Oh yes to all that. And the anxiety! I didn’t know it was a thing with perimenopause. Add that to the VAST list of things I didn’t know, that never get spoken of. The dry skin, the pungent sweat. The “oh we need to start testing for xyz”, the gum issues, the potential for new allergies! The flushes and flashes and sensation of combusting from the inside out and why aren’t your clothes bursting into flames from your body. The fog. The horror bleeds. It’s horrific. And also fabulous.
I haven’t had a period for years so I’m officially though and I’m way older. HRT was the best thing for me esp for those flushes…..though I resisted for years. In the end it was stop working or HRT…. Needed an income. Anyhow. This had lead me think about how woman in our culture are so busy and can’t rest and maybe we’ve just got it all wrong…. I often felt if I could just have stopped and rested for a big bit of time it would have been SO MUCH easier….are there cultures where it is managed better I wonder…….
I'm done. Officially a few months to go. But if I had stopped the pill a year before I did, I'd probably be there. It has been a rough year physically but to be honest I feel that I was in perimenopause 5 years ago. No hot flashes/flushes for me. I've enjoyed joint pain and inflammation. As in having it in my body 24 hours a day and it's worse at night. HRT my saviour too. I sleep better and I'm less anxious. Just need to get on top of the joint pain.
Wow! Yay. I’m so ready to be done with a monthly bleed. Regardless of any other issue… I’m just really sick of it. I don’t need another baby - why is my body still giving me the option.
Have you considered CBD for your joint pain? Sam takes that, as well as thc, and it helps him so much. He has been a skateboarder for a long long time and has osteoarthritis / osteopenia and he’s found it good. He’s getting medical thc and cbd working really well.
Thank you for writing this. I'm 44. I'm in perimenopause although my very-young doctor said, "can't be, you're not old enough for that" ... and I'm feeling all the things but especially that I'm frustrated with my weight and even more frustrated that it frustrates me because I "know better". All the things.
Oh no, I guess you’ll have to be the person giving your gp real-life experience about it. I’ve read some women start mid-late 30s. I’ve definitely been going through symptoms for at least 3 years. I luckily have an amazing gp - I spoke with him today, and he said “no woman should have to go through that”. Sometimes his compassion almost makes me cry. I feel so sad at the stories I hear from people saying their gps don’t understand. We need more education about it.
And yes yes - it’s the knowing that I should know better and shouldn’t “mind” about my weight. I do think that’s worse, you’re so right. (Though I would like that I don’t have to now go and buy a whole new wardrobe 😩 as I quite liked the things I’m growing out of).
Kathryn & Ellie - the weight thing is such a hard one to grapple with. I ballooned too and had the same mental battle about how it shouldn't matter / that I (genuinely) accepted my new body and 'elder' stage of life, but at the same time I felt so very uncomfortable and unfit. I didn't think I would be able to change that, but since Jan 2023 I've been following a healthy nutritional diet (I'm vegetarian) that I've easily integrated into my life. The initial phase was hard core, cutting out all things processed, sugary including carbs, but then you slowly reintroduce foods (and treats) and I'm maintaining the same weight loss. I've known all my life that carbs are my weight trigger, but this diet has proven how much they affect my weight. So carbs are still largely omitted, but I'm not rigid about it. It seems to be working for me. It's finding the right thing for you. I hope you both do.
Oh Ellie, I hear you loud and clear. The hot flushes and anxiety were crippling. This may not be for you, but I found HRT my saviour. It's a lot safer now than the early reports suggested.
Hi. I didn’t know there would be anxiety with those hot flushes, so it really surprised me. I was on hrt a few years ago, but stopped it. Today I just got a new script from my GP, so here’s hoping some better sleep and less sweats
I'm from the UK originally but now live in NZ. I suffered with hot flushes, day, night, and totally understand your need to remove all your clothing! Bed covers off, back on again. they started in my late 40s and continued for far too long. I know they are called flashes in USA but I would always call them flushes, they flush right up the body.
Oh I hope they don’t last too long …. It’s a strange sensation isn’t it. I spoke to my GP today and he said flushes too, so maybe it’s an Aussie + Kiwi thing compared to US being flashes
I hear you, and also going through it (but not hot flushes - yet. Just the joy of night sweats). You feel like a loony. I have found it a way to connect with my kid, just starting the teen thing - we both have 'horrox' - when the hormones kick in.
HRT is seriously worth a try. I didn't want to go there, but it is truly a life saver.
Oh teenager hormones are fun aren’t they!! My daughter is 17, so we both understand where each other is at. I will try hrt again … it helped me when I had some last year (I was bleeding every 2 weeks and needed to get back into a regular cycle and it worked so well).
Night sweats are great aren’t they. Every week seems like something different joins the list of ‘ailments’ 😩
Enjoy your cake 😊 I do think it’s an absolute necessity to get through some days, and perfect excuse to invite a friend (fellow peri-menopausal woman) to sit and cry, laugh, commiserate, find the joy with
Oh yes to all that. And the anxiety! I didn’t know it was a thing with perimenopause. Add that to the VAST list of things I didn’t know, that never get spoken of. The dry skin, the pungent sweat. The “oh we need to start testing for xyz”, the gum issues, the potential for new allergies! The flushes and flashes and sensation of combusting from the inside out and why aren’t your clothes bursting into flames from your body. The fog. The horror bleeds. It’s horrific. And also fabulous.
