2nd Edition
Managing Hot Flushes and Night Sweats A Cognitive Behavioural Self-help Guide to the Menopause
This revised edition of Managing Hot Flushes and Night Sweats offers up-to-date and evidence-based information about the menopause and about hot flushes and night sweats, which are the main reason that women seek medical help.
The four-week self-help guide uses cognitive behavioral therapy, providing information and strategies for managing hot flushes and night sweats, as well as stress and sleep. The guide is interactive with exercises and homework tailored to women’s individual circumstances and lifestyles. It challenges myths about menopause and aging and provides better understanding of flushes which in turn reduces stress and improves post-menopausal well-being. The various chapters discuss processes of identification and modification of triggers of hot flushes and offers tips to women on dealing with hot flushes in social and work situations.
The guide can be as effective as eight hours of group CBT and will help women who want to try a non-medical treatment that is brief and effective without side effects, or just want to be better informed.
Introduction; 1: The Menopause: A bio-psycho-social transition; 2: Menopausal symptoms: Hot Flushes and Night Sweats; 3: A Cognitive Behavioural Approach; Managing Menopausal Hot Flushes and Night Sweats: a Four-week Self-help Guide; 4: Week 1: Being Informed and Reducing Stress; 5: Week 2: Managing Hot Flushes; 6: Week 3: Managing Sleep and Night Sweats; 7: Week 4: Review and Maintaining Changes. Resources. References.
Biography
Myra Hunter is emeritus professor of clinical health psychology at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London. She has worked with women in a clinical and research capacity for over 35 years and her research on menopause has established her as an international expert in the field.
Melanie Smith is a highly specialist clinical psychologist working within a physical health context. She was lead therapist on MENOS 1&2 CBT trials for well women and women experiencing hot flushes and night sweats following breast cancer treatment. Melanie works at the Manchester and Salford Pain Centre and provides CBT training to health professionals working with women with menopause symptoms.
"CBT helped me a lot. I was able to focus more on the areas I was struggling with. The breathing techniques helped me to manage my anxiety levels when they came on. I made more time for myself and changed my diet. By doing this I was able to stop the triggers for symptoms of menopause - I feel in control again" Nicolina Reynolds
"The CBT process was a turning point in managing my menopause experience. Not only did it help me to manage my symptoms and get them into perspective, it accelerated the psychological acceptance of menopause. I went from feeling old and miserable to feeling better about myself than I have in years. It feels really good to finally be happy in my own skin." Rebecca Berry
