Is there any way the I am not Peri yet, at the age of 53?

[TortugaRumCakeQueen]

Posting here for traffic. I'm 53 years old, and still having regular periods. I have had no symptoms of Perimenopause. Is this normal? Is it possible that I haven't even started Peri yet? No sweats, no mood swings. The only thing I've noticed, is that it's now 5 weeks between periods, rather than 4. I was really hoping they would have stopped by now! I can't ask my Mum, as she's passed, although I think from memory, that she was menopausal at 51. Just realised that my next period is due when I'm on holiday, what a pain!

I remember asking that question at your age. Had ablation so didn’t bleed. Now 60 still no symptoms. Just lucky I suppose.

I only started with the menopause symptoms last year although I am still having regular periods. I am 58 soon.

Ask for blood test to check hormones levels

I had a couple of lighter periods then just stopped. I was 57, no other actual symptoms either before or after.

I’m 53 and not peri as far as I can tell

For some reason we only hear about early menopause on MN usually, but the mean average age in modern societies is 51, with a bell curve on either side of that.

Some women don’t stop getting periods till they are 60. Late 50s seems to be the norm in my mother’s family.

In general, late menopause is a good thing, but it does slightly increase the risk of certain cancers, so make sure you go to ALL your screenings. (However, it also reduces risks of mortality from all other causes; in general, late menopause is associated with slower aging and longer life expectancy.)

Women in my family don't tend to encounter "starting the change" as it's referred to, till about 60. With most having "changed by 63-65.

My mother is 57 and still no sign.

But also we women tend to live easily into our late 90's. Every woman for generations has outlasted their husbands by a good 15+ years!

I have no answer but I’m here because I was wondering the same. I’m 52 and I can’t say I’ve noticed anything yet, except its become harder to keep the weight off. My hair is still brown and periods still regular.

I’m quite small and didn’t start my periods until I was 16, I’m half wondering if this has anything to do with when the menopause happens?

Bloody hell! I'm in the midst of peri at 51 - 2 weeks on/2 weeks off- flooding and pain galore- it's dreadful. I am so hoping it will be done soon! I can't keep on doing this til 60- really imagined it would be over soon. I was 11 when I started - literally 2 days after I started yr 7 (first year back in the day) Pfft! my sister is younger than me and has had 1 period in the last 2 years! My mum was done by 45- I'm stamping my feet - it's not fair!!!!

Very possible you're in peri with only the change in period timing as your sole symptom.
I came off the mini pill at 53 and the menopause had happened without me really noticing. Poor sleep and a bit of brain fog but no hot flushes or other symptoms- and my periods had obviously completely stopped without me realising whilst I was on the minipill. Not everyone gets every symptom. Some people undeniably suffer terribly but others are lucky to encounter few problems.
I'm interested in this idea of taking HRT even if you feel OK because it does have some advantages for bone/ heart health. Would a doctor prescribe HRT to someone like me who is really not inconvenienced at all by menopause- would I benefit from HRT? Would I be able to get it prescribed??

I'm 55 and started peri about a year ago, I still get an occasional period, I get hot flushes but that's really all that's happening so far. I don't know that much about it tbh. I'm sure if symptoms worsen I'll learn all about it.

What an ignorant post. I am going through peri - periods off and on the last year - but I have been v fortunate that I have had v few symptoms as my hormones adjust before my body finally reaches menopause. However, I know some women during this period of hormone levels changing - namely peri - can have horrible symptoms.

Actually menopause typically occurs earlier in Black and Latino women and at roughly the same age in Asian and White women, lots of research on this. Several women in my family have had children naturally in their. late 40s early 50s and they are Irish women.

This comment pisses me off. Whilst there might be a small amount of evidence that women who are heavy smokers or obese might go through menopause earlier, in the vast majority of cases age of peri menopause and menopause is affected by genetic, rather than lifestyle, factors.

not sure what your ‘internist’ was getting at, but suggesting otherwise feels like a bit of a shitty stick to beat women with (as ways). My poor (and extremely clean living) best friend went through an early menopause and couldn’t have kids. So sad for her, and it wasn’t a lack of ‘healthy lifestyle ‘ that put her in that position….