I haven’t had a period for years so I’m officially though and I’m way older. HRT was the best thing for me esp for those flushes…..though I resisted for years. In the end it was stop working or HRT…. Needed an income. Anyhow. This had lead me think about how woman in our culture are so busy and can’t rest and maybe we’ve just got it all wrong…. I often felt if I could just have stopped and rested for a big bit of time it would have been SO MUCH easier….are there cultures where it is managed better I wonder…….
I'm done. Officially a few months to go. But if I had stopped the pill a year before I did, I'd probably be there. It has been a rough year physically but to be honest I feel that I was in perimenopause 5 years ago. No hot flashes/flushes for me. I've enjoyed joint pain and inflammation. As in having it in my body 24 hours a day and it's worse at night. HRT my saviour too. I sleep better and I'm less anxious. Just need to get on top of the joint pain.
Wow! Yay. I’m so ready to be done with a monthly bleed. Regardless of any other issue… I’m just really sick of it. I don’t need another baby - why is my body still giving me the option.
Have you considered CBD for your joint pain? Sam takes that, as well as thc, and it helps him so much. He has been a skateboarder for a long long time and has osteoarthritis / osteopenia and he’s found it good. He’s getting medical thc and cbd working really well.
Yes. But need to find a source that I am happy with. I have used CBD patches. But they are a bit annoying on the skin.
Thank you for writing this. I'm 44. I'm in perimenopause although my very-young doctor said, "can't be, you're not old enough for that" ... and I'm feeling all the things but especially that I'm frustrated with my weight and even more frustrated that it frustrates me because I "know better". All the things.
Oh no, I guess you’ll have to be the person giving your gp real-life experience about it. I’ve read some women start mid-late 30s. I’ve definitely been going through symptoms for at least 3 years. I luckily have an amazing gp - I spoke with him today, and he said “no woman should have to go through that”. Sometimes his compassion almost makes me cry. I feel so sad at the stories I hear from people saying their gps don’t understand. We need more education about it.
And yes yes - it’s the knowing that I should know better and shouldn’t “mind” about my weight. I do think that’s worse, you’re so right. (Though I would like that I don’t have to now go and buy a whole new wardrobe 😩 as I quite liked the things I’m growing out of).
Maybe you will like the new things you grow into even more!
Kathryn & Ellie - the weight thing is such a hard one to grapple with. I ballooned too and had the same mental battle about how it shouldn't matter / that I (genuinely) accepted my new body and 'elder' stage of life, but at the same time I felt so very uncomfortable and unfit. I didn't think I would be able to change that, but since Jan 2023 I've been following a healthy nutritional diet (I'm vegetarian) that I've easily integrated into my life. The initial phase was hard core, cutting out all things processed, sugary including carbs, but then you slowly reintroduce foods (and treats) and I'm maintaining the same weight loss. I've known all my life that carbs are my weight trigger, but this diet has proven how much they affect my weight. So carbs are still largely omitted, but I'm not rigid about it. It seems to be working for me. It's finding the right thing for you. I hope you both do.
Oh Ellie, I hear you loud and clear. The hot flushes and anxiety were crippling. This may not be for you, but I found HRT my saviour. It's a lot safer now than the early reports suggested.
Hi. I didn’t know there would be anxiety with those hot flushes, so it really surprised me. I was on hrt a few years ago, but stopped it. Today I just got a new script from my GP, so here’s hoping some better sleep and less sweats
I'm from the UK originally but now live in NZ. I suffered with hot flushes, day, night, and totally understand your need to remove all your clothing! Bed covers off, back on again. they started in my late 40s and continued for far too long. I know they are called flashes in USA but I would always call them flushes, they flush right up the body.
Oh I hope they don’t last too long …. It’s a strange sensation isn’t it. I spoke to my GP today and he said flushes too, so maybe it’s an Aussie + Kiwi thing compared to US being flashes
I hear you, and also going through it (but not hot flushes - yet. Just the joy of night sweats). You feel like a loony. I have found it a way to connect with my kid, just starting the teen thing - we both have 'horrox' - when the hormones kick in.
HRT is seriously worth a try. I didn't want to go there, but it is truly a life saver.
Oh teenager hormones are fun aren’t they!! My daughter is 17, so we both understand where each other is at. I will try hrt again … it helped me when I had some last year (I was bleeding every 2 weeks and needed to get back into a regular cycle and it worked so well).
Night sweats are great aren’t they. Every week seems like something different joins the list of ‘ailments’ 😩
Enjoy your cake 😊 I do think it’s an absolute necessity to get through some days, and perfect excuse to invite a friend (fellow peri-menopausal woman) to sit and cry, laugh, commiserate, find the joy with