Hormonal shifts

Aug 2

I turned 44 this July and have found myself at arrival with my hormones shifting, hello perimenopause! My desire to write and share my words around this taboo subject is to acknowledge perimenopause and menopause. To not feel ashamed or that this transition process should be navigated solely. I am so grateful to have a group of inspiring women, very close friends of mine that range in age from 5 to 10 years wiser than I. Within this sacred group of women, is supportive and transparent communication around all of life’s peaks and valleys, including health, wellbeing and yes, hormonal shifts.

I have also witnessed my mom go through menopause. At the time I was in my late 20’s and my mom was in her 50’s. We were business partners with our beloved sweet biz, Goodytwos Toffee Company. We worked together 6, sometimes 7 days a week, so not much went unnoticed with either of us personally. Running a small biz has its own caveats, but when I experienced a dramatic shift with my mom’s personality with mental clarity, energy and yes, the dreaded hot flashes… I knew something was amiss!

My Mom and I are very close not only as mother, daughter in loving kindship but in reverenced friendship. As a few months passed, my mom seemed less like herself, and I knew I needed to have a conversation with her… I was a bit nervous as this was a sensitive subject, one which I knew very little about. I also felt timid as I didn’t quite know how to approach the conversation with my mom. I remember the moment vividly; we were working together on some admin in the back of our retail shop. I felt a visceral urge to finally check in with my mom. I took a deep breath and I gently said, “Mom, I think something is going on with you”. My mom seemed a bit taken back and said, “I am fine”. So, we left it at that, a few weeks passed. To me, my mom’s symptoms only seemed to come more frequently, so another conversation took place… I said, “mom, something is off, please go to the doctor”. My mom heard me that day and took the proactive step and scheduled her appointment with her naturopath. After receiving the results of her bloodwork, finally there were clear answers, she was officially in menopause.

It is important to mention that my mom had a hysterectomy at the age of 49 due to fibroid tumors. Her ovaries were left intact, but this is why menopause felt a bit obscure as she no longer had her cycle after her hysterectomy. These are my mom’s own words - “due to the hysterectomy, I have no idea when I officially started menopause, other than I thought I was losing my mind!”

My mom’s naturopathic doctor recommended that she try bioidentical hormone replacement therapy to ease her menopausal symptoms. Just to be clear on timeline, this was about 14 years ago. My mom began bioidentical HRT… All I can say is, it was as if a light switch was flipped on, my mom was back to her vibrant, sharp, motivated, present, creative, empowered abundant loving self. Hot flashes were almost nonexistent and one of her celebrated victories was her migraines vanished. She had been struggling with debilitating migraines for a few years prior to starting HRT, as well as infrequent heart palpitations. My mom had no idea that both migraines and heart palpitations could be a symptom of perimenopause and menopause, neither did I at the time. Recent studies confirm that they in fact can be one of the many symptoms that some women experience during perimenopause and menopause.

So why am I including my mom’s personal story??? Being of witness to what my mom went through and lack of education, scientific studies offered back then made me realize that this hormonal shift shouldn’t have to be so unknown or hit women like a freight train. I remember speaking to my mom and asking her, “If you experience out of character shifts with me, please let me know in case I am unaware”.

I found it interesting that some of my friend’s mothers did not speak about their own direct experience with menopause. It is important to note, this was back in 2009… so much has evolved with sharing openly about relational, mental, emotional, health and wellbeing. Thankfully, I feel now more than ever that there is an acceptance and embrace of sharing what we all are personally are going through however relative or indifferent our experiences might be. As we do as women; we listen, we learn, we share, and we come together.

Through my past and current experience, I am doing my best to be acutely aware of any shifts within myself, to pay attention and to not dismiss any irregularities. This is why I am sharing my words, the stories of those before me and where I am currently met with perimenopause. For me my symptoms aren’t extreme by any means but most certainly I feel a shift in mental sharpness, hair shedding, I feel more sensation in my joints and my emotional waves feel more intense at times. I am an extremely emotional and sensitive person and I have learned with the support of therapy how to ride the waves of my emotions and to self-regulate. But the past six months implementing my tools don’t seem to move the needle when I am hit with what now feels like an “emotional tsunami”. With these shifts that I am experiencing, I am proud to write that I have scheduled my first perimenopause assessment apt with my doctor at Tia: women’s health clinic. Happy 44th birthday to me!

I have been educated with some amazing podcast convos with the #1 Menopause Doctor Dr. Dr. Mary Claire Haver, MD, FACOG, CMP, is a board-certified Obstetrics and Gynecology specialist, a Certified Menopause Practitioner from The Menopause Society. I have included numerous different podcast episodes, books and some Instagram links. These resources are all what has given me courage and proactivity write this blog post, share and connect with other women and to speak with my doctor. I will be implementing resistance training to stay strong and prevent osteoporosis (which does run in my family). Upping my protein intake, and investigate HRT, and add some additional supplements… all suggestions from menopause doctors and are true pioneers in their industry.

Below are definitions, podcasts, books and links on hormonal shifts and aging optimally with grace, knowledge and empowered wisdom.

Perimenopause: This phase usually begins several years before menopause, when your ovaries slowly make less estrogen. Perimenopause lasts until menopause, the point at which your ovaries stop releasing eggs. In the last 1 to 2 years of this stage, estrogen levels fall faster. Many women have menopause symptoms.
Menopause: This is when it's been a year since you had a period. Your ovaries have stopped releasing eggs and making most of their estrogen.
Postmenopause: These are the years after menopause. Menopausal VMS such as hot flashes and night sweats usually ease. But health risks related to the loss of estrogen increase as you get older. - WebMD

Podcast convos:

The Huberman Lab: Dr. Mary Claire Haver: How to navigate Menopause and Perimenopause
for maximum health and vitality: podcasts.apple.com
The Mel Robbins: How to lose belly fat, sleep better, stop suffering now: podcasts.apple.com
The Mel Robbins: How to Balance hormones: podcasts.apple.com