Premature menopause and psychological well-being

This study aimed to investigate the psychological well-being of women who had experienced menopause before the age of 40 years. Participants were women known to the reproductive endocrinology service of a London teaching hospital. They were contacted and invited to participate in the questionnaire study by post Sixty-four women (41.6%) who completed and returned their questionnaires formed a usable sample. Participants reported high levels of depression and perceived stress, and low levels of self-esteem and life satisfaction, compared to the general population. Self-reports on several dimensions of sexuality were significantly more negative. The following factors could affect the degree of reported distress: age, age at diagnosis, time since diagnosis, already having children, being in a long-term relationship, or having psychological treatment in the past or present The results suggest that premature menopause could pose significant psychological difficulty for a sizeable proportion of those who have th...