What is Hot Flash
You know them. You hate them. A hot flash is a sudden feeling of warmth, usually most intense over the face, neck, and chest, and profuse sweating, commonly due to menopause. They’re intense, they’re uncomfortable, and they’re also really, really common. Here’s a rundown of what you need to know and what you can expect.
Why It Happens
What’s hot, prickly, and most intensely felt in your chest and neck? Yup, a hot flash. You have estrogen to thank for them. One of Estrogen’s jobs is to tell our brains how to regulate our internal thermometers. During menopause, your estrogen levels fluctuate, and as a result, the temperature range at which you feel comfortable, otherwise known as the “thermoneutral zone,” gets way smaller.
This means your body’s thermostat will overreact to even the slightest change in temperature, and you’ll feel hot at seemingly random (and often inconvenient, awkward) times. When you experience them at night (read: soaked-through pajamas and sheets), they’re called night sweats. In terms of discomfort, they can range from annoying to debilitating. But you’re not alone.
What you can do ?
With hot flashes affecting most women in menopause, as you can imagine, there are lots of opinions on remedies and what may help. Here are the ones we hear most often:
- Deep breathing
- Changes in diet
- Dressing in layers (remove at the onset of a hot flash and add back accordingly)
- Meditation
- Carrying a fan
- Cutting back on caffeine and/or alcohol
