ANN QUESADA is a certified Nurse Practitioner at Health First Medical Group’s Gynecology practice with three decades of healthcare experience and a member of the North American Menopause Society. She spoke to Vero News about the onset of menopause and new treatments to ease symptoms.

More and more celebrities and influential women are shining a light on perimenopause and menopause.

Ann Quesada, a certified Nurse Practitioner at Health First Medical Group’s Gynecology practice, described perimenopause for Vero News as being “like a flickering fluorescent light bulb – sometimes you have symptoms and sometimes not,” sometimes a body is producing estrogen and sometimes it is not.

Perimenopause and menopause vary widely from woman to woman. The body begins to use energy differently, fat cells change, and women may gain weight more easily. A person may experience changes in bone or heart health, body shape and composition, even physical function.

“For some women, the mood swings can be as profound as those during puberty,” says Quesada. “Other people don’t have that experience at all. Some women suffer from overwhelming hot flashes, others feel them very minimally. Science simply can’t account for what causes the differences.”

Quesada says there are things you can do to make your menopause journey more comfortable.

“There’s even a new non-hormonal drug recently approved by the FDA to treat hot flashes,” she says. “Veozah works by binding to and blocking the activities of the NK3 receptor, which plays a role in the brain’s regulation of body temperature.

In the United States, women typically enter menopause between ages 40 and 58 (the average is 51), according to North American Menopause Society, of which Quesada is a member. Typically, women reach menopause around the same age as their mothers or other women in their family.

Unfortunately, Quesada says, even though exercise is important, it’s not going to get rid of “menopause belly.” You need to cut your calories with a healthy, rich-in-protein diet.

Changes in menstruation are not always caused by menopause.

“I never just assume it’s menopause if a woman is in her 40s or 50s,” says Quesada. “I always confirm my findings with blood work.”

READ the full feature in Vero News HERE.