Positive change in menopausal experience

AUSTIN, Texas — White women are becoming more optimistic about menopause, with many seeing it as an opportunity to rethink their lives and redefine themselves, a new University of Texas at Austin national study shows. This is just one of the positive changes in the way women across different ethnic groups are experiencing the change of life, the School of Nursing research found. The study also found women are getting support from their family and friends and some even mentioned relief and benefits when going through menopause. Past studies have shown that white women, in particular, were concerned about menopause as a "harbinger of physical aging taking them away from society's youthful ideal," said Dr. Eun-Ok Im, the La Quinta Motor Inns Inc. Centennial Professor in nursing. "Most of the white participants in our study say they try to be humorous and laugh — to boost their inner strength and motivate themselves to go through the hardships during the menopausal transition." Im's four-year study, funded by a $1.2 million National Institutes of Health grant, looked at ethnic differences in menopausal symptoms reported by Whites, Hispanics, African American and Asian women. The study was done via a Internet survey among 512 women and included equal numbers of mid-age (40 to 60 years old) participants from each ethnic group.