Can Menopause Cause Dizziness?

You may be aware of some of the more common menopause symptoms you might experience during the menopause transition.

(Hot flashes and vaginal dryness, anyone?)

But can menopause cause dizziness?

Unfortunately, the short answer is that it’s not uncommon to feel faint and woozy over this chapter of life.

Let’s take a closer look at why you might be experiencing dizziness around menopause and what you can do to feel a bit more like yourself again.

Before we get going, if you or someone you know are experiencing any severe or prolonged symptoms alongside dizziness, it’s important to get emergency help. Watch out for chest pain, difficulty breathing, double vision, slurred speech, seizures, and facial numbness.

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What exactly is menopause?

Reaching menopause means that you have stopped having periods — and it’s been a least 12 months since you had your last one.

Menopause is a natural process that everyone who ovulates goes through.

It happens when your ovaries stop making the hormones needed for menstruation.

Many women will go through menopause somewhere in their late 40s or early 50s, but it can happen sooner or later than that.

The time leading up to menopause is called perimenopause.

During this time, your body goes through several hormonal changes.

Most notably, your estrogen and progesterone levels rise and fall until they drop for good.

Most women will experience a range of symptoms as menopause approaches.

These can vary in severity and duration.

And yes, experiencing dizziness with perimenopause and beyond is not unusual.

But there’s also a chance that what you’re experiencing could be due to another health condition.

That’s why it’s really important to check in with your doctor to get to the bottom of what’s causing your symptoms.

Can menopause cause dizziness and vertigo?

Dizziness is a common symptom that happens over the menopause transition.

One study found that as many as a third of women will experience dizziness during menopause.

Unfortunately, there’s no real agreement on exactly what the link is between menopause and dizziness.

But it’s very possible it’s connected to the hormonal changes you’re going through.

That’s why it often occurs alongside these other common symptoms of menopause, including:

• Anxiety
  
• Insomnia and other sleep troubles (If you’re not getting enough sleep at night, you may feel dizzy during the day.)
  
• Hot flashes
  
• Headaches or migraines

And there are other possibilities.

This study showed that hormonal fluctuations during the menopause transition might be connected to developing a disorder called benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV).

BPPV is an inner ear condition that makes you feel like the world is spinning around you (or inside you) when your head moves position.

While it’s not necessarily dangerous on its own, it can be very uncomfortable to live with.

So checking in with your doctor for possible treatment or lifestyle adjustments is really important.

And there’s another thing your hormone changes could impact — your insulin and blood glucose levels.

This study showed that these are significantly higher after menopause when your estrogen levels dip.

While it’s certainly not the only factor, it does appear that there’s a link between hormone changes and the development of diabetes.

And yes, dizziness and diabetes can go hand-in-hand.

The bottom line? There are a number of possibilities here.

Check in with your doctor so that they can help you get to the root cause of what you’re experiencing.

What does menopause dizziness feel like?

You may feel lightheaded — almost as if you’ve stood up too quickly.

Or like everything is spinning, which can make you feel like you’re about to lose your balance.

Try to note down if the dizziness happens alongside other symptoms, like heart palpitations, hot flashes, or headaches.

This can be important info to feed to your healthcare practitioner so that you can get the relief you need.

How do you fix hormonal dizziness?

Dizziness is a common experience during and after the menopause transition — but it could signal another medical issue.

It’s a good idea to get in touch with your doctor to discuss your specific symptoms so that they can rule out other conditions and help you feel better.

Fortunately, many things can help alleviate the symptoms and discomfort of menopause dizziness:

• Have healthy snacks ready to go. Having high protein (rather than high sugar) snacks on hand — like nuts and yogurts — can help stabilize your blood sugar levels.
  
• Keep yourself hydrated. Drink plenty of water to avoid dehydration. If water isn’t your tipple of choice, then you could explore some caffeine-free herbal or fruit teas as an alternative.
  
• Get up slowly. This is an easy way to help your inner ear adjust to the changes in your body.
  
• Practicing balance exercises. Strengthening your balance can help you feel more grounded and avoid falling.
  
• Reduce your stress. We know there’s no one way of doing this but keeping your stress levels low can help offset dizziness as a symptom of menopause. Yoga, nature walks, and mindfulness meditation are all good strategies.
  
• Menopausal hormone therapy. While it’s not right for everyone, hormone therapy can lessen a wide variety of menopausal symptoms associated for many women. Speak to your doctor to see if it’s an appropriate treatment for you.

We know going through menopause symptoms can be a lot.

So if you want to talk to other women who get it, join our Menopause Community on Peanut.

After all, we’re all in this together.

You don’t have to navigate this alone.