The Better Blog

Sep 07, 2022

Generativity: The Psychospiritual Opportunity at Midlife

The third age, for many women, comes with a proximate biological marker: the end of menstruation. Our hormones and cycles may change suddenly, or gradually over a multi-year period, until eventually monthly bleeding stops completely. The average age in the west for this final menstruation is 52, but it can range from the early 40s to the mid 60s. "Post-menopause" is a boring name for the time after the bleeding stops- it’s a boring word for one of the most creatively vital parts of our life (this is why I call it ‘the free period’, instead).

Three Women Working Out to To Improve Menopause Symptoms

Sep 06, 2022

How To Improve Your Menopause Symptoms

82% of women reported that sleep disturbances had a high impact on their quality of life in Gennev’s 2021 Women in Menopause Report. And lack of sleep can impact just about everything in our lives. In addition to physical health, it can largely affect moods, productivity, weight, and mental health. There are many reasons women don’t enjoy the restful sleep they once did during this time of their lives. Hot flashes and night sweats, increased anxiety, urinary issues, restless leg syndrome, even new digestive challenges, can all contribute to women having difficulty falling asleep and staying asleep.

Sep 05, 2022

Why Menopausal Women Can't Sleep

Are you approaching the stage in your life when menopause is starting to set in? You may be prepared to deal with things like hot flashes and mood swings, but menopause also affects things that you might not fully expect, including your quality of sleep. For most women, this is a temporary adjustment that starts to even out after that initial menopausal change, but it's still something that can cause quite a disturbance in your life. Recently there has been much research done on menopause and many science-backed solutions developed to help women ease the transition into menopause.

Sep 03, 2022

The Reality Of Menopausal Hormone Therapy (MHT)

There has been a great deal of misunderstanding and controversy about menopausal hormone therapy (MHT). Inaccurate reporting of results from the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) study nearly two decades ago in 2002 led to fear and concern that MHT causes increased risk of breast cancer and cardiovascular disease. These inaccuracies were clarified by many updated and new studies demonstrating the safety of MHT for healthy women younger than 60 years and who are within 10 years of menopause. The overall benefits of MHT generally outweigh the risks in women with bothersome symptoms.

Sep 02, 2022

6 Ways to Offset Menopause-Related Hair Loss

While hair loss is one of the 34 common symptoms women confront during menopause, each woman’s menopause journey is unique—and so is the selection of symptoms she experiences. With menopause-related hair loss, genetics, and hormonal changes are the defining factors in how much hair, if any, you’ll lose during this life stage. In most instances of hair loss, there’s nothing medically wrong, and it’s also not permanent. Keep reading to understand what triggers hair loss as you enter menopause, how much shedding you can expect, and the different ways you can prevent and even reverse some of this loss.

Sep 01, 2022

5 Health Issues To Discuss With Your Doctor

As a woman approaching midlife, there are five health issues you should be thinking about and discussing with your doctor. We know starting the conversation isn’t always easy so be sure to check out our free printable questionnaire for your next doctor’s appointment!

A woman looking her menopausal acne in the mirror

Aug 24, 2022

What Does Menopausal Acne Look Like?

It feels unfair that we have to add menopausal acne to the long list of bodily changes we might expect during perimenopause and menopause. We already know about fatigue, insomnia, night sweats, hot flashes and even unwanted facial hair growth—can't Mother Nature cut us a break?

Sadly, no. But luckily, she doesn't get the final say!

Menopausal and perimenopausal oily skin and acne are treatable at home. There are many options for fighting menopausal acne, including over-the-counter skin treatments, dietary supplements, lifestyle changes and updates to your skincare routine that can help prevent breakouts and support clear, healthy skin during menopause. Keep reading to learn more about what causes menopausal acne and the options for preventative menopausal acne treatment!

