IS THE MENOPAUSE MAKING YOU SAD?

Hormones are renowned for playing with our emotions, one minute we are up the next we are down, and as women we have learnt to adjust to this with our monthly cycles. But what happens when the up's don't come and you are left with just the downs?

At the stage in our life that the perimenopause hits, there are many factors that can affect our mood. Stressful jobs, children leaving home, elderly relatives to look after, then you throw fluctuating hormones in to the mix it's no wonder it has an effect on the way that we feel. What we have to try and understand here though is very important, are you feeling sad some of the time or all of the time?

The hormones that cause all the chaos during the Perimenopause also have an influence on our Serotonin levels. Serotonin is known as the "feel good" hormone, so when levels are normal you feel more focused and able to do your day to day tasks freely and at ease, however when levels are low, it can lead to feelings of anxiety and depression, you may become more irritable, sad and withdrawn.

Some women are more susceptible than others to depression during this time, for example: if you suffered from PreMenstrual Tension, Post Natal Depression or if you or a close family member have had depression in the past, however this is not a given and could happen to you if you have no history at all.

So what is serotonin?

Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that relays signals between nerve cells in our brain and throughout our bodies. It not only regulates our mood but also plays a part in sleep patterns, digestion, bone health, wound healing, blood clotting, libido, temperature regulation and even hunger. Its is made from the essential amino acid tryptophan and must enter your body through your diet. 90% of the bodies serotonin levels will be found in the gut and 10% in the brain.

Serotonin cannot cross the blood-brain barrier however, this means that the brain must produce all the serotonin that it needs. As a result of this, any medications that can help to treat depression don't contain serotonin itself, but trigger reactions in the brain that can boost its production.

There are ways to naturally help to increase our serotonin levels, when we exercise for example our bodies release more tryptophan, the essential amino acid that our brain uses to make serotonin. This rush in serotonin gives us a 'high' feeling, ultimately making us feel better, so keeping active can be key to helping improve our mood.

Secondly light therapy or exposure to sunlight can increase our serotonin levels. It's been proven that light therapy works for treating seasonal affective disorder (SAD) and depression. It helps to regulate our circadian rhythm, this is the clock our bodies go by to know when it's day or night. When sunlight/daylight enters our eyes, it stimulates part of our retinas. By doing this, it send signals to the brain to produce serotonin. So by boosting serotonin levels it not only regulates our sleep/wake cycle it can also help with mood, so it's important no matter how we are feeling, to get out and about in the fresh air in the daylight hours. If however this feels a little too much, light lamps that you can sit in front of that stimulate natural light can be really helpful if getting outside is a struggle.

Thirdly there are foods that contain tryptophan, these include:-

• Salmon

• Eggs

• Cheese

• Turkey

• Tofu

• Pineapples

• Nuts, oats & seeds

These foods may help to increase our serotonin levels however it isn't as simple as just eating them and our levels will raise. There is a complex process that our bodies go through once we eat, it goes in to overdrive trying to send the right nutrients to the right places. When or if tryptophan gets absorbed in to our blood stream it's competing with other amino acids to get absorbed in to our brain where it can be converted to serotonin.

So what can we take from all of this?

There are ways that we can help boost our mood and it's certainly worth giving them all a try. Eating well and getting plenty of exercise will never go out of fashion and will always do us good physically, but now we know it can help mentally, its well worth trying to see if it has a positive effect on you and your mood.

But please always remember there is nothing wrong with asking for help, if you are still feeling low no matter what you have tried then talk to your GP, who will be able to help. There are treatments available that can really benefit you, and by talking to your Dr you can both decide what the best treatment options are whilst you go through this transition period. And most importantly keep talking to your family and friends, never feel you are alone in this, there is always someone who can help, or be there to listen.