Perimenopause Strategies – 5 Tips for Recognising Hormone Imbalance
Many women feel that they are going mad through their 40s and 50s, or even before that! The symptoms of the menopause don’t suddenly start when you are 50 or 55 – and they are not just hot flushes!
There is a period of time 10 or even 20 years before the “menopause” (clinically, this means your last period – and of course, you only know this in retrospect) when things may seem to be going wrong. There are so many symptoms that are vague and just seem to be a part of life, that we don’t recognise that things are awry.
In fact, hormone imbalances are common. Very common. They are partly man-made – I am the first to admit that in our attempts to reduce unplanned pregnancies we doctors encourage teenagers to go onto artificial hormones significantly earlier than in previous decades. They are partly due to toxins in the environment – you may have heard of xenoestrogens, those artificial oestrogen-like chemicals which are found in plastics used for packaging, drugs, pesticides, and other sources – they are difficult to eradicate from the body. I will discuss them in a future post. They are partly related to our diet and lifestyles – our bodies certainly did not evolve to deal with processed foods and the sedentary TV-led lifestyle all too common these days.
Some symptoms of hormone imbalances include PMS, insomnia, miscarriages, PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome), weight gain, lack of sex drive, lumpy breasts, anxiety, infertility, acne, hirsutism (excessive body hair), thinning of hair, exercise intolerance, low blood pressure, cyclical headaches – and much more!
Mood swings can occur at any age, but they often get worse as we approach the premenopause (years leading up to menopause) and perimenopause (years either side of your last period).
Stand by for more posts on hormone imbalance and how to improve it – things can change!
To your health and well-being,
Alison
Doctor Allie Grimston
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Allison, how lucky we females are that we have you to give us the straight scoop! I look forward to your future blog posts and learning more 🙂
As for our Western Culture talking more about mepnuaose, could it be we are more enlightened on the subject? In my grandmother’s era, the subject was generally taboo and not discussed. Will other cultures be more open in the future?In looking for support and talking with my mother and mother-in-law, I was surprised (and despondent) to learn that both had not suffered any of the ill effects that I was experiencing. As it turns out, I discovered both had been on HRT for 10 and 13 years respectively. Both are in relatively good health at 84 and 86-years-old. I spent a wonderful two years on HRT before going off them because of the latest health risk warnings. My husband also had two good years! I am now back in the full throws of menopausal vengeance and have tried most of the suggestions in your post to no avail.You describe hot flashes as the sudden spreading of warmth throughout their bodies. I truly believe each woman experiences different levels of menopausal distress, just as each woman experiences labour differently. For me, hot flashes start out warm, however, quickly turn into raging infernos that spread outward from an inner core. Nothing short of jumping into a hole cut in an ice covered lake can stop the impending discomfort. And besides, who wants to jump into an ice-cold lake five or six times a night? And who has a frozen lake in their back yard anyway? The inferno may be shorter lived, however, it is usually followed by that warmth throughout my body which can last half an hour or more resulting in three or four hours being robbed from my night’s sleep. It may not be as much as an insomniac loses, but it’s relentless attacks wear you down somewhat like a person with chronic pain. It weakens your resolve. Do I ever reach REM sleep? In short I do not handle my mepnuaose, it handles me and dictates when I sleep and when I don’t.I might add, you’re a brave man taking on the subject of mepnuaose and sleep.
Yee gods! Took HRT for 10 yrs. Lost health inrunasce so had to stop meds. The hot flashes have returned at 10 x the intensity I initially had. Having one each hour. My clothes smell like mildew because you can’t change clothes from head to toe 24 times a day and each hotflash leaves me drenched in sweat. So tired of sweat trickling down my back, my hair is soaked with sweat. I don’t leave home unless I absolutely have to. Taking Welbutrin and paying cash for that so the rage doesn’t land me in jail. One day the sweat literally dripped off my elbow onto the floor in Walmart. OTC soy, black cohosh, etc no help. How long will this go on? Haven’t had a period in 11 years. Are there any clinical trials going on for something that might help with hot flashes?