The FIRST signs of perimenopause!
“Am I in perimenopause? How do I know?”
I hear this a lot…understandably!
’Cause lemme tell ya, it can be hard to know!
I’ve even been confused by my own body’s antics of late, and I study this stuff! :P
You know why?
Because there has been NO clear guideline on the signs and symptoms - the research is just too new.
Thankfully, this has all changed recently.
(Just don’t expect your doctor to know this stuff - new insights don’t trickle into medical schools for 14-17 years, according to the data.)
But before we dive into the most look for the tell-tale signs you wanna be aware of…if you're relatively new to the club, let’s just make sure we’re on the same page:
Perimenopause is the hormonal transition phase that typically occurs from the late 30s to early 50s.
Most women enter perimenopause in their late 30s to early 40s.
During this time, hormone fluctuations and associated symptoms begin, regardless of whether you're on the younger or older end of the spectrum.
The distinction between perimenopause and menopause is this: once you've gone 12 consecutive months without a period, you're considered postmenopausal. (Menopause is really just a moment in time - the day it’s been one year since you last bled. A celebratory day for many!)
Then, from the 13th month onward, you are postmenopausal.
Note that if you've undergone a hysterectomy and no longer have a uterus but your ovaries are still intact, you’ll still go through these phases, just without the menstrual cycle as a reference point. In this case, a diagnostic test like Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH) can indicate menopausal status if your level is above 30. If you’ve had your ovaries removed, however, you will have gone straight into menopause with no perimenopausal transition between.
Ok, now that that’s out of the way…
Top 10 EARLY symptoms that might make you say, “OMG, I’m in perimenopause!”
Disrupted Sleep: You might be like, “I could sleep. And then I couldn't. What the hell??” It’s typical to have trouble falling asleep, staying asleep and / or wake up around 2/3/4am. This is me. (And progesterone supplementation saved me! But that’s another discussion…)
Cycle Changes: In early perimenopause, cycles often become shorter or more erratic, and flow is lighter. Later on, cycles become longer or are skipped entirely.
Brain Fog: Issues with memory, you just can't think clearly, maybe attention issues, focus issues. While not really quantifiable, brain fog is real and it’s super common. This is me almost daily: “what was the word for that thing again??”
Mood Swings: The roller coaster is real! And it varies month-to-month, much like our progesterone levels…they don’t fall steadily, they’re allll over the shop, and so our moods are too. Many women report increased feelings of anger, sadness, sometimes depression, and often, impatience.
Increased Anxiety: A shift towards heightened anxiety levels, even in women who previously didn’t have any. This happens because we lose progesterone, a hormone that’s very calming, during perimenopause.
Hot Flashes: Sudden sensations of heat, often in conjunction with night sweats, which together contribute to sleep disruptions, low mood and fatigue. Usually related to fluctuating estrogen.
Night Sweats: Episodes of excessive sweating during sleep.
Itchy Ears: So weird and annoying!! Dryness and itchiness in the ears is common. Estrogen fluctuates wildly during perimenopause and it is very lubicating for tissues, including our ear drums and mucous membranes, so when it’s low, things dry out…including the entire ear canal and the ear drum.
Joint Pain: Aching in joints, particularly the shoulders, can also be attributed to estrogen's lubricating effect diminishing. Lots of women say they generally feel “achey.”
Weight Gain: Complex hormonal changes lead to increased insulin resistance and alterations in fat metabolism, often resulting in weight gain, particularly in the abdominal area. This is SO common and can be complex and insanely frustrating to navigate.
On that note:
Helping women reverse weight gain in their 30s, 40s and 50s+ through improving their hormones and metabolic health is one of my true passions! So I’ve recently created the Better Beyond 40 program to help perimenopausal women master their hormones, metabolism and forever weight loss (without restrictive diets, intense exercise or gimmicky stuff that doesn’t stick).
So, those are some of the earliest symptoms of perimenopause.
There are actually over a hundred symptoms women can experience spanning the 6-10 years of perimenopause! These are just some of the earliest ones.
And if you related to any of these and thought, “Oh my gosh, I thought I was going crazy!”, you’re not alone.
If you saw a doctor or other practitioner who blew you off and said, “no, that's not related to your hormones/perimenopause”, that’s normal too, and they're outrightwrong. The research just wasn’t done when they went to med school.
The good news is that now you know, and you can advocate for yourself.
PLUS, there’s SO MUCH you can do to support your hormones naturally…
On that note, if you want more help, head on over to my post “How To Boost Your Progesterone Naturally”, or check out The Better Beyond 40 Formula.
