Menopause is normal and natural. It is your body changing and maturing into a new stage of life. Unfortunately, menopause is often perceived as an ominous midlife challenge that begins a time of inevitable and prolonged discomfort and declining quality of life.

The reality is that menopause only marks the end of your childbearing years. You are entering a phase of life when your body's energy shifts from a monthly preoccupation with possible childbirth to maintaining a steady state of energy focused on supporting you alone. In a healthy state, there should be plenty of energy available to support an active, productive, and inspired life after this transition is complete.

Over 40 million women are currently post-menopausal in the United States. The fact that those numbers will increase to 60 million in the next 10 years and the attitudes about menopause are continuing to move from being viewed as a clinical syndrome to a natural transition have opened the way for more natural and comprehensive management of menopausal symptoms.

Somewhere between the ages of 45 and 55, most women experience a change in their normal menstrual cycle that results in a complete cessation of the cycle. Those transitional years, often referred to as the peri-menopausal years, lead to a number of physiological and emotional changes that affect a woman's quality of life. However, while the menopausal transition is experienced by women around the world, the unique combination of diet, lifestyle (particularly stress), cultural attitudes and longevity give it particular prominence in the Western world.

The additional fact that menopause is accompanied by increased incidence of bone fractures, heart disease, depression, fatigue, loss of mental acuity, increased sexual difficulties and various cancers has often lead to the conclusion that the transition itself must be an unnatural state, or even a diseased state. However, it is often one's current and past ways of living and eating that sets the stage for a harsh transition during these middle years. Incorporating more healthful dietary and lifestyle habits and supplying the body the necessary nutrients it needs to rebalance hormone levels will lead to the more correct perception of this natural midlife transition.

In these pages you will learn more about the natural transition that occurs at mid-life known as menopause, the symptoms that can accompany this transition and what you can do to minimize symptoms associated with menopause and maximize your enjoyment and health in the second half of your life.

Click the Learn More button for detailed information about this condition, or click the What You Can Do button to discover many natural remedies to determine and address the root cause(s) of the condition.