Effect of Mind-Body Approaches on Menopausal Symptoms among Women: A Community-Based Pilot Study

Abstract

Abstract Introduction The process of women aging is characterized by a gradual transition from reproductive to nonreproductive life period. These changes in aging during menopause are accompanied by a wide range of physiological as well as psychological disturbing symptoms. The traditional therapeutic approach toward menopause management is hormone replacement therapy, which increases the risk of breast cancer, stroke, and coronary heart disease. However, the efficacy of complementary and alternative therapies like mind-body approach to troublesome hot flashes, anxiety, and depression is widely proven and it is used by many women. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the mind-body approach on menopausal symptoms among women. Methods A quantitative research approach with quasi-experimental pretest–post-test design was adopted in the study. A total of 20 samples between the ages of 48 to 55 years with menopausal symptoms were the participants. The intervention of mind body approach (Mindfulness meditation) was performed for 8 weeks, which includes 35 minutes of session per day. Results The majority (80%) of the participants were in the age group of 51 to 53 years and 50% of the participants attained menopause between 49 and 50 years. The results showed that the mean post-test menopausal symptom score was 15.60 ± 2.633 which was lower than the mean pretest score 28.420 ± 1.476 and the calculated t-value, t = 10.157 is greater than the table value (p < 0.001) at 0.001 level of significance. Hence, it is evident that the practice of mind-body approach was effective in reducing the intensity of menopausal symptoms among women. Conclusion The study concludes that the practice of mind-body approach helped in reducing the menopausal symptoms on the domain of psychological and Somato vegetative scale like anxiety, depression, reduction in the intensity of hot flushes, and improved the sleeping pattern. Overall, the practice of Mindfulness meditation helped the participants to have a better quality of life. The study was found to be cost-effective and feasible to be made as a routine intervention for women to manage menopausal symptoms.