How to Prevent Menopausal Night Sweats

Menopause carries with it many uncomfortable symptoms that can affect a woman’s physical and mental health. One common complaint among those in the transition to menopause is recurrent night sweats that disrupt sleep.

At Salem Women’s Clinic, Inc., highly skilled OB/GYNs specialize in managing symptoms that occur during perimenopause and menopause.

We offer suggestions for holistic strategies that support your health and wellness. You may also be a candidate for hormone replacement therapy to prevent night sweats and other menopause symptoms.

What to know about menopause-related night sweats

Night sweats describe episodes of intense sweating where you soak through your night clothes and sheets. Along with excessive sweating, your skin may become red, your heart can beat faster, and heat waves may spread throughout your body for several minutes or longer.

Typically, sweating is your body’s natural response to overheating. Reproductive hormones like estrogen play a role in regulating your body temperature through sweat. When your hormone levels begin to decline during the menopause transition, your body temperature can increase without warning.

Excessive sweating and hot flashes can be severe enough to wake you from a deep sleep. Some women have to get up several times throughout the night to change their clothing and sheets, which can lead to sleep deprivation, irritation, and daytime drowsiness.

Our menopause specialists understand how frustrating and uncomfortable night sweats can be when they occur, particularly with other bothersome menopause symptoms. We offer in-office blood tests to assess your hormone levels and confirm that excessive sweating relates to menopause and not an underlying medical condition.

Benefits of hormone replacement therapy to stop night sweats

Night sweats, hot flashes, and other symptoms of menopause directly relate to the decline in your reproductive hormone levels. 

To ease the severity of these symptoms, Salem Women’s Clinic, Inc. offers hormone replacement therapy (HRT). This treatment rebalances your natural hormone levels with supplemental hormones to regulate your body temperature and other biological functions.

We customize a treatment plan using bioidentical hormones, structurally similar to hormones your body makes naturally but derived from yams and other plant materials. Women often tolerate bioidentical hormones much better than synthetic hormones produced in a lab.

Our team monitors your progress with HRT and can adjust the dosage as needed to ensure maximum symptom relief. The length of time you need to remain on HRT depends on your age, the severity of your symptoms, and overall health.

Other strategies for alleviating night sweats

In addition to a personalized HRT plan, our menopause specialists can work with you on lifestyle changes to prevent recurrent night sweats. Some of these changes include:

• Keep the temperature of your bedroom cool
• Wear loose-fitting, cotton night clothes
• Use layers of lightweight blankets
• Practice relaxation techniques before falling asleep
• Avoid exercising close to bedtime

Also, incorporate diet changes that can prevent night sweats. Known triggers of increased body temperature include spicy foods, caffeine, and alcohol.

Call Salem Women’s Clinic, Inc. to schedule a menopause consultation to discuss your treatment options for night sweats. You can also book an appointment online.