Shraddha Nursing Home

The period around the age of 45 to 50 is very delicate for most women as many changes occur within the body. The changes occur due to menopause or a cessation of the menstrual cycle for a period of at least 12 months or so. Along with a host of physical changes, post-menopausal women tend to suffer from mental problems as well. Some of the factors could be physical changes such as a decline or stop in hormone productions while some of them are psychological effects as well. Some of the common mental problems faced by women are mentioned below:

1. Depression: This is by far the most common mental disorder and affects women while they are going through the process of menopause. After a few years, post-menopausal women tend to recover from this or the symptoms at least taper off. It is estimated that almost 20% of women undergoing menopause suffer from this problem, although the risk of depression is much higher if you have prior history of it.

2. Sleep Disorders: This can be described as not only a mental disorder that affects women but also a symptom of menopause. Sleep disorders can range anywhere between disturbed sleep, insomnia or sleep apnea (breathing difficulty while sleeping), especially in older women. Women undergoing menopause may suffer from this due to hormonal changes which result in hot flashes. These can wake you up in the middle of the night almost daily.

3. Schizophrenia: This is a serious mental disorder and is mostly noticed in women who have a prior history of the disorder. This condition is characterized by delusions and a detachment from reality which often pushes the person to act on their inappropriate imaginations. Schizophrenia usually manifests itself in young adulthood and peaks again at the age of around 45 to 50. If you had episodes of schizophrenia in your early adulthood, then it may resurface during menopause, although most women do see a subsiding of symptoms some time after menopause has occurred.

4. Panic Disorder: Women tend to experience this problem, during or even after menopause, as a new disorder that suddenly develops. This can be quite disruptive in your life. Also, if you have a history of this disorder, menopause may trigger it to show up again.

5. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder: This disorder is another mental health issue that can cause you to be overly obsessive, more so among menopausal women. If you already have had OCD in the past, menopause can trigger a relapse or a bad episode.

6. Bipolar Disorder: In this case as well, menopausal women have a higher tendency for a relapse or the start of a bad episode if they already had even mild signs of it.

Muscular dystrophy (MD) is a group of muscular problems which leads to loss of muscle mass and therefore loss of muscle strength. This is a progressive condition and gradually worsens with time. in some cases, the patients may experience complete muscle breakdown, ultimately affecting patient mobility to a large extent. The condition is usually inherited and caused by genetic mutations. It can affect children and adults alike. There are different types of the condition but the most common ones are:

• Myotonic
• Duchenne’s
• Becker
• Congenital
• Distal

In addition to the patient, there is a lot of stress on the caregiver and so coping with MD is hard not just on the patient, but also on the caregivers. Listed below are some medical and nonmedical measures to deal with this condition.

1. Medications: These could include corticosteroids which can delay the progression of MD. The doctor might also prescribe heart medications if the heart muscles are affected.
2. Therapy: Physical and occupational therapy play a major role in the management of MD. Therapies could include a range of motion exercises to improve the flexibility of the particular joint and improve mobility. With time, some joints could become rigid and the range of movement may also become limited.
3. Strength training: Another major problem with MD is the gradual loss of strength in the muscles. Training the muscles to retain and if possible improve strength is another objective of treatment. To this end, the doctor might prescribe exercises depending on overall health of the patient.
4. Breathing aids: If the lungs are affected, then the person would need breathing aids to improve oxygen supply to the lungs and also other body parts. Sleep apnea is a common condition seen in people with MD, which makes breathing at night difficult.
5. Braces: If the muscles are becoming rigid, then braces can be used to keep them in place. This helps in slowing the progression of muscle rigidity and also provides support for weakened muscles.
6. Vaccination: Vaccination for pneumonia and flu should be up to date, as the chances of infection are higher
7. Diet: Healthy diet is recommended, as eating too much junk and fried foods can lead to obesity, etc.

