Itchy Skin During Menopause? Make the Itching Stop!

If you’ve ever suffered from itchy skin, you are not alone. Some people have rashes, some have hives, and a few have an unfortunate encounter with poison ivy.

However, women can have special problems with itchy skin during the peri- menopause or post-menopause. I know from personal experience how bad it can be.

This kind of itchy skin is not associated with dry skin or obvious rashes. You can’t see anything on the skin, but you can feel the misery. Typically, the itching is limited to the trunk – the chest, lower back, rib cage, or breasts – and it waxes and wanes over a typical day. If you’re really unlucky, it lasts for two or three weeks.

Don’t feel hopeless. My intermittent problems with itchy skin have continued past menopause, but I’ve discovered a couple of fantastic remedies for this condition.

Those of us who are analytical or obsessive would really like to know the reason for itchy skin during menopause. I can’t tell you why it happens. Just Google “35 symptoms of menopause” and you will find confirmation that itchy skin can be a problem when women experience declining estrogen levels. More than likely, your OB-GYN physician is not 100% familiar with this symptom list.

Yes, you heard me right. The common stinging nettle plant, urtica dioica , works for itching. You can take it as a supplement, or you can become a forager for the plant. Of course, you need to be very careful harvesting nettle, and wear full clothing and gloves, but when you find it, you can make it into nettle tea or even into fabulous cooked dishes. (It’s currently quite a delicacy served in avant-garde restaurants.) Just be careful of the soil and environmental conditions where you locate it.

For most of us, though, nettle capsules are just more convenient. Although I’ve only taken up to 2250 mg. per day, you could go a little higher than that.

Follow the dosage recommendations, and you should begin to feel relief from the itching within 3 or 4 days. For me, taking the capsules makes 90 per cent of the itching subside. Take them as long as you feel some itching. When the itching completely subsides, quit taking them.

The Amazon nettle products to the right are, of course, great buys. Some nettle will come in the form of leaves, and sometimes the product will include the leaves, stems, and flowers.

My favorite, my mainstay, is the Solaray brand nettle capsules at 450 mg. per capsule.  It's the first product listing here.

Nettle acts as a natural anti-histamine. But CAUTION: stinging nettle is also a natural diuretic. Check with your doctor if you take medication where a diuretic effect could cause problems (high blood pressure or other conditions).

From my research, I’ve learned that nettle works on the liver. It has a tonic effect that helps many other adverse health conditions.

I’ve also found the soap that I use can help prevent menopausal itching. I have been using pure glycerin soap for quite some time. Some popular soap brands leave out this fabulous ingredient, or even if they have it, it’s in smaller amounts. This is because glycerin adds to the cost of the product.

The 100% pure glycerin soaps on Amazon are good bets. Neutrogena bars are easy to find, and are pure glycerin. You can also keep a sharp eye out for pure glycerin soaps at craft fairs, specialty shops, or gift stores.

If you need to, experiment with goat’s milk soap, French milled soap, or the many forms of almond soap.

The extra price of the soap is worth it. Try different brands until you find the most economical way to use it.

You cannot find a better remedy than nettle capsules for itchy skin. I’m glad that I learned about this remedy 7 years ago. If not for that, I would have been in torment through some of my peri-menopausal years and beyond. It’s cheap, it’s effective. If you suffer from menopausal itching, keep it on hand. Because I bet you’ll need it from time to time.

Note:

The tablets described here are all-natural supplements.  The information contained in this article is not meant to diagnose, treat, or cure any disease.