Not all women are created equal…

That’s right! When it comes to Menopause not all women experience the same things,  our experiences are just as varied as we are as women, with our different shapes, sizes, colors,  backgrounds and attitudes, one experience does not fit ALL!  From what I understand with talking with other women,  not ALL of us experience the emotional effects of menopause, some women just gradually stop having their monthly cycle and they’re done!  And to you women, I’d just like to say CONGRATULATIONS on winning the coin toss on this one! If ever there were a party you didn’t want to be invited to, trust me, this would be the one!  I remember speaking to an older women that told me that she nor her mother went through the emotional part,  just the physical, Wow! How I wish I could claim that!  But noooooo, I’m left to cope with yet another thing, to add to my already overflowing plate of womanly things.   For women like me, we can just fondly remember what life use to be like before this whole change of life thing got started.

For you women who have PMS (premenstrual syndrome) I understand that the emotional part of Menopause is very similar, the moodiness, the crying for no reason and the just PLEASE! Leave me alone attitude. I never suffered from PMS as a teenager, so this emotional thing is all new for me, I’ve always been the la-la-la let’s make lemonade out of lemons kind of a person, but now I have moments of, “get me a bat! And let’s get to swinging type of person”, but for PMS folks , you may already have a jump start on this emotional thing, menopause will just add on to your portion. “ISN’T THAT JUST GREAT!”
Postpartum depression too, they all deal with hormonal imbalances. As you can see, our situations will very as well as our fears and fixations on things,  So for those of us that may have many symptoms, let us not hate on our girls that may only have one or a few. Let us view every experience in life whether bad or good, as those we can learn something from.

In The Beginning…

There was this seemingly normal happy go La! La! Young women in her late thirties, she had no idea that her world was about to be turned upside down! From a world she once knew, to one of mystery and uncharted waters…. (dramatic pause)  Lol! Isn’t that how all the great stories begin?

Anywho!

This is how my Menopausal adventure begin some 21 years ago. I started having signs around the age of 37, at first I had no idea what was going on! I started noticing subtle changes in the way I thought, and emotionally how things affected me, I just couldn’t explain it! In a nutshell, I thought I was losing it! I can remember having night sweats and waking up every morning around the same time, 6am! My heart would be racing with anxiety like it was about to pop out of my chest!  I started experiencing these anxiety attacks on the regular while doing things that I had been doing with ease for years,  going out to eat,  being in public places,  going to work,  traveling and starting up conversations, these everyday things now became objects of fear to me.  What in the French toast is going on! Trust me,  at 37,  menopause being the problem wasn’t even on my radar, whatever this was, I was determined not to let it get the best of me, how could I allow this thing to isolate me and keep me away from the very things I enjoyed? It wasn’t until I went for one of my yearly check ups that one of the female doctors told me what was going on after I shared with her what was happening to me,  she was like, “Oh! you’re in the peri stages of menopause”  THE WHAT?  She then explained to me that Peri-menopause is a stage that a women goes through before they actually go into the full all out Menopause! This can last anywhere from a few months to 10 years, it’s like the pre test that the teachers use to give us in school before the REAL thing, they would give us bits and pieces of the test, before they gave us the whole shebang!  That’s kinda what Peri-menopause is. (the doctor will have to do a blood test to check your hormone levels to determine if you are indeed menopausal, but if you are in peri, must likley your hormone test will not tell you much even though you may be experiencing some menopausal symptoms).

Some of the symptoms could be: problems going to sleep, hot flashes , night sweats,  low sex drive,  irregular menstrual periods,  mood swings and more. REALLY!!  Are you kidding me!  Who do I complain to about getting my money back on this model? In my opinion,  this whole pre and menopausal thing is when a women starts to lose her mind! Or starts to lose sight of the person that she’s always known herself to be. Let me back up for a moment,  just a side point,  and please don’t take this the wrong way my male doctors,  I truly love and value your expertise,  you have spent many years and loads of money on school to do what you do, but just in these instances of womanly things,  I don’t care how many degrees or certificates you may have in female studies,  if I ask you what it feels like to have a period or menstrual cramps,  you can only give me a text book answer,  when THIS! Stuff is going down! I want to hear a “girl……I know what you’re saying, I’ve felt that way too.”  So for a situation like this,  I’m glad I saw a women doctor,  she was so in tune to this new situation I found myself in, don’t think I would have had the same ahh ha! Moment with a male doctor,  I think it would be like trying to explain to a person who’s been rich all of their lives what it’s like not to have enough money to keep the lights on at the house,  I mean,  they can feel sorry for you and perhaps come over and sit in the dark with you for a while,  but back at the ranch (their home),  their lights are still on, it’s an experience they could never really know unless they too have been there. Stay tuned to my next post.