Menopause is hugely underestimate if women ignore its early signs – the PeriMenopause Symptoms. Such symptoms may include a wide variety and combination for each individual body. Be prepared for hot flashes, low energy, weight gain, and sleepless nights. Recognizing these symptoms and knowing how to deal with them are some of the most empowering things we can do for ourselves and the others, too.
The physical side of menopause is not everything you’ll be dealing with. It has a psychological and emotional impact on everything we deal with in our daily lives. When people say and notice that something has changed about you, they probably are right.
What Happens During Menopause and Perimenopause?
Yet before a full-fledged menopause is settled down in our bodies, a woman will typically be going through a perimenopause that stretches for about ten years. Peri-menopause typically begins at age 40 or 41 and has its symptoms and effects on us and the people in our lives.
More on Transition to Menopause Age with more facts and how-to’s.

Hormones are the powerful variables that are responsible for the onset of perimenopause and menopause. As each woman is unique, the hormonal fluctuations will happen on their own schedule and variation.
Which Hormones Are Responsible for Menopause?
There are two major hormonal players that get into the game of perimenopause and menopause: progesterone and estrogen.
The first hormone that we lose as we gain progression in age is progesterone – the loving, nurturing hormone. Be aware of irritability or intolerance that you may be feeling and recognize it as a hormonal swing.
The second hormone we start to lose is estrogen. Estrogen loss leads to the vaginal dryness that most women will experience after menopause. It’s important to recognize, if we are starting to be uncomfortable with sex and use products to prevent muscle tightening, friction and even tearing of the membranes that will lead to pain with intercourse.
Read more on Painful Sex After Menopause And How To Treat It

Menopause Symptoms Are Different for Every Woman
What is a menopause age? Menopause typically starts at age 51 and is defined as 12 months without a period; however, most women don’t fall into this definition before experiencing symptoms.
Most women are experiencing some type of “menopausal” symptoms before going 12 months without a period. These symptoms can include acne, hot flashes, vaginal dryness, weight gain, irritability, fatigue, anxiety and mood swings.

There’s a lot of confusion about menopause because it can refer to both perimenopause, the transition into menopause and post-menopause (the period after the transition). The medical and lay person’s definitions are both unclear.
Many women, myself included, are trying to deny the future onset of menopause because we don’t want to grapple with aging or being made to “feel old before our time.” So we have the societal barriers to overcome as well.
My experience is that being aware of my menopausal symptoms helps me every day, especially in my relationships. Acknowledging the symptoms – no matter how they are defined medically or by society – will help you find solutions and deal with them.
TIP: Your age of onset of menopause is heavily influenced by genetic factors, i.e. the age that your mother went into menopause. Other factors include lifestyle and additional conditions, e.g. cancer treatments often induce menopause.
Dramatic Drop in Hormones During Perimenopause and Menopause
Women experience a huge hormone drop in the 10-year period from 40s to 50s compared to men’s.
Men lose their hormones more gradually over a long period and do not experience as many hormonal fluctuations as we do. They will experience same and similar symptoms such as intolerance, irritability, fatigue, loss of libido, erectile dysfunction and muscle and bone loss.
TIP: It’s important to educate both women and men about these hormonal changes, as they are often misinterpreted, especially in relationships.

Hot Flashes Are Not the Only Symptom In Perimenopause and Menopause
Women experience peri-menopause and menopause very differently, ranging from very few symptoms to extreme symptoms, such as hot flashes for 20 years or vaginal dryness deteriorating into prolapse (when organs protrude through vagina).
How to Know if You Have Vaginal Dryness
Our bodies change because we are trying to conserve estrogen.
There are 3 types of estrogen: Estriol (produced by the placenta), estradiol (made by the ovaries) and estrone (produced by fat tissue, especially belly fat).
As we age, we lose both estriol and estradiol, however, our bodies are very good at trying to maintain as much estrogen – in this case estrone – as possible, which is why we build belly fat in our 40s.
Symptoms can really vary among women as it’s a matter of hormonal balance, race, lifestyle and how menopause occurred (suddenly or over a gradual period of time). Some women can experience early menopause in 20s or due to medical conditions.

Have You Heard of SWAN Study on Hot Flashes?
Although this study reports that being Chinese may be a genetic factor, other studies show that the Asian interpretation of hot flashes is very different and that, in fact, Asian women are also getting as many physiological hot flashes as non-Asian women, however, they are not interpreting them as hot flashes.
1 FEW SYMPTOMS
Chinese women had a consistently low chance of debilitating symptoms throughout the menopause transition.
2 SYMPTOMS LAST LONGER
Black women, those with less education, heavy drinkers and those who reported depression or anxiety had a higher chance of symptoms all the way through the decade.
3 SYMPTOMS HIT EARLY
Early onset symptoms at the start of the transition period were most
common among obese women, women with depression or anxiety, women in
poor health, and women who start menopause later.
4 SYMPTOMS HIT LATE
And late onset symptoms were most common in skinnier women, smokers and black women.
TIP: Mind-body connection becomes increasingly important as we age as women. Practicing techniques such as meditation and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) will help. One clinical study has shown that women who undertook CBT had a significant drop in number and intensity of hot flashes after 30 days.
When Is Menopause Over?
It is a room you enter; not a door that you walk through and then come back from.
This seems pretty scary to me as a woman who is on the precipice of menopause and didn’t even know that once I go into menopause fully that I will be menopausal forever. What’s it going to be like after I lose my period? Will I be happy or sad? Or will it be a non-event?
Women often ask what menopause will be like. I’ve heard this response from a woman who’s in menopause, “The worst day of your period for the rest of your life. I’m not trying to be funny or grim; hormonally I am correct. So it’s important to recognize and adjust mentally to a new hormonal state.”
I hear all sorts of reactions – ranging from “I barely noticed” to “My life changed for the worse forever.” My theory is that it’s the steepness of the slope that matters when it comes to hormonal decline.
If we can control our hormones in the 10 years before menopause, we can reduce some of the fluctuations or at least be aware of them and deal with them better.