Especially if a child is affected, it is very important to not to keep them away from their regularly affects. Empathizing with them and working with them is very important. Encourage what they are able to do on their own, and gradually assist them to do more. Keep the school informed of issues so that they can provide necessary attention care and attention whenever required. For adults, being part of social forums and/or groups helps, as there would be others who are going through the same problem as you, so you can get tips and suggestions for coping.

Psychiatry is not just a form of medicine to identify and treat the psychiatric illness, but it also helps in improving attention, cognition, memory and concentration. Psychiatry has its role in different fields and working in the field of memory improvement is quite interesting. Memory is basically the process through which a person stores information for days, months and years.

Human brain is a dynamic entity and has wonderful capacity to store information and recall it as and when required. However, our memory is affected by a number of reasons, such as aging, accidents, negligence and certain diseases, which involves our brain and nervous system. Further, the memory of an event will improve, based on the frequency at which it has been recalled.

Apart from the frequency of recall, psychiatry can also help a person to improve the capacity of brain and sharpen their memory to store incidents or events for a prolonged period of time.

How psychologist can improve your memory:

1. Improving your concentration while doing any work will naturally improve your memory. Doing things with concentration will help us in storing information for a longer period of time.
2. Relieving your mind from stress or anxiety is also a great way to improve your memory as stress has the ability to hamper your memory.
3. Eating a balanced and nutritious diet is essential for a better memory. For increasing the memory power, psychiatrists insist on a diet which is anti inflammatory, rich in protein and Omega-3 fatty acids.
4. A simple 20 minute exercise routine will not just help you to stay fit physically, but mentally as well.
5. It also important to sleep properly, as sleep helps your mind and body to prepare for the next day. It is also advised to have a short nap in the afternoon to improve your brain functioning during the day time.
6. Smoking and frequent consumption of caffeine also hampers your memory, thus, it is advised that one should quit smoking and reduce the consumption of caffeine.

In case the fertility odds are against your favour, you can undergo a procedure called IVF or in vitro fertilisation. It is a form of fertility treatment in which the sperms and eggs are combined in a laboratory. IVF is a very common fertility treatment procedure, involving modern technology. It is carried out by many women and couples worldwide. When you are facing ovulation problems and issues with the quality of eggs, have blocked fallopian tubes or if your male partner has a low sperm count, a sperm donor’s eggs are used via IVF to become pregnant.

The overall process of IVF involves several methods and steps:

1. Ovarian stimulation: You will have to take a fertility drug called gonadotrophin eight to fourteen days before the beginning of your menstrual cycle. This will help to stimulate your ovaries for the development of multiple, mature eggs for fertilisation. You will also be given synthetic hormones like cetrorelix and leuprolide.
2. Development of follicle: You should be visiting your doctor frequently while having the medicines for a check-up of your blood hormone levels. Your ovaries will also be measured using ultrasound. This will allow the doctor to monitor the follicle development.
3. Trigger shot: You will be given a trigger shot injection when the follicles are prepared. This injection leads to full maturation of the eggs, making them ready for fertilisation. The eggs require a period of 36 hours for retrieval after receiving the trigger shot.
4. Gathering of the eggs: An anesthetic will be given to you and an ultrasound probe will be inserted via your vagina for observation of the ovaries and follicles. A thin needle will be inserted through the vaginal wall with which the eggs are removed from the follicles.
5. Fertilisation: The eggs will be observed one final time before being combined with your partner’s sperm. Then they will be incubated overnight. Fertilisation occurs during this period and the abnormal eggs do not get fertilised. Three days after the egg retrieval, some of the successfully fertilised eggs transform into embryos composed of six to ten cells. Within five days, some of these embryos turn into blastocysts composed of fluid-filled cavities and tissue. This separates into the baby and the placenta. The most viable embryos are placed in your uterus. One to five embryos are placed in your uterus by the insertion of a catheter through the cervix. The embryo implants itself to the uterus walls. Gradually, it develops into the baby. The chances of pregnancy are higher when there are multiple embryos.

Before thinking of undergoing IVF, you must consult a doctor to know about the entire process. You also need to know whether you are fit to undergo IVF as there are several criteria you should satisfy for IVF.