Ludhiana, August 16
Ms Malti Ahuja (not her real name) was beginning to see it as the end of her marriage. Something was bothering her. Depressed, dejected and confused, she wanted help, but could not understand what had gone wrong with her. Despite having a caring husband and supportive in-laws, there was hardly anything that excited her.A city based psychiatrist, Dr Rajiv Gupta, sees a pattern in what Ms Ahuja went through. Most women between the age of 35 and 45 years, on the onset of hormonal changes in the body start suffering from oestrogen syndrome. They refuse to accept the fact that they were getting old and as a result start leading a restless, stressful and frustrated life, he said.
Dr Gupta says that most women suffer from anxiety, depression, frustration, restlessness due to the loss of oestrogen. “It is a physiological change and every woman should accept it gracefully. They have the misconception that it is the sign of the onset of their old age”, said the psychiatrist.
Dr Gupta said he received two to three such patients approaching menopause everyday at his clinic. One of the main reason for the oestrogen syndrome was the life-style of the contemporary women. “The 40-plus disturbance in the body is the sign of the onset of the old age phenomena. But, today’s woman does not want to look old. They are so beauty conscious that the mere thought of old age makes them irritable and uncomfortable”, added Dr Gupta.
The psychiatrist further said other symptoms included loss of appetite, sleep, confidence, irritation and frustration. There are frequent weeping spells and lack of physical activity. Dr Gupta said women earlier were not career oriented and were restricted to the four walls of their houses. They treated that as a normal phase of life but now there was a feeling of competition.
Dr Suman Puri, a gynaecologist with Guru Teg Bahadur Charitable Hospital said menopause usually started between the age of 42 and 47 years. There is a deficiency or sudden decrease of the two main hormones in the female body, the oestrogen and the progesterone. The two hormones have a beneficial effect on the heart and the bones. She said,” The sudden absence and deficiency causes joint pains, night sweats, anxiety, depression and frustration. Dr Puri added that due to much awareness about the menopause syndrome, most of the city women took artificial hormones to remain fit.
Dr Puri suggests that women need not feel guilty over these changes. They must not feel dejected and keep doing their regular chores and take rich protein diet.
The doctors said earlier it was taken to be destiny but now due to various support groups and specialized care, women were able to cope with stress resulting out of this condition. Women should also consult their doctor regularly. There was nothing wrong in seeking medical help and visiting a psychiatrist should not be taken as a taboo.
