|
|||||
Gender
Issues In Psychology (PSY -
512)
VU
Lecture
39
PROBLEMS
ASSOCIATED WITH FEMALES' REPRODUCTIVE
HEALTH
Problems
Associated With Females' Reproductive
Health
As
said earlier, more females
than males go for medical
advice and help. Their
frequent consultation with the
physician
is besides their visits for
pregnancy related advice and
care. One probable reason for this
behavior is
that
women are endowed with a
complex reproductive system. The
structure and the functions of
female
reproductive
system are complex and vulnerable to a
variety of conditions. In our discussion of this
subject we
will
focus upon a few of such
problems that may affect a
women's physical or psychological
well-being.
We
will be discussing the following
problems:
a)
Dysmenorrhea
b)
Pre-menstrual
syndrome
c)
Menopause
The
main objectives of our
discussion of these problems
are:
i.
To
create an awareness about the very
existence of these
problems
ii.
Besides,
we want to make the point that it is
not necessary that all
women experience these
problems.
Many
women never experience any
of these symptoms.
iii.
Although
there are certain
stereotypes associated with
females' reproductive health, one must
realize
that
part of these problems are
physical and part
psychological.
iv.
Most
importantly, these problems
are manageable.
Dysmenorrhoea
Dysmenorrhoea
is pain along with cramping of the
uterine musculature accompanying the
menstrual period. In
some
females the pain can be very
severe and debilitating.
Whereas many women do not
experience such a
condition.
There are two types of
Dysmenorrhoea:
i.
Primary
ii.
Secondary
Primary
Dysmenorrhoea
This
type occurs without any
causal disease. It usually
begins in the teens and
disappears after child
birth.
Secondary
Dysmenorrhoea
This
type is caused by some primary disease
process. The symptoms of
Dysmenorrhoea are related to
the
primary
condition e.g.
endometriosis.
Etiology/Causes
Physical
cause: Prostaglandins
Biologically
active ad naturally occurring unsaturated
fatty acids, prostaglandins,
have been found to be
related
with
Dysmenorrhoea. Prostaglandins have
potent actions on blood
cells, smooth muscles, fat
cells and nerve
tissues.
Psychological
causes
Heightened
stress level, especially negative
stress has been found to be
associated with
Dysmenorrhoea.
Treatment
Physical
treatment:
Prostaglandin
Inhibitors e.g. ibuprofen, naproxen
sodium and others. Regular
exercise, especially
aerobic
exercise
has been found to be very
helpful in symptom relief as
well as symptom
control.
108
Gender
Issues In Psychology (PSY -
512)
VU
Psychological
interventions:
Relaxation
exercises have been known to
help. If positive imagery is added, the
treatment becomes more
effective.
Premenstrual
Syndrome (PMS)
Commonly
known as PMS, refers to the
symptoms experienced by many
females prior to the monthly
period.
The
symptoms usually occur around 10
days prior to the beginning of the
period. The common
symptoms
include
depression, irritability, water
retention, fatigue, and/or
lethargy.
Etiology:
Physiological
Explanation:
A
number of physiological explanations are
available about PMS. However
most researchers, and
medical
professionals
believe in the effect of insufficient
progesterone, or insufficient
progesterone relative to estrogen,
or
a high estrogen-progesterone
ratio.
Psychological
Explanation:
Psychological
theories primarily focus
upon a state of arousal along
with an appraisal of one's
inner state as
negative
or positive. Some theories extend the
same approach even
further.
These
theories propose that the cultural
stereotypes of the premenstrual women as
being depressed and
irritable,
affect which environmental or physiological
cues are attended to when
attaching a label to
increased
arousal
(Koeske, 1980).
The
treatment of PMS
A
number of treatments have been
found to be effective in relieving the
symptoms of PMS. The
treatments
include
medical and psychological
treatments as well as lifestyle
changes.
Medical
Treatment
Physicians,
who strongly believe that PMS is
caused by low levels of
progesterone, recommend
progesterone
therapy
(Dalton, 1964). Diuretics are
also recommended in many
cases (Appleby, 1960).
Bromocriptine, that
inhibits
prolactin release, has also
been found effective (Steiner et
al., 1984). Medicines increasing the
level of
Serotonin
have been recommended by
some (Harrison et al.,
1984). Some have found
prostaglandin inhibitors
to
be effective (Jakubowicz et al., 1984).
The use of evening primrose
oil is also helpful
(Horrobin, and Phil,
1983).
Psychological
Treatment
The
following interventions have
been found to be effective:
_
Relaxation
exercises with
imagery
_
Cognitive
therapy for changing appraisal of
situation
_
Role
modeling through, video recordings of
symptom free females
Lifestyle
changes
_
Regular
Exercise, especially aerobic
exercise, has been found to
be effective.
