Menopause, the end of a woman’s monthly ovulation and monthly menstrual periods, occurs on average at about the age of 51. This is an average number, which doesn’t take into account great variance. Some women begin menopause much sooner, and others much later. One of the predicting factors is the age your own mother began menopause. While menopause itself, when periods and ovulation truly stop is usually easy to recognize, it’s not so easy to recognize whether you’re beginning menopause, and going through the stage called perimenopause or premenopause, which can occur as early as 15 years before your periods actually stop. There are some signs and symptoms you may be beginning menopause, in addition to medical tests that can help you decide if this change of life is on its way.
As early as their thirties, some women may feel they are starting menopause because of changes to their monthly cycle. Periods may become heavier or lighter. If you’ve had a predictable cycle in the past, this can change, and periods may happen either more or less frequently, and occur unexpectedly. Just as when you began your period, it’s a good idea to keep maxi pads or tampons with you in case an unexpected period occurs.
When beginning menopause, women may also note slight changes to premenstrual symptoms. Cramping or heavier bleeding may occur, headaches are common, and mood swings or depression may be present not only during or before your period, but also during the rest of the month. Vaginal dryness may occur more readily, making intercourse uncomfortable without added lubrication.
As estrogen begins to decline, women may also note other perimenopausal symptoms, like accumulation of fat around the waist, and weight in general may be harder to lose. Don’t despair; it’s still possible to lose weight, especially if you focus on daily exercise and good diet. Strength training can really help, since slightly greater muscle mass helps you to burn a greater amount of calories.
While still in your thirties or forties, even if you think you’re starting menopause, it’s important to get this supposition checked out by a physician. Spotting between periods, which you might just consider as irregular periods, can indicate conditions like fibroids, or in some cases uterine cancer. Even if you think your menstruation days are nearly over, regular yearly gynecological checks are still very important.
What physicians can do to determine whether you are close to menopause is measure your estrogen blood levels, usually specifically taken and measured on about the third day of your period. This is a simple blood test, but it may need to be repeated for several months to get an accurate reading of whether your estrogen levels are truly declining. Since each woman may have varied levels of estrogen each month, measuring several months worth of data can give your physician a fairly accurate way to determine just about how many months/years you have left before truly beginning menopause.
As true menopause nears, other symptoms do start to emerge. Most recognizable of these is the hot flash, a truly uncomfortable experience that can cause you to flush, sweat profusely, or suddenly simply feel as if you’ve stepped into the Sahara, even if it’s below freezing outside. Hot flashes are part of perimenopause and can continue for several years after menopause has occurred.
It’s important to remember that when you are beginning menopause, you are still quite able to get pregnant. Babies born to women in their late 40s, until recently were usually called “change” babies; yet now many women are waiting to have children until they are older. Do take a lesson from past generations on this, though, if you don’t want to have a child or more children. Starting menopause does not mean you are infertile, and precautions should still be taken to prevent pregnancy until a couple years after your last menstrual period.
