Menopause, Stress and Inflammation: Understanding the Transition

Menopause, Stress and Inflammation: Understanding the Transition

Menopause, Stress and Inflammation: Understanding the Transition


NOVEMBER 2025
North Shore Health – Advanced Care for Women’s Health and Integrative Medicine
Updated November 2025 | 3 min read


Understanding Menopause From a Western Medical Perspective

Menopause is a natural life transition, yet for many women it can become a debilitating period marked by anxiety, hot flushes, sleep disturbances, mood swings, pain, and a sense of “something not being right.” Research increasingly confirms that menopause is not just a hormonal change—it's an inflammatory, neurological, and metabolic shift that affects nearly every system of the body.

From a medical perspective, menopause involves declining ovarian production of oestrogen and progesterone, hormones essential for regulating temperature, metabolism, bone density, immune activity, and cognitive function.
When these hormones decrease, several physiological changes occur:

  • Inflammation rises: Oestrogen is anti-inflammatory. Its loss activates immune pathways and increases systemic inflammation. A 2022 study in Nature Reviews Endocrinology showed that menopause triggers heightened inflammatory cytokines, contributing to joint pain, fatigue, and metabolic changes.

  • The stress response intensifies: Low oestrogen increases sensitivity of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis, resulting in exaggerated stress responses. Women become more prone to anxiety, irritability, and feelings of emotional instability.

  • Thermoregulation becomes impaired: This causes the classic hot flushes and night sweats.

  • Neurological changes occur: Reduced oestrogen affects serotonin, dopamine, and GABA pathways—contributing to mood swings, anxiety, and brain fog.

Many women in perimenopause describe feeling:

  • unusually anxious

  • uncomfortable in their environment

  • unsure of their decisions

  • overwhelmed by sensations of internal “imbalance” or “something is off”

These experiences are not psychological weakness—they are biological consequences of hormonal withdrawal, adrenal overactivation, and inflammatory changes.

At North Shore Health, we recognise these patterns and support women through this transition with evidence-based integrative care that addresses the hormonal, neurological, and emotional dimensions of menopause.


Gold Standard Western Medical Treatment: Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT)

HRT remains the most effective and medically validated treatment for menopausal symptoms.
Major guidelines—including the Australasian Menopause Society, The Royal Women’s Hospital, and The North American Menopause Society—confirm that HRT is the gold standard for:

  • hot flushes and night sweats

  • vaginal dryness

  • sleep disturbances

  • mood instability

  • bone density protection

  • inflammatory joint and muscle pain

Modern HRT uses bioidentical hormones, extensively studied and considered safe for most women when prescribed appropriately.

Key evidence:

  • A 2024 meta-analysis in The Lancet found HRT reduces vasomotor symptoms by 75%–90%, improves sleep quality, and significantly lowers osteoporotic fracture risk.

  • Studies show that HRT reduces inflammatory markers, helping with pain, joint stiffness, and fatigue.

  • Transdermal oestrogen is associated with lower clot risk and is the preferred option for many women.

While not suitable for everyone, HRT is significantly safer today than in past decades due to updated formulations, dosing, and monitoring.
At North Shore Health, we often work alongside GPs, gynaecologists, and women already on HRT, offering complementary therapies to optimise their experience and symptom relief.


How Acupuncture Supports Menopausal Symptoms and Stress Regulation

Acupuncture has been increasingly validated in Western clinical research as an effective supportive treatment during menopause.

Key findings:

  • A 2019 study in BMJ Open showed that acupuncture significantly reduced hot flushes, sleep disturbances, and mood symptoms in menopausal women within just 5 weeks.

  • Research in Menopause (The Journal of The North American Menopause Society) demonstrated that acupuncture modulates the autonomic nervous system, reducing sympathetic stress activation and improving thermoregulation.

  • Neuroimaging studies show that acupuncture influences hypothalamic pathways involved in stress, temperature control, and hormonal regulation.

