World Menopause Day
Can menopause cause joint and muscle pain?
By Patrick LeachPublisher: HerDoc
Aches and pains around menopause deserve attention, and there are several approaches that may help. The starting point is understanding what is contributing to your symptoms and which options fit your health and everyday life.
This World Menopause Day, on 18 October, the International Menopause Society is focusing on chronic pain at midlife, with the theme “From recognition to evidence-based care”. It brings attention to a problem that can affect how women sleep, move, work and enjoy their lives. World Menopause Day 2026
Perhaps your joints feel stiffer in the morning. Exercise has become uncomfortable, or pain is interrupting your sleep. You may be wondering whether menopause is involved—and what you can do about it.
Research is exploring those questions, from hormone therapy to resistance training and other forms of exercise. The findings offer useful possibilities, alongside a clear reason to avoid a one-size-fits-all approach.
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Could menopause be contributing to aches and pains?
Hormonal changes around menopause can contribute to joint and muscle aches. Other conditions, including arthritis, can cause similar symptoms, so understanding the cause matters. Regular movement and suitable exercise may help manage aches and stiffness. If pain is new, worsening or persistent, talk with a GP about the cause and an approach that suits your health.
Muscle and joint pain are commonly reported during the menopause transition. A 2026 review of 37 observational studies, involving more than 93,000 women, found that these symptoms were more common during perimenopause and after menopause than before it.
However, the studies varied considerably. They show an association; they cannot establish that changing hormones caused an individual woman’s pain. Read the research review
Understanding the cause helps guide the response, whether that involves menopause care, treatment for another condition, or a combination.
What does the research say about hormone therapy?
Menopausal hormone therapy, also known as MHT or HRT, is an established treatment for symptoms such as hot flushes and night sweats. Whether it helps muscle and joint pain is a more complicated question.
A secondary analysis of the Women’s Health Initiative randomised trial examined joint symptoms in 10,739 postmenopausal women who had undergone a hysterectomy. After one year, joint pain was reported by 76.3% of women receiving oestrogen alone and 79.2% receiving placebo—a modest difference. Joint swelling was reported more often in the treatment group.
Joint symptoms were not a primary outcome of the original trial. These findings relate to a particular treatment and group of women, so they cannot be applied to every form of hormone therapy or everyone experiencing menopause. Women’s Health Initiative study
The broader evidence is mixed. A systematic review published in 2026 included 57 studies. Its pooled comparison of women who had ever used hormone therapy with those who had never used it found no significant association with generalised musculoskeletal pain. Findings for some specific joint conditions were conflicting. Read the systematic review
Hormone therapy therefore should not be presented as a reliable solution for every ache. A discussion with your doctor can consider your other menopausal symptoms, medical history, and the potential benefits and risks. Australian Government treatment information
Could exercise help—and does the type matter?
Exercise is another approach worth considering. Different activities have been studied for different outcomes, including strength, bone density, sleep and menopausal symptoms. An improvement in one does not automatically mean an improvement in pain.
Resistance training: evidence for strength and physical function
Resistance training includes exercises using weights, machines, resistance bands or your own body weight.
A 2024 review of 12 randomised controlled trials found improvements in upper- and lower-body strength in postmenopausal women who undertook resistance training. Resistance training review
Australian researchers have also studied resistance training combined with impact exercise. In the LIFTMOR trial, 101 postmenopausal women with low bone density, averaging 65 years of age, were assigned to either a supervised programme or low-intensity home exercise. After eight months, the supervised group had better results for bone density and physical function.
The programme involved twice-weekly sessions, but participants were carefully screened and closely supervised. These findings support appropriately designed exercise; they do not establish that heavy lifting independently treats menopause-related pain, or that the same results apply during perimenopause. LIFTMOR trial
Walking, cycling and swimming: options for manageable movement
For someone living with persistent pain, an achievable starting point might be walking, swimming or cycling. Healthdirect includes these activities among the options for managing chronic pain, alongside individual guidance from a physiotherapist or exercise physiologist. Healthdirect’s chronic pain guidance
Research specifically examining exercise for menopausal symptoms is less conclusive. A 2024 overview covering 80 studies found some encouraging results for aerobic exercise, but the findings were inconsistent. There was insufficient evidence to identify one best form of exercise for menopausal symptoms. Exercise research overview
Yoga: possible benefits for sleep and some symptoms
A separate review of 24 randomised trials involving 2,028 participants found that yoga improved some menopausal symptom measures and sleep quality. It did not find a significant improvement in every outcome, including hot flushes or overall quality of life.
This suggests yoga may be a useful option for some women, while leaving questions about its specific effect on persistent joint or muscle pain. Yoga research review
What else can form part of a pain-management plan?
Persistent pain often benefits from several approaches working together.
Physiotherapy can help you adapt movement to your symptoms and abilities. Pacing activities into manageable amounts may make daily tasks more achievable. Sleep support and psychological approaches, including cognitive behavioural therapy, can also help address how pain affects daily life.
These approaches recognise that pain involves physical, emotional and social experiences. Healthdirect recommends an individual plan that may combine movement, rehabilitation, psychological support and medicines where appropriate. Options for managing chronic pain
Finding an approach that works for you
The research gives us options, but it cannot tell us in advance exactly which combination will help you.
Your plan might focus on building strength, treating another joint condition, managing troublesome menopausal symptoms, improving sleep—or several of these together. Progress might mean less pain, walking more comfortably, sleeping better or returning to activities you enjoy.
If pain is new, worsening, persistent or affecting your daily life, talk with a GP. Describe where it hurts, when it started, what makes it better or worse, and any changes in your periods, sleep or other symptoms. Some symptoms will need an in-person examination.
This World Menopause Day, the useful next step is to give pain the attention it deserves and start a conversation about what may help.