Generally speaking, a woman is two times as likely to experience depression than a man. Meanwhile, more than 10 percent of older adults experience depression. Therefore, it’s not a surprise that women between the ages of 45 and 64 are at a high risk of having a mood disorder during perimenopause and menopause. It’s widely believed that hormonal shifts play a major role.
After all, hormones help regulate body functions that impact a woman’s mood. If this delicate process is out of balance, depression symptoms can appear. This can feel like a double whammy, but if hormonal factors are identified and addressed, the depressive episode can also be managed.
How Shifting Hormone Levels Can Cause Emotional Reactions
There are several reasons why a woman’s hormone levels may fluctuate, e.g., birth control, pregnancy, and more. For older women, menopause is the most common culprit. Here’s a small taste of the effects to watch for:
- The unexplained appearance of anxiety, sadness, and irritability could point to a decrease in serotonin.
- At the same time, should a woman experience a drop in testosterone levels, she’s also experiencing anxiety, sadness, and irritability. In addition, signs could include a reduced sex drive and low overall energy.
All of the above could become the precursor to a depressive episode.
The Correlation Between Depression and Hormones in Older Women
During perimenopause — the time leading up to menopause — a woman’s reproductive hormones begin changing levels. This process is euphemistically called “going through the changes.” Perimenopause is when a woman’s menstrual cycle becomes decidedly irregular. This could refer to the cycle becoming less frequent, closer together, longer, or shorter, and more.
The perimenopause process is believed to leave women more susceptible to being diagnosed with major depression. During this time, serotonin levels decline. Since this chemical is responsible for happiness and well-being, it makes sense that less serotonin causes one’s mood to be more depressed.
Simultaneously, hormones like progesterone and estrogen decrease. This combines with the side effects of lower serotonin to make women feel less able to handle stress that they’d previously manage with relative ease. All of these hormonal shifts can be responsible for sleep disturbances. Anyone experiencing poor sleep is at up to 10 times the risk for depression as someone with healthy sleep patterns.
Another factor to consider is the time of life we’re discussing here. Women in their 40s and 50s have entered a life stage that could include empty nest syndrome, aging parents, financial/career problems, and new health concerns. It can be quite the recipe for depressive episodes — especially if you’ve ever been diagnosed with depression in your life.
An Important Caveat
None of the above is meant to imply that negative life events or menopause-related depression are inevitable. Among other things, there are two powerful steps any woman in this age range can take:
- Awareness: As you can see above, there is a “perfect storm” of factors to take into account. A woman who understands the changes her body is undergoing during a potentially stressful time is more likely to take positive measures to prepare herself.
- Self-Care: Those positive measures can effectively be lumped into the category of self-care. Daily exercise, regular sleep patterns, healthy eating choices, and relaxation techniques are all wise choices.
Menopause-Related Depression Can Be Treated
If you experience symptoms during perimenopause, talk with your doctors about them. Medical choices might include hormonal medications like an estrogen patch, a low-dose oral contraceptive pill, and more. Meanwhile, there are medications commonly used to treat the symptoms of a depressive episode. An excellent starting point is to connect with an experienced therapist to learn more about this unique convergence of symptoms and factors, we have therapists who can help with this today! You can schedule here any time or reach out to us with questions here. We’ve got you no matter what stage of life you’re in!