From a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) perspective, menopause reflects a decline in Kidney Yin and a rise in internal heat. Stress, overwork, and long-term inflammation weaken the Spleen and Liver systems, worsening emotional instability and hot flushes.
Acupuncture helps by:

  • calming the HPA axis

  • reducing inflammatory cytokines

  • improving sleep and emotional regulation

  • cooling internal heat and supporting hormonal balance

  • nourishing the Kidney–Liver system, which governs reproductive and endocrine function

At North Shore Health, we combine gentle body points with auricular acupuncture to help stabilise mood, regulate temperature, reduce anxiety, and support adrenal resilience.


Herbal Medicine: Evidence-Informed Support for Menopause

Chinese herbal medicine has been used for centuries to ease menopausal symptoms—and modern research now confirms its value when used correctly.

A 2023 review in Frontiers in Pharmacology found that multi-herb formulations:

  • improved hot flush frequency

  • reduced night sweats

  • lowered systemic inflammation

  • regulated the gut–brain axis involved in menopausal anxiety

  • supported sleep and mood pathways

 

Key herbs for menopause include:

Shan Zhu Yu (Cornus fruit) – stabilises hormonal fluctuations and supports adrenal function.
Gou Qi Zi (Goji berry) – nourishes Yin and helps reduce heat symptoms.
Zhi Mu (Anemarrhena) – reduces inflammatory heat causing flushes and irritability.
Dang Gui (Angelica sinensis) – supports circulation, mood, and hormonal modulation.
Fu Shen (Poria with root) – calms anxiety and supports sleep regulation.

These herbs are traditionally combined to reduce heat, nourish Yin, stabilise mood, calm stress, and support the body as hormone levels shift.

At North Shore Health, our herbal prescriptions are fully personalised and designed to complement HRT or other medical treatments—not replace them.


Why Menopause Triggers Anxiety, Stress, and Emotional Sensitivity

Many women express feeling:

  • panic-like anxiety

  • emotional volatility

  • discomfort in familiar environments

  • uncertainty about decisions

  • a feeling that “something isn’t right”

These experiences are physiological.

Declining oestrogen:

  • amplifies cortisol production

  • reduces GABA (calming neurotransmitter)

  • increases glutamate (stress and excitatory neurotransmitter)

  • heightens inflammatory pathways that affect mood

A 2021 review in Psychoneuroendocrinology confirmed that perimenopause increases HPA axis sensitivity, making women more reactive to daily stress and more prone to emotional dysregulation.

This is why integrative care is so beneficial—supporting both the hormonal and stress-related elements of menopause.


Integrative Care for Menopause at North Shore Health

Our approach brings together:

1. Western Medicine Support

We work with women on or considering HRT, ensuring complementary therapies do not interfere with medications.

2. Acupuncture for Nervous System Regulation

Reduces flushes, anxiety, insomnia, and stress sensitivity.

3. Herbal Medicine for Hormonal and Adrenal Support

Calms inflammation, supports energy, reduces heat, and stabilises mood.

4. Lifestyle and Nutritional Guidance

Focus on anti-inflammatory eating, stress reduction practices, and adrenal-nourishing routines.

Through this combined approach, our patients consistently report:

  • calmer mood

  • fewer hot flushes

  • better sleep

  • clearer thinking

  • improved emotional stability

  • reduced pain and inflammation

Menopause is a transition—not a decline—and the right support can make this phase feel grounded, empowered, and healthy.


Personalised Menopause Programs at North Shore Health

If you are experiencing menopausal symptoms, anxiety, or hormonal imbalance, our integrative team can help you navigate this transition with confidence and clarity. We bring together evidence-based acupuncture, personalised herbal medicine, and collaborative care with medical practitioners.


📍 Serving North Shore, Sydney
📞 Call us at (09) 8065 2034
🌐 www.northshorehealthclinic.com.au


North Shore Health – Women’s Health, Reimagined.
Gentle, integrative care for menopause, stress, and hormonal balance.

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