When a woman's body begins producing less estrogen and progesterone and more follicle stimulating hormones, she is beginning to pass into premenopause and then eventually menopause.
While there are litany of symptoms and conditions associate with delicate and difficult phase of life, one of the most common and disruptive symptoms is menopause night sweats.
When Do Menopause Night Sweats Occur? Menopause sweating can occur during all phases of perimenopause.
During premenopause, a woman's ovaries begins to reduce their production of estrogen and progesterone, and it is this point when a woman may begin to experience the most unpredictable phase of menopause hot flashes.
When a woman finally moves into menopause, the hot flashes and night sweats begin to become more frequent but also more steady, making them in some ironic fashion more predictable and thus more manageable.
As a woman moves into postmenopause, which can't be determined until after fact, she could still experience sweating at night for many years to come, but the episodes tend to be more mild and tolerable then during the perimenopause and primary menopause years.
Why Does This Happen? When you suffer from menopause hot flashes, essentially your body's hormones are throwing your brain for a loop.
The particular part of your brain being befuddled is the hypothalamus gland, a small gland at the base of the pituitary gland.
The hypothalamus acts as our immune system thermostat, adjusting our body temperature as necessary to fight disease or cool our temperature in stressful situations.
Unfortunately, the roller coaster ride of ever shifting hormonal imbalances experienced during all phases of menopause tend to throw the internal thermostat off, sometimes causing it to feel it needs to take sudden and drastic measures to regulate core body temperature and health vitals.
This is why hot flashes are called flashes.
They can occur suddenly and at unexpected times that don't seem to mesh with either the temperature of the environment or the level of stress or physical activity.
How Can You Treat This? There are a number of treatments for menopause night sweats, some of them dovetail with treatments for general night sweating that may occur with anyone, male or female.
But some of them are specifically geared towards helping women going through this phase of life.
Some natural remedies that are particularly useful include black cohosh, a popular herbal remedy, as well as herbal supplements such as rhodiola or Valerian.
Additionally, particular vitamin supplements may help as well.
Vitamin E, A and vitamin B complex without niacin have shown some promise for helping to ease night sweats during menopause.
Melatonin, a natural hormone produced by the body, becomes less available as we age.
It comes in a simple and safe over-the-counter form, and many people have reported positive results from using it to combat menopausal night sweats.
If these remedies don't help, you might consult your doctor about HRT, or hormone replacement therapy.
There is some controversy to HRT, so make sure you discuss the pros and cons of this type of treatment with your doctor and your loved ones before proceeding.