Brain Fog and Menopause

The New York times recently published a story about the menopause transition and brain fog.

Dr. Devi, a psychiatrist in NY, published her experience in our main medical journal.  She found that many women had mental decline during the menopausal transition that may even be similar to that of dementia.

The good news is the brain seems to recover after menopause and thinking improves.  It is like the brain adapts to the lower estrogen state but it takes a few years.  Remember, the period of peri-menopause (the dreaded transition) is often 7-10 years.  So are there options for this time?

YES!!!   Thankfully hormone replacement can work wonders for those that are estrogen sensitive.  We have several trials that show that early estrogen use may actually lower risk of all types of dementia, including Alzheimers.  It can also improve mood and thinking during the peri-menopausal transition.

Now if one starts estrogen later in life, well past menopause, it actually may iNCREASE  the risk of dementia.  We see the same risk with late start for increased risk of heart disease.

The bottom line is this:  if you feel off in your 40s then the change in estrogen is possibly the cause. Most women can safely take hormones so let's talk about options.  We offer multiple types of bio-identical hormones.  

You don't have to suffer in silence anymore!

Author

John Thoppil, MD Dr. Thoppil is the founder of River Place Ob/Gyn. He has been named an Austin Monthly Top Doc the last 3 years and was the cover model of the January 2018 issue. He is the President Elect of the Texas Association of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and an Assistant Clinical Professor at Texas A&M Medical School