The mysterious hives of menopause

By the time most women reach their forties and fifties, they are showing the physical changes that accompany menopause. Menopause can also bring emotional turmoil, but it’s the physical symptoms that can make the menopausal years so traumatic for millions of happy, well-balanced women. And among the most distressing symptoms are the hives of menopause.

growing occurrences

Menopausal urticaria is a mystery to medical science, which has yet to explain its appearance. However, menopausal hives seem to be affecting more and more women, and they can appear only in small areas or they can cover the entire body. The hormonal changes that occur during menopause could be at least one factor in the appearance of hives.

The stress factor

Pharmaceutical companies have developed skin creams specifically to relieve the itching and inflammation of menopausal hives, but there is a school of thought that hives can be aggravated by stress. Those women afflicted with menopausal hives have nothing to lose by reducing their stress levels as much as possible, but even that doesn’t promise an immediate end to the condition. It can take months to clear up menopause hives and other menopausal symptoms.

However, there are some women who experience menopausal hives just once while others have a chronic case of hives known as urticaria. If the hives are a single occurrence, they will go away shortly without intervention. Hives, on the other hand, can last up to six months.

The menopausal hive can range in size from small red spots to those with a diameter of a half dollar. Severe cases of menopausal hives can lead to a condition known as angioedema, which causes swelling of the hands, eyes, and lips.

Other alleged contributors to the menopausal hives are food allergies; many women change their diets suddenly while trying to relieve their symptoms. They may be eating a food for the first time, not realizing that they are allergic to it. A severe case of menopausal hives really deserves your doctor’s attention so that he can try to determine and eliminate its cause. The best way to conquer menopause hives is to eliminate its causes, and that can be difficult.