Women’s Experiences on Menopause: A Phenomenological Study

Menopause is the permanent termination of menstruation resulting specific symptoms such as hot flashes, mood swings, sleep disturbances, forgetfulness, vaginal dryness and weight gain. Women suffer from these symptoms because such symptoms affect their day-to-day life and finally lead to decrease in the quality of life. Therefore, it is pivotally important to study the experience of women during menopause. The aim of this study is to explore women’s experiences of menopause. Purposively selected 20 women who experienced menopause were recruited for this qualitative phenomenological study at the Gynecological Section of the District General Hospital, Matale. Data was collected by semi-structured interviews conducted during a period of one month and data analysis was done using Colalizzi’s analysis method. Four (04) themes emerged from the findings, which are: unbearable discomfort in the body, emotional instability and memory problems, problematic issues in family relationships, and increased expenditure for the treatments. Hot flashes, sleep disturbances, joint pain, vaginal dryness and weight gain were the physical experiences. Further, there were psychological experiences of menopause such as difficulties in making decisions, forgetfulness, fits of anger, mood swings and frustration. Moreover, women’s menopausal experiences also affected their family life and economy. Women noted that decreased libido and lack of motivation were affecting their family life, while experiences of poor time management and additional expenditure on medical treatment were adding to the existing burdens of family economy. The findings revealed that women suffer from different experiences during menopause and they suffer because, those changes reduce the quality of their lives. Such personal changes, though they are manageable, could lead to issues such as rupture in personal roles within the family and immediate society. Hence, these study findings can be used to provide them with better health care and knowledge.