Can we have nothing for ourselves? Male fucking menopause

[GNR2022]

Don’t think I can bring myself to watch this segment on Packed Lunch. Debilitating for them apparently…

Ah - another one here to mock

Welcome one and all

Yea I suppose its possible that rarely it will just drop drastically with no explanation. Bit like how I once managed to grow an extra tooth UP into my gum, no explanation whatsoever just a weird thing that happened.

Largely though, the evidence suggests no, there will be another underlying reason, either physical or sociological. And it should be taken seriously not suggested that its a mythical male menopause.

Again you throw in the topic of suicide, so tbh I'm going to bow out of replying to you now.

Why - because I mention a possible affect of having anxiety & depression?

And because other posters dismiss male symptoms as - "extra beard growth - poor them."

If you accept that it is possible (although a rarity in comparison to menopause) then it should be taken seriously and not simply mocked as not an issue.

meno = monthly bleeding, pause = pausa in latin, which means halt.

Menopause absolutely does NOT mean hormonal changes (puberty is also hormonal changes but not menopause!).

Menopause means menses ending - monthly bleeding stops.

It's gynecological and the gynecological process has side effects.

Some of the side effects are similar to side effects some men experience in middle age but that does not mean men's menses have stopped as they never had them! Some symptoms are similar to dementia, but menopause isn't dementia and dementia isn't menopause! Some symptoms are similar to puberty but menopause isn't puberty...

Obviously.

The cognitive dissonance required to argue for using a gynecological term for the sex who gynecology cannot be relevant to is staggering!

Yes, men have significant mental health risk factors in middle age and indeed generally but that is nothing to do with menopause, which is unique to female physiology.

Not everything is about men, no matter how many things are... I can't believe it's become controversial not to center men in the language of menstruation and the cessation of menstruation.

Menopause isn't always terrible though

Menopause isn't always terrible. Puberty isn't always terrible. Being a middle aged man isn't always terrible.

What all three things are though is distinct from one another and they are not the same and it's unhelpful to pretend they are by fudging the semantics and using words incorrectly, even if there are some commonalities.

MrsMullerBecameABaby

And what causes periods to stop?

Hormonal changes in your body

Yes, men have significant mental health risk factors in middle age and indeed generally but that is nothing to do with menopause, which is unique to female physiology.

Yes - but it might have something to do with the hormonal changes in their body

This can fuck right off. It’s a mid life crisis

I get just as angry when men say they have PND.

It’s like they’re jealous that women have special debilitating problems

There is if your unfortunate enough to be diagnosed with stage 3 or 4 prostate cancer and have to go onto Androgen Deprivation Therapy. Male menopause effectively almost overnight. Both members of the couple suffer due the the side effects.

TheObstinateHeadstrongGirl

Its nothing to do with PND

Its about the dropping levels of testosterone with age can, in some men, lead to symptoms similar to menopause type symptoms.

These can include anxiety & depression which can be a causation to suicide

Nothing to do with being jealous and I'm sure the people who suffer from anxiety & depression would do anything not to have it.

I’m not denying that, the same way I’m not denying some men experience depression when they become fathers.

However, to EVER link anything to women-specific terminology and conditions is abhorrently misogynistic and none of us should stand for it. We should be allowed to have sex specific conditions that aren’t being appropriated by men

@MyGrandmaLizzie no, that is by its own description most definitely not a menopause. It's a drug induced suppression of testosterone. It obviously has side effects which are unpleasant. I mentioned upthread that I have a close family member who is on hormone treatment for prostate cancer. The side effects are not nice, but they're side effects not a normal part of male ageing. Why is it necessary or helpful to describe the side effects of cancer treatment as a "menopause"?

TheObstinateHeadstrongGirl

I'm not saying we should. And menopause happens to women only

But men can suffer similar symptoms - and you can call it what ever you want.

But to dismiss it or make fun of it is wrong. (I'm not saying you are doing this, but other posters on here are)

Its about the dropping levels of testosterone with age can, in some men, lead to symptoms similar to menopause type symptoms.

In very rare cases, some very much older men of 70+ yo can have a medical issue that leads to a big drop in testosterone and that causes problems. It's not a menopause (there being no menses to pause), it doesn't happen to all men and it doesn't happen to middle aged men.

They just experience the same middle aged "what the fuck have I done with my life, I'm never going to be a rock star" crisis that all women do, except unlike women they don't have a menopause. Despite you spending your entire fucking evening on here wanging on about it - during which time I've learned a Bach partita, cooked dinner and washed up btw - there isn't a man in the entire history of the world that has experienced menopause.

But don’t we say that women who have had a hysterectomy due to womb cancer then undergo surgical menopause? Are you saying these women can’t say they are in menopause? Or does your comment only apply to men?

www.themenopausecharity.org/2021/04/24/surgical-menopause/
“Surgical menopause is when a woman experiences menopausal symptoms as a result of an operation which impacts on ovarian function. This will come on abruptly if the ovaries have been removed. However, women who have had only one ovary removed or had their ovaries conserved but had their womb removed will often experience earlier menopausal symptoms than they would have naturally.

It is imperative that women who experience a surgical menopause receive HRT at least until the age of 51 to reduce their risk of cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis. Up until the age of 51 the HRT will be replacing the hormones that your body would have been naturally producing and expecting to have for normal function. Most women then continue taking HRT for ever as taking HRT provides more benefits than risks for the majority of women.

Women who undergo a surgical menopause will often need the replacement of testosterone as well. This is an incredibly important female hormone that is produced by the ovaries which contributes to sexual function, energy levels, cognitive performance, cardiovascular health and bone health. It is frequently forgotten about in the management of menopause in general and in particular women who go through an early or surgical menopause where it is often essential.

Unfortunately, the importance of testosterone in females is often not recognised by the general medical profession and it is often only prescribed by menopause specialists. It is important that if you have had a surgical menopause that you also speak to your health professional about oestrogen, progesterone (if relevant) and testosterone.”

women have special debilitating problems

Do we though? I don’t think we do. To think this is to think we are the weaker sex and all that imho. For the record I don’t like the label ‘male menopause’ because it’s a misnomer, but andropause which is the male analogue to menopause is a reality, not a myth.

FML. Yes women need testosterone, for different reasons than men. And if your auntie had balls she'd be your uncle.

@Onnabugeisha

"Are you saying these women can’t say they are in menopause? Or does your comment only apply to men? "

Of course it only applies to men. Because I was talking about testosterone suppression in men. With things like prostate cancer.

Of course women with menopause induced by surgery or other medical interventions are experiencing menopause. Because menopause has been triggered for reasons other than normal ageing. In women.

Andropause is a myth! There is no cessation of hormone (testosterone) production in the normal ageing process of men. There is no male analogue to menopause.

@RoseslnTheHospital thank you so much for your carefully considered and informative posts on this topic. Even though these thick guys you're engaging with don't appreciate it, what you are saying has really helped me for one to formulate a response next time I hear some dullard opining about 'male menopause ' and I'm sure that any other woman reading this thread will feel likewise.

MNers are always complaining "This wouldn't happen to men, this problem would be fixed if it happened to men" etc. Bring it on if men think they get menopause, so they can fix it for y'all, right?

hormonal changes cause a multitude of things, from normal growth in puberty to thyroid problems. The endocrine system impacts almost everything. That doesn't mean that growth spurts or hypothyroidism or men's mental health issues are menopause.

I doubt researchers would waste their time on something that has never and will never happen.

But there is no cessation of estrogen or progesterone in women after menopause. Why are you expecting complete cessation of testosterone and SHBG in men for andropause to exist?!