If you’ve reached menopause, you’ve experienced everything from hot flashes and night sweats to mood swings and years of irregular periods. And let’s not forget any hair you may have lost while your hormones fluctuated (if so, here are some). hair growth products for women to regain confidence). And while most of these symptoms should go away soon, other lesser-known symptoms may arise.

For starters, you might start to experience changes in your bladder, brain fog, and sexual health issues. But don’t worry: While none of this sounds like a walk in the park, there are treatment options to help you feel like yourself again.

We spoke with Dr. Karen Tangboard-certified gynecologist, to find out what’s happening to your body now that you’ve reached menopause and what you can do about it. To learn more, check out these best vitamins and supplements for hair growthaccording to experts.

How to know if you have entered menopause

If you haven’t had your period for 12 consecutive months, congratulate yourself because you’ve finally reached the milestone of menopause. However, this doesn’t count if you take medications like birth control to stop your period, Tang tells AOL.

And even if you’ve been struggling with perimenopause symptoms for several years, like hot flashes, these should begin to subside as you move into postmenopause, the final stage of menopause that you’ll remain in for the rest of your life.

“People actually experience more symptoms during perimenopause than when they are in full menopause,” says Tang. So that’s something to look forward to now that you’ve fully transitioned.

And if you’re still experiencing symptoms like hot flashes, here are some. products and tips to stop them.

Symptoms you may experience now that you are in menopause

A surprising and relatively common symptom is lack of sleep, says Tang. “Women may have difficulty staying asleep and wake up often during the night.” This could be due to new changes in the bladder (see below) that cause you to wake up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom, as well as hot flashes and persistent night sweats.

You might also start to experience brain fog, including memory problems and difficulty concentrating. At work, this can affect your ability to focus on your workload, and some women end up dropping out of the workforce, Tang says.

Once you enter menopause, you will likely notice your lack of interest in sex because your estrogen levels have dropped significantly. Low libido can lead to more difficulty reaching orgasm and vaginal dryness that can cause pain during sex and even bleeding, says Tang.

Menopause causes changes to your bladder, including an urge to urinate more frequently. As a result of these changes, Tang notes that you might start to get UTIs because the tissues become dry and delicate, making it easier for bacteria to penetrate.

Finally, you may start to experience muscle pain, especially in your feet, knees and joints.

How to treat menopause symptoms

If the symptoms above begin to impact your quality of life, there are treatment options to help.

Hormone replacement therapy: You can take a combination of estrogen and progesterone in patch or pill form, or it can be administered vaginally, says Tang. You can also apply a cream or gel directly into your vagina or have a vaginal ring inserted.

Non-hormonal options: If you’re not interested in taking hormones, or can’t due to a health condition, Tang says there are non-hormonal treatments for hot flashes. For example, she notes a medication called Veozah which “acts on receptors in the brain to reduce hot flashes”. If you’re still experiencing mood symptoms, she says antidepressants can help.

Ask your doctor about supplements: Tang likes Centrum’s line of menopause support supplements, noting that they “help in a non-hormonal way with things like hot flashes.” There is a multivitamin with non-soy phytoestrogens, which act like estrogen but contain no hormones, which helps with hot flashes, she explains. Other multivitamins can improve your sleep quality and help you regain focus and clarity caused by brain fog.

Exercise: Menopause causes weight gain and more abdominal fatTang says, and this is due to all the metabolic changes happening in your body. If you start to notice weight gain, she recommends doing more strength training to help build muscle mass you may have lost during the transition to menopause.

Use lubrication during sexual activities: Vaginal dryness is a common symptom after menopause, but Tang says lubrication can help ease the dryness and make sex less painful.

Invest in good hair growth products: If you are still losing a lot of hair, you may want to start using hair growth products designed for women to curb hair loss and hair loss.

Are there any longer-term concerns for postmenopausal women?

Yes, there are concerns you need to be aware of after you enter menopause. “Over time, people start to face more and more medical risks like heart disease and osteoporosis, or thinning bones, which can increase the risk of bone fractures,” Tang says.

Over time, the genitourinary symptoms of menopause – the bladder and vaginal symptoms mentioned above – can get worse, as can the health of your bones and heart if left untreated, says She. But she notes that making lifestyle changes can help — for example, seeing a doctor regularly to monitor your heart health, cholesterol levels and bone health, as well as talking about exercise and nutrition.

As for symptoms like hot flashes and night sweats, they tend to improve a few years after menopause, she says. So you shouldn’t experience this at 90 (phew!).