Are You Experiencing Pain and Tenderness In Your Breast?

Menopausal and other hormonal fluctuation are the major breast tenderness causes. When women experience menopause, their hormonal levels tend to change and it is during this time that they can develop tenderness in the breast. Although, there are times that postmenopausal women may also undergo tenderness in their breast. It is also typical for women who are in their perimenopausal and premenopausal stage.

Breast tenderness issues are common with women; in fact at least 70% are experiencing this. However, there are only a small percentage of women who are experiencing severe breast symptoms. At least 10% are severely affected by it; in fact it has affected their work, relationship as well as their daily lives. Women must understand that tenderness in the breast is rarely a sign of breast cancer. In most cases, breast tenderness which is a result of menopause is normally due to hormonal changes in the body. One of the best ways of understanding and managing its symptom is to become more educated about breast tenderness in menopause.

Breast tenderness is also known as mastodynia, mastalgia and mammalgia. It is defined as the pain, discomfort or sensitivity felt in one or both of the breasts when certain pressure is applied on it. Some people use this term to refer to any breast discomfort. Most women undergo tenderness in their breast area during their menstrual period and during pregnancy. This is the time that the hormones estrogen, progesterone and testosterone fluctuate. Aside from menstruation and pregnancy, one of the major breast tenderness causes is menopause wherein hormonal fluctuations occur.

Mastalgia causes can be experienced in different ways at different times during the various lifecycle. Sometimes it is also based on the women's genetics as well as their unique physiology features. Tenderness in your breast experienced during menopause can sometimes be sporadic or persistent. Sometimes the symptoms can be experienced in one breast only by some women. However, there are also women who will experience the symptoms in both breasts. The most common symptoms of mammalgia/mastalgia/mastodynia include increased sensitivity to touch or pressure, breast soreness or swelling, pain while sleeping, heavy, dull or aching feelings and some aches.

The major cause of tenderness in the breast during menopause is hormonal change. During the menopausal stage, women may experience irregularities in progesterone and estrogen. Changes in the hormonal levels can lead to tenderness in their breast. Some women experience tenderness in the breast due to too much or too little estrogen. Other women may have too little progesterone. However, no sole hormone is the sole contributor of tenderness in the breast. Additionally some women who are having hormone replacement therapy during menopause can also experience tenderness in the breast. This is why, these women who are on replacement therapy still continue to experience breast discomfort even after their menopause.

After understanding the causes and the symptoms of tenderness in your breast you can proceed in learning more about the treatment of breast tenderness during menopause. Tenderness in the breast is considered as a type of breast pain. Therefore, it is treated with the same approach during menopause. These treatments can range from natural therapies, lifestyle changes and invasive medical options.