_
Healthy
dietary habits are recommended
e.g. reduced dairy intake.
_
The
PMS sufferers are advised to
stop or restrict the use of
refined sugar. They are
recommended to
acquire
the sugar required by the body through
complex carbohydrates, cereals
etc.
_
Multivitamins
are also helpful.
Menopause
Menopause
is a condition, or change that
every women beyond the age of
45-55 years experiences.
Menopause
refers
to the cessation of menstruation. In turn it
means the end of fertility. At
menopause ovulation
stops
permanently.
The average age of menopause
is about 51 years; in 4 out of 5 women
menopause takes place
109
Gender
Issues In Psychology (PSY -
512)
VU
between
45 and 55 years (Avis, 1999;
Messill, and Verbrugge, 1999). Some
women may have this
experience as
early
as in their thirties, whereas some as
late as in their
sixties.
Symptoms
of Menopause
Besides
being a major life change with
reference to fertility, menopause is
considered a significant period
because
of the accompanying symptoms. Little or
no physical discomfort is experienced by
most women
during
perimenopausal phase (NIA,
1993).
Perimenopausal
or climacteric, or "change in life",
refers to the period during
which the changes that lead
to
menopause
are experienced. This period
may be stretched over many
years, beginning usually in the
30s. The
commonly
known symptoms include:
_
Hot
flashes or hot
flushes
_
Increased
body weight
_
Headaches
_
Profuse
sweating
_
Sleep
problems/insomnia
_
Depression
_
Dizziness
_
Sensation
of cold in hands and
feet
_
Irritability,
and arthrosclerosis, among
many others
_
Osteoporosis
(brittle bones)
The
most common symptoms are hot
flashes i.e., sudden
sensations of heat that
flash through the body due
to
expansion
and contraction of blood
vessels. Many women do not
experience these at all, and
many have these
continually
(Avis, 1999). There are many
diverse views about these
symptoms. Some viewpoints see
these
symptoms
as purely psychological in nature, resulting
from the menopausal women's perception of
her
changed
physical ability.
Others
regard these symptoms as
clearly physical in nature, resulting
from hormonal changes. A
third view
point
considers these symptoms as resulting
form both psychological and
physical factors.
However
what needs to be kept in mind is the fact
that not all women
experience these symptoms,
and not all
women
experience the same intensity and
frequency of these symptoms if they
experience any. The
supporters
of
the psychological viewpoint use this fact
as their main supporting
argument. They propose that
had the
menopausal
symptoms been purely
physical in nature, then all
women would have experienced
the same
symptoms.
The
Sociopsychological approach
According
to this approach, two factors
determine the experience of
menopause:
a)
The
woman's perception of a major life
change, and the end to
fertility
b)
The
societal stereotypes about menopause.
This includes especially the
attitudes, awareness,
and
behavior
of the husband and near
relatives.
If
the research on menopause is scrutinized,
it will show that "so-called
menopausal syndrome may be
related
more
to personal characteristics or past
experiences than to menopause
per se" (Avis, 1999, P.
129).
At
the same time cultural and societal
factors play a very important role. The
typical menopausal symptoms
are
experienced
more, and felt more
seriously, in societies (e.g.
western societies) where a
women feels she is
important
primarily because of her
body. Few problems are
associated with menopause in
societies and
cultures
where social, religious, or political
power is acquired by older women after
menopause (Avis,
1999;
Treatment
of Menopausal Symptoms
A
number of treatments have been
found effective in alleviating, controlling,
and managing symptoms
of
menopause.
Some of the more commonly used
ones are mentioned
here:
1.
Hormone Replacement
Therapy:
Estrogen
alone, or in combination with
progesterone is used.
2.
Evening Primrose Oil:
Of
the herbal remedies, evening primrose oil
is claimed to have very positive
effects.
110
Gender
Issues In Psychology (PSY -
512)
VU
3.
Exercise:
Regular
aerobic exercise helps prevent,
control and alleviate the
symptoms.
4.
Cognitive Therapy:
Cognitive
therapy for menopausal woman
focuses upon the wrong
perceptions about the end of
fertility.
The
menopausal women are made to
realize that this is an age of
more freedom when they are
free of
children's
responsibilities, have more money,
more leisure time, and more
time for using their
creative or
intellectual
potentials.
What
Needs To Be Done???
·
Health
education for females
·
Changes
and additions in school curriculum
pertaining to reproductive health.
·
Encouraging
girls to express their health
concerns with mothers,
teachers, or with health
professionals.
111
Table of Contents:
|
|||||