MENOPAUSAL SYMPTOMS AND COPING STRATEGIES: A COMMUNITY-BASED STUDY IN THE BAMENDAHEALTH DISTRICT, CAMEROON

Abstract

Introduction: Menopause brings diverse physical, psychological, and emotional challenges, often leading women to seek for solutions for varied health conditions. In Cameroon, despite the increasing number of menopausal women, there is limited attention to the symptoms and coping strategies employed by these women. This study aims to assess symptoms and coping strategies among menopausal women in the Bamenda Health District.
Materials and methods: This was a community-based, descriptive cross-sectional study carried out for six months in the Bamenda Health District, Cameroon. We included menopausal women aged 45-60 years who gave their informed consent to participate in the study. Participants were selected using a convenience sampling technique. A pretested interviewer administered questionnaire was used to collect data on the sociodemographic characteristics, menopausal symptoms and coping strategies. Data were analysed using SPSS version 25.0.
Results: The three most common menopausal symptoms were hot ashes (89.3%), night sweats (83.1%), and sleep disturbances (71.3%). Physical and mental exhaustion (66.5%), and vaginal dryness (61.4%) were the most reported psychological and urogenital symptoms respectively. Most women (62.9%) sought medical care for symptom relief, while 54% used complementary and alternative therapies. Majority (50.7%) wore layered clothing to manage hot ashes, regulated room temperature (60.3%) to cope with night sweats, and engaged in physical activities (50.4%) to
cope with mood swings. About 48.2% avoided sex to cope with vaginal dryness. In addition, 41.2% avoided caffeine before bed to cope with sleep disturbances, while 52.6% took short daytime naps to cope with fatigue. About 50.4% used over-the-counter pain relievers to cope with joint pains and 27.9% practiced relaxation techniques for emotional symptoms.
Conclusion: The most common symptoms were hot ashes, musculoskeletal pain and sleep disturbances. Non-pharmacology methods were often used as coping strategies