38 thoughts on “First Signs of Menopause Come With PeriMenopause Symptoms”
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No one ever really talks about menopause, even though half the population of the world goes through it! Thanks for educating everyone!
Maartje,
Ditto. Over the half of the planet is in menopause. What is crucial is that every woman is fear free and knows how to help and support her body at any stage of her life.
Thank you bringing awareness to this, I never knew about these symptoms
Sachea,
Interestingly, the symptoms can begin way too early in woman’s life. Being aware of this fact is a powerful first step to take care of your body.
Thanks for sharing the post. My mother faced this when she had undergone it. It will happen to us as well some day.
Kuntala,
Yes, learning and remembering the facts on menopause will help in our life’s choices.
I remember when my mom went through it and it was so hard for her. Thank you for sharing it and I think it will be helpful for so many women x
Laura
Hi Laura,
Discussing a menopause topic is essential for a human race, no less.
When this time is approaching – it is challenging and help is very welcome. Any valuable advice is adding a beneficial aspect to our lives. This article is invaluable. You’ve done a great job putting it together – a lot of research was involved.
Olya,
Thank you, lovely.
Yes, staying on top of the new things and research data allows us to form the knowledge that we own.
I Love your stuff and follow your Insta posts.
Though at 25 I’m still a ways away from experiencing menopause myself, this is not only a good indication fo what I can one day expect, but also an article I can share with my mum and aunts who are nearing that age. Thank you for sharing!
Emily,
Being young means you have a huge advantage to educate yourself about what may happen to your body if you don’t know how your body is transitioning during its biological aging.
Great information and must know for every person, man or woman. I am sharing this across my network,thank you.
Chad,
It’s so great you see the importance of understanding the facts about menopause as a man. What is happening, the perimenopause and menopause interfere in couple’s relationship tremendously. It is easy to see where the repair must begin – with understanding of our aging and its symptoms for both men and women.
Great information! Interesting how the symptoms change with race and bodyweight. Having a healthy lifestyle may be also a factor to make the transition into menopause easier.
Norma,
I am in the same stream of thinking: the healthier lifestyle, the smoother transition to menopause and enjoyment of living every day.
I have been through this and I am grateful that my transition into menopause was an easy one. I did experience those symptoms but it was not so much as to be a cause of worry.
Annemarie,
Thank you for sharing, sweetie.
Hot flashes is just scratching the surface.
What happens to our skin, our looks, our bones and internal organs – these are important things we should take care of as well alongside with hot flashes.
Thank you for sharing it! I’m at an age where I should be getting it, but nothing yet! Crossing fingers!
Claudia,
The more you know, the more prepared you are.
What they say and offer on the menopause subject has to be taken with an open mind.
This is really helpful! Thanks for sharing this! Very informative!
Toni,
You’re welcome, sweetie!
These are all great information to absorb. The easiest way to face this is to understand it better and become more knowledgeable. I haves learned so much.
Ruth,
I am with you – understanding the unknown is the first step to know it all.
This is all great information to have! I don’t really have a mother I can ask these questions, so have to find the information everywhere. Thank you so much for sharing this information!
Wren,
You are so welcome! The more we know earlier before the menopause onset, the better we will be.
I’m definitely not looking forward to going through this. I’m glad you did a post on this though. You’ve got a lot of great information here.
Kathy,
Sooner or later, any woman would be in a permanent state of Menopause. And it can be celebrated and looked at with joy when you and I are well-equipped with the information and practical solutions to handle not only symptoms, rather alleviate their harshness.
I am so thankful you are talking about this. I am in my late 30s and often wonder what the next years are going to bring. Not enough women are clearing the air on Menopause.
Keikilani,
One of my friends got into a Menopause stage in her early 30s due to surgery. It was hellish. It was out of this world for her to handle. Mostly, it affected her emotionally and psychologically. With the support of her friends and great OBGYN, she has developed the stamina and how-to’s and eventually thrived.
Interesting that you just wrote this. I was just discussing menopause with a friend of mine. So much interesting information.
Heather,
Menopause needs to be discussed and gathering support group around each one of us. Hugs, sistah!
This post is very informative. Now we can begin to look for these signs and get ahead of them with some self care, visits to the doctor, etc. Thank you so much for sharing this important information!
Brianne,
Awareness is the first step to deepen our personal knowledge and experiences of handling different symptoms in perimenopause and menopause.
I am going to enjoy my thirties because I am not looking forward to this stage of my life. Vaginal dryness sounds terrible, good thing there are choices.
Amy,
Of course there are choices, and hopefully, such choices will be more body-friendly.
The education on the Menopause subject is so neglected in this society. We need to take this in our own hands.