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Hot news flash: Doctors are incorrectly prescribing antidepressants to women going through menopause.
A new study released Thursday found that over a third of women who consult with their general physician about menopause symptoms are being offered anxiety and depression medications, despite the fact that 80 percent of those women voiced concerns that the recommendation was “inappropriate.”
The What Women Want at Menopause survey of 1,101 UK women aged 42 to 55 revealed women are overall hesitant to talk with their doctors about the hormonal change.
Perimenopause, the often uncomfortable transitional period prior to the loss of ovarian function (menopause), is known to cause fatigue, insomnia, hot flashes, irritability and a reduced sex drive, among myriad other symptoms unique to every case.
According to the survey, 84 percent of women felt their GP did not fully address their questions, while some 40 percent said they didn’t even try talking to their doctor about it menopause. Only three in 10 participants felt their doctor had been helpful regarding menopause.
Maryon Stewart, an expert in female hormonal health who conduced the survey, called the trend towards treating menopause with antidepressants to be “worrying on a number of levels” and “quite frankly insulting,” adding that studies have shown they are not effective for this purpose.
“It is not a solution, it is not going to help their self-esteem or their relationships. In some cases, it can make them feel worse,” Stewart told The Independent, adding, “They are not mentally ill — antidepressants are not appropriate.”
A separate study by Dr. Louise Newson, a GP and menopause specialist, found similar results. The survey of almost 3,000 women by her non-profit organization, Newson Health, revealed that 66 percent of respondents were “inappropriately offered or given antidepressants for the low mood associated with their menopause.”
Newson told the outlet, “Menopause guidelines are very clear that antidepressants should not be given first line for low mood associated with the menopause because there is no evidence that they will help,” adding that hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is the only research-backed treatment for depression due to perimenopause.
“Many of the women who take HRT who have been incorrectly given antidepressants in the past find that their depressive symptoms improve to the extent that they can reduce and often stop taking their antidepressants,” she added.
Stewart, the author of “The Natural Menopause Plan,” said, “The describes women who struggle with the change, often seeing themselves as “a shadow of their former selves” and “like their life is over,” and blames the medical community for their lack of understanding of women’s issues.
“By their own admission, [doctors] are lacking education so therefore they can’t help the women,” she said.
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