ADULTHOOD GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT

The term "adult" generally refers to a fully developed person from maturity (the end of puberty) onward. The age at which a person is physiologically an adult is age 17 for females and age 18 for males. Adulthood can also refer to a person's ability to care for them self independently, and raise a family of their own; or it can simply mean reaching a specified age. Graduating high school, residing in one's own residence and attaining financial independence are all synonymous with adulthood in the United States.

Adult characteristics

here are some qualities that symbolize adultness in most cultures. Not always is there a concordance between the qualities and the physical age of the person.

The adult character is comprised of:

Self-control - restraint, emotional control.

Stability - stable personality, strength.

Independence - ability to self-regulate.

Seriousness - ability to deal with life in a serious manner.

Responsibility - accountability, commitment and reliability.

Method/Tact - ability to think ahead and plan for the future, patience.

Endurance - ability and willingness to cope with difficulties that present themselves.

Experience - breadth of mind, understanding.

Objectivity - perspective and realism.

Menopause

Menopause occurs as the ovaries stop producing estrogen, causing the reproductive system to gradually shut down. As the body adapts to the changing levels of natural hormones, vasomotor symptoms such as hot flashes and palpitations, psychological symptoms such as increased depression, anxiety, irritability, mood swings and lack of concentration, and atrophic symptoms such as vaginal dryness and urgency of urination appear. Together with these symptoms, the woman may also have increasingly scanty and erratic menstrual periods.

Technically, menopause refers to the cessation of menses; whereas the gradual process through which this occurs, which typically takes a year but may last as little as six months or more than five years, is known as climacteric. Popular use, however, replaces climacteric with menopause. A natural or physiological menopause is that which occurs as a part of a woman's normal aging process. However, menopause can be surgically induced by such procedures as hysterectomy (when this procedure includes oophorectomy, removal of the ovaries).

The average onset of menopause is 50.5 years, but some women enter menopause at a younger age, especially if they have suffered from cancer or another serious illness and undergone chemotherapy. Premature menopause (or premature ovarian failure) is defined as menopause occurring before the age of 40, and occurs in one percent of women. Other causes of premature menopause include autoimmune disorders, thyroid disease, and diabetes mellitus. Premature menopause is diagnosed by measuring the levels of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH); the levels of these hormones will be higher if menopause has occurred. Rates of premature menopause have been found to be significantly higher in both fraternal and identical twins; approximately five percent of twins reach menopause before the age of 40. The reasons for this are not completely understood. Transplants of ovarian tissue between identical twins have been successful in restoring fertility.