Compreensão de mulheres acerca da vivência do climatério e menopausa: implicações para o cuidado

Abstract

Introduction: Population aging is mostly represented by women, thus granting the characteristic of feminization to the elderly population. The climacteric is a phase in a woman's life in which biological, but not pathological, changes occur. It is the transition period between the reproductive and non-reproductive phases. Thus, menopause is a fact that occurs during the climacteric. Objective: To understand the repercussions of the climacteric and menopause period on women's health and how they face this phase of life. Method: This is a descriptive qualitative research, based on the theory grounded in the data, according to the constructivist model of Charmaz. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews from June to August 2020. Participated in the study 13 women aged 41 to 70 years, who experienced or were experiencing the climacteric. The study scenario was a Family Health Strategy, located in a city in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Results: The results showed that women have little information about the climacteric and menopause, and many of them do not know the meaning of these words. The main difficulties experienced by women are: living with vasomotor symptoms, sweating, mood swings, headaches and insomnia, and how to adapt with them on a daily basis. Women look little for the Family Health Strategy to deal with the signs and symptoms of menopause and menopause, since it does not offer specific actions for this population group. Most participants did not undergo hormone replacement and used teas and alternative care to relieve symptoms. Conclusion: The results of the study show that women have little knowledge on the subject, but recognize the main complaints of this period, even though they do not find attention focused on them at this stage. The results contribute to the proposition of care that can be provided by health teams, since it was possible to point out some health promotion and prevention and treatment practices that contemplate the biopsychosocial aspects of women who are experiencing the climacteric period.