Perimenopause and a toddler - help!

[WhyPig]

Desperately looking for some advice here and wondering if anyone has been through the same.

I'm 75% sure I'm going through perimenopause (I'm early 40s). I have poor bladder control, feel either too hot or shivery, chronic brain fog, high anxiety, bone aches, fatigue, sudden weight around my tummy, insomnia, muscle weakness and digestion issues. This has only been for the last 7 months.

I also have a toddler! We seem to be toilet training and learning to manage our emotions at the same time 😅

I feel like a bad parent as I'm always tired and because of aches and pains rarely do anything physically active. I certainly don't play enough with him.

This is not how I imagined I would be as a parent and I feel horrible.

Can anyone give me advice on dealing with this? I need to get back to some kind of normal for my little one's sake. We need to do more than sitting around in cafes because 'mummy needs to rest' again.

Just to add, after my toddler's birth, I didn't have these issues (not even the bladder issues!) so strongly suspect perimenopause.

I mean I use pull ups around my children and they don't really seem to care

OP, I am similar to you age and child wise. I have a few symptoms but not to the extent of yours. Firstly don't be too hard on yourself and maybe check in with a doctor, or get a screening at Holland and Barrett ? Make sure you are doing all the standard stuff, taking vitamins , fresh air, exercise (running after toddlers counts!!) and as good a diet as you can do. I don't do enough formal exercise and wat too many biscuits but I do lots of gardening and a brisk walk as much as I can. But please get a health check too! X