Menopause Support

Genesis Helps Women Deal With The Natural, But Sometimes Stressful, Change of Life

Davenport, IA - Hot flashes, mood swings, forgetfulness and sleepless nights... Few women welcome the symptoms of menopause and the distress that falling estrogen and progesterone levels can bring. Now, a new support group can show them how changes in lifestyle and attitude can help them deal with the change of life.

Debra Cooney, a certified menopause clinician at Genesis Health Group in Bettendorf, and Ava Dorrance, a licensed clinical social worker at Psychology Associates, treat many women grappling with the physical symptoms and emotions of menopause.

They are launching the Menopause Support Group to educate women and help them cope with the changes. The first meeting will be at 9 a.m., Saturday, May 1 at the Genesis Health Group reception area, Suite 100, 865 Lincoln Road, in Bettendorf. The meeting will be informational to determine the frequency of meeting times and the needs of the group. A $5 fee for each participant will cover the cost of an informational book about menopause.

The average age of natural menopause – defined as going 12 months without a menstrual period – is 51. In the Western world, most women experience it between the ages of 40 and 58.

Some women go through menopause and have no symptoms at all. Others experience hot flashes, night sweats, weight changes, mood swings, sleep disturbances, changes in their menstrual cycle and irritability, Cooney says. No matter what their symptoms, she offers women experiencing menopausal changes one piece of advice: "I tell them, ´This is an opportune time for you to make some healthy lifestyle changes that will help you for the rest of your life,´" she says.

To decrease their menopausal symptoms, they can do several things: Eat a healthy diet, increase calcium intake, do routine and weight-bearing exercise, and reduce the caffeine that causes hot flashes and robs calcium from the bone, for example. Vitamins can also help with irritability and premenstrual syndrome (PMS).

A positive attitude of acceptance can help, too. "Just the word 'menopause' implies sickness or illness," Dorrance says. "We have to start looking at this as a natural process, not as a disease, and as a welcome transition into a new phase in life. In some cultures, she says, middle-aged and older women are revered, and there's a different response to menopause with fewer complaints of physical problems."

Women who wish to attend the support group meeting can make a reservation by calling Psychology Associates, at 309-764-1670 Tuesday thru Friday.