10 Surprising reasons to love your menopause

Articles with titles like ‘My Menopause Nightmare’, ‘My Early Menopause Hell’ and ‘Menopause: nature’s way of saying older women aren’t sexually attractive?’ (no, seriously) can make it all feel like doom and gloom.

The reality however, is a lot less depressing. While some women undeniably struggle with 'the change', many others find it to be an incredibly liberating time of life.
 

Hallelujah! Sure, it’s an obvious benefit, but the end of periods is acause to celebrate none-the-less.

Speaking on Woman’s Hour, Leeds listener Jennifer Ballamy recalled:

“It was so marvellous, so liberating to be freed from the tyranny of the menstrual cycle, where you can feel your emotional state changing as the weeks progress, and that extreme fatigue when you finally get your period”

When you wave goodbye to periods, you also wave goodbye to ruined pants, surprise flows and a lifestyle chained to nature's four-week calendar.

Get some great tips on managing your menopause

It’s not just periods that disappear with the end of the menstrual cycle. After the menopause, you can reclaim those days formerly wasted on cramps, exhaustion and mood swings.

The weird food cravings, bloating and binges will eventually disappear too, leaving you happier and more balanced than you were during your period years.

Though you'll still need to use condoms to ward off the risk of sexually transmitted diseases, no more oral contraception means an end to worrying about an unplanned pregnancy.

This freedom might just lead to…

Maybe it’s just those hot flushes making us take off our clothes, but many women report an increased sex drive and attraction to their partner as they go through menopause.

Speaking to Health magazine, Irwin Goldstein, Director of Sexual Medicine at Alvarado Hospital, said:

“You’re not bothered by menses. You’re not bothered by kids in the house. You can have sex in any room. You can have the greatest sex life on earth.”

Stumbling blocks like the vaginal dryness that often accompanies the menopause can be a great excuse to experiment with lubricants and get more creative in the bedroom.

Read some great tips on sex after the menopause

As you stop experiencing PMS, you’ll also stop having those monthly cravings for sweet, fatty foods.

This could mean you actually drop a few pounds after the menopause.

In October 2015, the Huffington Post reported that women spend more than £18,000 on their periods over a lifetime.

So while it might not seem like much, the money you spent on sanitary towels, tampons, pain relief, contraception and that trusty extra-strong-detergent soon adds up.

Spending so much time tending to a body determined to have babies, whether you want it to or not, is exhausting.

Losing that tie to the four-week cycle gives you a sense of control over your body that you may not have felt since before puberty.

Want to run a marathon? Get training. Want to dance all night? Do your thing.

Your body is yours and only yours.  

Not worrying about unexpected periods, sudden mood swings, ruined pants and monthly bloating can do wonders for your self-esteem.

You may well find that going through the menopause, and bonding with other women about the process as you go, makes you more assertive and intuitive.

Now that there is no threat of becoming pregnant, you can take medicines not permitted for fertile women.

Your health is no longer bound by your uterus and you can simply seek out whatever treatment works best for your body.

With all that extra energy, loss of weight and renewed confidence you’ll be feeling younger than ever before.

Many women take up new hobbies and make new friends thanks to the renewed lease of life offered by their menopause.