September and perimenopause awareness month
September is Perimenopause Awareness month. And it’s followed by Menopause Awareness month in October. What you may not be aware of is that menopause is actually is one day of your life, whereas perimenopause can last up to 9 years, and they both get a month!
The menopause café where I felt like a fraud
I think though that anything that brings attention to both can only be a good thing. I turned 50 a couple of months ago and I can, hand on heart, say that I am most definitely perimenopausal. I remember going to a menopause café held at work pre-Covid, when I was about 45, and I felt like a fraud as there were women talking about symptoms, hot flushes and I couldn’t relate at all. They were all welcoming and it was certainly eye-opening, but it was really hard to picture the reality.
When it finally hit and what happened at the GP (the first time…)
And then it hit! I went to my doctor back in March – I had an exhaustion that no sleep could fix and I wondered what was going on. I was also waking up around 5am most days (which also explains the exhaustion) and I had realised it was likely perimenopause but knew nothing else.
I asked for a blood test, in my naivety (I thought it could also be due to a vitamin or mineral deficiency, and I have an underactive thyroid and wasn’t sure if my medication was still at the right level). I was pretty much dismissed by the doctor – yes, you can have a blood test and I’m going to email you some NHS leaflets on menopause and that was it.
The missing piece of the puzzle
The results came back; everything was ‘normal’ but yet I didn’t magically feel normal. That was around the time that my business turned one and I was thinking a lot about my future. Something was missing which I hadn’t been able to put my finger on, and I realised if I was supporting women in their 40s and 50s, the missing part of the puzzle was menopause. So, to better support my clients and to better advocate for myself, I decided to train as a menopause support coach.
My HRT journey and what’s coming next
Over the next few weeks, I’ll share my HRT journey, because I think it’s important that we talk openly about it and I did not go into taking HRT with my eyes open. And I wish I could leave with a teaser that I’m in a different place than I was back in early March, but I’m not, and I’ll also talk about that.
The takeaway: know your body and talk to people
If there’s a take away from this, I would say know your body, know what’s right and what isn’t and be prepared to fight for your healthcare. And also, talk to people – friends, colleagues, family members because the more you’re all talking about this, the less scary it is, the less you’re on your own and the more prepared you are to navigate this phase of your life.
If anything I’ve said above resonated, I’d be really interested to hear and please know that whatever you’re going through, you’re not alone.