Handling Midlife Crisis With Peri & Pre-Menopause

As two sides of a coin, every woman goes through two benchmark phases during her lifecycle namely pre and post menopause. Most women do not have relevant information to cope with the years leading up to menopause. All that a woman should know about her changing body post 35 years of age towards menopause is what you can read more about in this post.

The big surprise for most women after 40 is the years leading upto menopause. Before you unload the laundry of symptoms, are these a few questions you have been thinking about yourself – Why am I having the meltdowns? Why is my mental & physical health similar to a shipwreck? If you feel at any time you are propelled into a menopause-like stage out of nowhere, understand that this is just the phase of pre or peri-menopause.

Most women get confused about pre-menopause because they were never told such a phase exists. Peri and pre-menopause are commonly used terms for similar conditions. ‘Pre’refers to what happens before and ‘peri’ refers to what happens ‘surrounding’ or ‘near’ menopause. Menopause is where life gets erratic is the general knowledge that most women have. Irritability, loss of sexual desire, sleepless nights, hot flashes, sudden weight gain, sweat bursts, depression, fatigue, foggy brain, headache and drop in awareness are all signs of peri-menopause.

As your body comes closer to menopause, for what might be 5 to 10 years before you stop menstruating, the ovaries release fewer levels of estrogen, progesterone and testosterone. The estrogen fluctuations cause peri-menopausal plights. Some of the common signs and symptoms of peri menopause are –

• Hot flashes
• Fatigue & a constant feeling of tiredness
• Soreness or tenderness of the breasts
• Problem with memory and concentration
• Low sex drive

How does a recipe feel on the taste buds when an ingredient is missing? The full range of experiences in a woman’s body also feels amiss when they start losing the core ingredient – estrogen. So does it affect quality of life? You know how injections hurt only a bit and then it’s as if nothing happened. This is a little bit like that but then you begin to start accepting and living with how your body changes.

Peri-menopause is when you should be ‘doing something about it’. Women are care-givers but they also need care in return. The symptoms of peri and pre menopause are disturbing on several levels. So here is a little advice to help your transition to menopause be a smoother process–

• Keep a balanced, positive mindset
• Exercise regularly
• Engage in a hobby that keeps you occupied and happy
• Making some lifestyle changes including early to bed early to rise anthem, clean eating, avoid alcohol, stress and quit smoking
• Adopt good self-care habits starting with dietary changes

While this is just a generalized guideline, it definitely helps women meet the awry journey towards menopause with confidence and calmness. Clean and healthy eating has the ability to shake off all the stress.  Spending quality time engaging into a hobby you love and that which gives you happiness is the best tool to combat the mood swings.

Peri or pre menopause isn’t a life sentence! The changes may be intense and feel like never –ending but there’s always a bright side at the end of the tunnel and you may choose to cross the path happily!