Aug 01, 2022

Got Frizz? Summer Alone Isn't to Blame

With age, especially as we enter menopause, frizzy hair can become an everyday battle. Along with more significant fatigue, hot flashes, and thinning hair, a change in hair smoothness from hormonal fluctuations is yet another menopause symptom (though one that often surprises many of us), and the hot, humid days of summer only make matters worse. But unruly, frizzy hair during or after menopause doesn’t have to be part of the plan. Keep reading for our list of 10 ways to tame menopause frizzy hair for smooth, manageable tresses all year round!

Better Not Younger features a woman looking herself at the mirror and checking her skin state carefully.

Jul 20, 2022

Should You Mix Salicylic Acid and Retinol During Menopause?

As we enter perimenopause and menopause, it's no secret that our skin undergoes some significant changes. Aging skin tends to be drier and less elastic than younger skin, and we might start experiencing the breakouts we dealt with as teenagers again. It's incredibly frustrating to be dealing with breakouts and aging skin simultaneously! Is there a way to tackle both at once?

The answer is yes, by using salicylic acid and retinol. But proceed with caution so you don't irritate your skin!

Salicylic acid is the gold standard for acne prevention, and topical retinol is the first-line treatment for wrinkles and loss of elasticity in aging skin. Keep reading to learn how to add salicylic acid and retinol into your skincare routine safely!

A manopausal caucasian woman looking at the mirror while touching her face during her manopausal skincare routine

May 20, 2022

Top Skincare Tips to Know as You Approach Menopause

For a long time, talking about menopause was a cultural taboo. This left many of us in the dark about what to expect for menopause skin changes like breakouts, dryness and discoloration.

Thankfully, conversations about menopause and aging skin are changing. We're learning more about what we should know heading into midlife and how menopause can affect our hair and skin.

And we've made considerable headway recently! According to Jill Angelo, CEO and Founder of Gennev, "There are so many more companies and brands taking on menopause from various different vantage points. This has driven up the conversation in the media, and as a result, women are starting to talk about it more and more. It’s so wonderful to see the progress in the past two years and I can’t wait to see where it goes!"

Read on to learn more about the best skincare for menopausal skin and what menopause skin changes to expect!

Better Not Younger features a woman with long brown wavy hair touching her face while smiling as a sign of skin health due to the use of probiotics.

May 18, 2022

Probiotics and Skin Health Explained

If you’re not already familiar with probiotics, it’s time to change that. The benefits of probiotics for women are vast and important to your overall health, but probiotics and skin health are especially linked. Good probiotics for women can include everything from the right food in your diet to a supplement that’ll boost your microbiome—all the bacteria inside your body—which in turn, can lead to improved gut health, a stronger immune system, and, yes, smoother, glowy skin. Probiotics and your gut microbiome go hand in hand, but probiotics and skin do, too. When it comes to probiotics, though, everyone talks about gut health and not necessarily how that gut health translates to the rest of your body. But probiotics and skin? Definitely a good idea. Let’s discuss the benefits of probiotics for women and how probiotics and your gut microbiome can lead to a better relationship between probiotics and your skin.

Better not younger features a caucasian woman in her late 30s taking her right hand while having a pain expression as it might be a symptom of menopause.

May 11, 2022

5 Menopause Symptoms That Catch Women Most Off Guard

It’s typical that women have at least some knowledge of what to expect before getting their first period, having sex for the first time, and having a baby. However, preparation for menopause, a rite of passage every woman will experience, is practically non-existent. Most women report being caught off guard and surprised by the physical and emotional changes. In fact, it’s common for women to question whether a symptom is related to menopause or something else.

In the early stages of perimenopause, before your periods become irregular, it can be hard to sort out what’s menopause-related and what’s not. With at least 34 symptoms associated with menopause, and conditions like a thyroid problem with similar symptoms, it’s easy to see why there’s so much confusion. Classic symptoms like hot flashes, trouble sleeping, vaginal dryness and low libido grab the spotlight since they are the most frequent symptoms women experience. However, that leaves 30 other symptoms, many of which women are unaware. Which one’s catch women most off guard? Read on for my pick of the top five.

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