Challenges of perimenopause – what’s really going on

The reality of perimenopause

The many challenges of perimenopause put pay to the idea of ‘aging gracefully’.  If you’d asked me a couple of years ago about perimenopause, I’d think of it merely as a precursor to menopause – something distant and not worth thinking about. But lately, it feels as though my body has been taken over by an invisible force, disrupting everything I’ve known. From skin and hair changes to emotional upheavals and brainfog. I’ve experienced it all. The temperature regulation is a battle of its own, with nights turning into a juggling act between sweltering heat and sudden chills.

Emotional turmoil in perimenopause

What I definitely wasn’t prepared for was the emotional turmoil – this was another of the challenges of perimenopause. I’ve always prided myself on my resilience, but these days, even the slightest gesture can make me well up. It’s unnerving, feeling like a stranger in your own body. The scariest part is that I genuinely believed I was developing early dementia. My memory gaps and fuzzy thinking moments were terrifying. This, when I felt that I was entering the prime of my life.

The challenge of getting proper medical care

Getting proper medical care was among other challenges of perimenopause. During an initial consultation, I was brushed off with phrases like, “This is normal.” But if it’s so normal, why aren’t there more effective treatments tailored to our needs?  Friends go through the same thing – one close one spent a month thinking she had UTIs and was endlessly going to the toilet. After a huge number of tests, it turned out to be a bladder issue linked to premenopause, something her gynecologist didn’t catch, but her urologist did. It’s like we get good healthcare if we are lucky – by random chance, rather than by training.

This is a systemic issue in healthcare. A close friend shared her new gynecologist’s admission: that her medical training barely touched on the subject. This is frustrating but also enlightening. It’s no wonder many of us feel unheard and unaided. I come back to the fact that 50% of the population go through this ‘normal’ process that makes us hugely unproductive – and yet there is such little understanding of what we go through, why and most of all what treatments and approaches could be most effective.

Solutions

I know that supplements and Hormone Replacement Therapy offers relief from the challenges of perimenopause, but there’s so much more that needs to be understood and addressed. As women, our experiences with perimenopause are valid, and it’s high time the medical community acknowledged them. Our hormonal levels might fluctuate, but our determination to be understood and treated well is unchanging.

I’m glad there are communities like this one coming up. Finding solutions is the key.

AN, United Kingdom