medical route for answers, I knew exactly how that conversation would go…

The most common “cure” for depression in menopausal women is prescription antidepressants like Prozac, Zoloft, or Paxil. According to the Centers of Disease Control, in 2020, 15% of adult women were being treated for depression with one of these drugs. This is almost twice the rate that men were being treated (8%). The usage rate of these drugs increases with age– from 10% for women ages 18-39 to 23% for women 40–59 and 25% for women over 60. While usage is common (“Everybody’s doing it! What’s the big deal?), that didn’t help me feel more comfortable about taking an antidepressant. I needed more information. There are serious risks to taking these medications. According to Eli Lilly, the makers of Prozac, side effects could include nausea, dizziness, dry mouth, and trouble sleeping. On their website, www.lilly.com, the company lists 17 other possible side effects for Prozac under their “Warnings and Precautions” section along with 25 most common adverse reactions. Many of these are highly concerning, such as seizures, increased risk of bleeding, and potential for cognitive and motor impairment. Because of these concerns, I've avoided taking Prozac and any other drug meant to be taken for life. My biggest question about conventional treatments is, “What is the end game?” When do I get to stop taking the medications, and when I do, will my symptoms return? MY goal is to find the root of the problem and correct it. The medical community isn’t answering my question, and I still don’t feel confident that antidepressants will do anything more than mask a symptom of my hormone imbalance. For example, I've observed many family and friends who began taking prescription medications, experienced side effects, then took other medications to combat those. A vicious cycle ensues. One person in my close circle of friends was taking up to seven different prescription medications, with no plans to discontinue any of these. I knew that taking prescription medication for the next 30 years was not the path I needed to take, and I prayed for an alternative answer.

Then I found intermittent fasting (IF). If you've read my previous posts, you know that I found relief from managing many of my menopause symptoms through IF, including my mood swings and depression.While recent studies have shown correlations between intermittent fasting, less inflammation and improved mood, including less depression in some subjects, more studies– better designed with larger samples– are needed. Some researchers suggest a direct connection between improved mood and less inflammation. Almost all of the literature suggests that lowering inflammation in the body can lead to improved overall health. It follows that instead of dealing with individual symptoms, I needed to get to the root cause of inflammation within this complex interconnected system of my body. IF worked for me–after only a few days of 20 hour fasting, my hot flashes subsided, I was sleeping better, and my MOOD IMPROVED significantly. I felt calmness and clarity. The sense of hopelessness and lethargy begin to lift. More than two years later, I still use IF most days. My menopause symptoms, including depression, have not returned. I continue to feel better as I age, and that has been the biggest surprise.

Dear Reader, if you are experiencing symptoms of menopause or depression, my heart goes out to you. This can be a tough stage of life– but you don't have to be a victim. You have choices. I tried IF not knowing if it would make any difference, but I figured I had nothing to lose. IF costs nothing, no fancy food or supplements, no time consuming meal prep or exercise plans. My mindset was that of an “experiment.” I thought I would try it for a few weeks to see how it would go. And here I am sharing how fantastic life and health can be as we age. I urge you to keep searching for answers and try the things that make sense for you. I look forward to hearing about your health WINS!

All the best,

Jennifer Kaye