I'm 42 and deep in the throes of perimenopause, and I went to a luncheon today where a doctor was speaking about menopause. It started me thinking about how so many women start dealing with peri(pre)-menopausal symptoms as young as their mid-30's and yet there's not much info out there about it. I imagine a lot of us think we just have to deal with crazy moods, heavy bleeding, fibroids and other perimenopausal symptoms without knowing much about this stage in our lives. I kind of feel like we're given much more info and resources when it comes to our childbearing stage and then the much later menopause stage, but what about the many in-between years? Anyone else feel slighted?
By the way, obviously I'm not writing about a common illness, but since we don't really have a health section, I wasn't sure how to categorize this post....
DesertMom
http://ppdsurvivor.blogspot.com
I agree! I'm about to turn
I agree! I'm about to turn 40 and suddenly having symptoms that I can't explain and have no prior history of, such as frequent periods and heavy periods. I used to be able to set a clock by my period, now I just go everywhere prepared! How do we know when this is normal and when it is not?
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That's a good question.
That's a good question. I've been doing a lot of reading, and I'm amazed at how normal these symptoms are when you're in your late 30's and 40's, such as heavy bleeding, and yet I've never had any kind of warning from my gynecologist about perimenopause. And yet at the same time, I've read warnings that it's a good idea to have any changes in your cycle checked out, like having a sonogram of your uterus, to see if there are fibroids, etc.
I feel like I've entered a black hole at this point in my life and it's really disconcerting.....
DesertMom
http://ppdsurvivor.blogspot.com
I was shocked to learn at a
I was shocked to learn at a regular check up, that a shortening cycle - even by one day - was a sign of "declining fertility". I mentioned casually, when asked about the usual stuff, that my cycle used to be like clockwork, 28 days, but since my second son was born, it had been 27 days, with the occasional weird 26'er! It started at age 36 and I mentioned it at age 37. I wanted one more baby and I had no idea of that symptom. Had I known, I would have tried to conceive a year sooner. I WISH someone had told me that. Two and a half years and one heartbreaking miscarriage later, I'm still not pregnant. I sure wish that doctors/media/anyone would talk about this more - ahead of time!
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