Welcome to my new series about menopause. I am so excited to write these lines!! This series, really, is born out of personal frustration. Out of me, seeing and feeling changes in my body, and not perhaps being taken quite as seriously as I would like by my doctor. And it is also borne out of me very much wanting to understand more about this thing with the “M” word (“Menopause”) that no one really appears to talk about. For most of my adult life, when it comes to my hormones, I kind of felt I was sitting in the backseat of a car being driven around. I learned so much in my late thirties about my cycle, and it changed my life completely that I vowed I would never get into a situation like this again.
What Can You Expect From This Series?
Let’s kick this one off with a bit of “fun”, insight, and general understanding. What is this series about? In the past, I have seen health challenges and setbacks that I navigated and then brought to the blog in the aftermath. Such as, for example, my Nickel Allergy Series (because I was way too embarrassed to write about it at the time, but still, this is how most people find out about me), my Anxiety Series, and even my struggles with my Thyroid. Well, for this one, I am taking you along in real time. Let me share with you what I am finding out, and also how this might influence my day-to-day life.
This is not meant to be purely educational (but also), but rather about resources, research, and your average girl (woman?!) wanting to understand herself better so that she can advocate in the right places for herself (e.g. the doctor’s office). Everyone is welcome, even if you are man – you likely have a mother, sister, wife, or daughters. It helps to understand what they might be going through, and to support them in navigating it.
So, the Dreaded “Menopause” Word
It is funny because the word menopause appears to be holding so much dread. The only thing I know about it, when my mother went through it, was (from what I remember) – one minute she was constantly on edge and screaming her socks off, the next she was on a pill and everything was fine. Not the best memory. Or, perhaps, example (also, my memory might be off kilter here). Whenever I bring this word up around my friends they are deeply, and I mean deeply, offended. “I am not in perimenopause, how dare you?!”. OK, but you are telling me your cycle length is changing – becoming shorter or longer – you are having bleeds between bleeds, your period is becoming more painful, or less so.
All of these can be signs (that most people don’t know about and we will discuss in more detail). Spoiler alert: The night sweats everyone refers to as THE marker for knowing whether you are in perimenopause are only happening towards the very end of this time period. And to a certain degree, I get it. Why is this word so heavily laced? Perhaps because it means that your fertile years are coming to an end. It may have got to do with us getting older and our society wanting to stay as youthful as possible? The reality is, menopause is inevitable. It will happen, whether you are educating yourself or not. If you are a biological woman, there will be no getting around it.
What Is The Difference Between Menopause, Perimenopause, and Postmenopause?
Bless my beautiful husband, who asked me this question some time ago. The difference is very straightforward; however, most of these words are used completely interchangeably. Menopause is one day in your life, the day that you did not get your period for a year. One day. Everything prior to this day is deemed perimenopause. Everything post this one day is deemed postmenopause. Easy. But oftentimes used very much interchangeably, and I cannot promise you that it will not be the same for me, too. But now you know the difference.
Interesting Facts About Menopause
As a conclusion to this first post, I thought I was gonna leave you with some interesting facts about the menopause:
- An average of 1.6 bn (!!) women are going through menopause right now.
- Perimenopause can start 8-14 years before your menopause. Menopause, on average, is around the age of 51. Some women have a shorter time period with hormonal changes, and some a longer one.
- That means, that symptoms taking place as early as mid- to late thirties are not uncommon.
- Next to humans, only five species of whales (toothed whales, killer whales, pilot whales, false killer whales, narwhals, and belugas) are currently known to also experience menopause.
And that concludes our first article in this series. Next, we will dive into the hormonal changes and what exactly happens during perimenopause.