This is so interesting. I've recently started HRT at the age of 49 and have been doing a lot of watching videos and listening to podcasts about this subject. I wish it was more widely known that keeping your oestrogen longer-either naturally or with HRT- can be so important for your health.

Not buying that as there are a whole bunch of women in Africa not studied including first and second generation Africans who now live in the UK. My paternal grandmother had her last child (my father) at 45 and lived to her 90s in Nigeria. The problem is in Africa as a whole is that there are a whole bunch of other things limiting your life expectancy mainly related to poverty/environmental and politicians who don’t “care” about their people but thats a different subject. Many of these “studies” are based on US blacks.

Well thats up to you but it's your feeling against a bunch of research on women around the globe, you just have to look into it. Typically black and Latino women go into menopause before white and Asian women, I read in western countries the difference is only a year or 2 earlier and earlier again in other parts of the world. There are also advantages to early menopause such as lower rates of certain cancers. Asian women in particular seem to have less symptoms due to the diet they consume.

I just think its unwise to state as fact, that later menopause is common in non white women when that simply isn't the case.

I feel the same OP. 53. No symptoms except for erratic sleep but that's often work related.
I have a mirena so no periods anyway and I do wonder if it masks other symptoms but it's due out in the summer so we shall see 🤞

I be am 56 and am just starting to have irregular periods. I must be peri but have no other symptoms apart from forgetfulness.

What an ignorant post. I've met people like you in real life - people who think certain medical conditions/situations are fabricated, just because they didn't suffer or have no experience of it. That lack of empathy in an individual makes me shudder.

Indeed. We all joke we say the late change is recompense for putting up with our husbands for 60+ years so we get a little bit of retirement afterwards only having to wash our own smalls and living on peace 🤣

Most of my great great aunt's though live together in a house, they are sisters all 95+ and moved in with eachother....I think they had more peace before. They are forever squabbling. I've had to sit there when I've dropped off the food shop and try and mediate an argument over who eat the last custard cream 🤦🏻‍♀️🤣

I had my last period at 57, so am menopausal. I thought the hot flushes and night sweats at 52 were peri. THEY WERE NOT. They were a lead up to a heart attack at 53.

Do not assume that just because you are of that age that it can be put down to peri. Make sure any new symptoms get checked out.

I was quite excited the other night. Woke up burning hot, thought wow fab and so it starts. Nah, had a temperature and now have this awful flu thing.

I'm 50 and periods are spot on every 28 days. Had a scan last year due to periods being heavy, they have been since I was 32. The person who did the scan checked twice about my age and said "you have so many eggs and the healthiest reproductive system I've seen" I am a bit confused how to feel about this. My periods are heavy enough to interfere with everyday life and I'm sick of it, but in absence of anything being wrong I'm stuck with no solution. My mother stopped hers in her late 50s, I think they say that it's familial or hereditary.

I have felt less motivated, and fed up at times but the start of that coincided with Covid lock down, loosing my job and having my Dad put in a home, so GP recommended anti Ds over HRT. I'm not taking either, and no plan to start doing so.

Using women in sub Saharan Africa as a basis for studies on ethnic differences is a bad idea - age at menopause is impacted by things like disease burden, especially stuff like malaria. I have no doubt that the average at menopause is earlier in places like Nigeria than in the UK. I do know that it is quite early in India, on average.

Exactly this. Even the modern ‘Indian’ research coming out about early menopause is skewed because it only includes the 20% or so of the married Indian female population who need fertility treatment as a sample & so of course they’ll find ‘higher’ / ‘increasing’ rates of early menopause in women who are already being treated for infertility. There are very few studies of the vast majority of Indian women but as an Indian it’s very commonplace to see babies born to women into their later 40s and 50s. So commonplace that it’s not even remarked upon any more &