To ask if anyone has found menopause just fine?

[ChristmasGutPunch]

Another day another article about how I can expect my brain to fall out my ear any day now. "I forgot how to do my job!" and so forth. I'm sanguine about ageing (saggy jaw aside) but I really don't want to become wrong in the head so young. Please can you reassure me it's ok for some women??

@Godesstobe I wasn’t referring to you obviously. Some pp were saying they thought they were ‘sailing through’ but were still having periods. It ain’t even started if you’re having periods!

My vaginal dryness was minor, just less than before and I still have a full sex life so wanted to feel as normal as possible. Estriol cream is a game changer . Vaginal atrophy can cause diminished orgasm response and a shrunken clitoris. No thanks!

Indeed. Peri for many is easy. Even actual meno can be fine, but it can be the ensuing years when the oestrogen finally dries up that joint pain etc flares up. So if last period was say 48, you may find it isn't until 53 or older that the effects all start kicking on. Maybe not just don't count your chickens!

I had very early menopause like my mum so i've had a while now to experiment with different medication.

I'm on oral HRT, oestrogen pessaries and a tiny bit of testosterone (gel). It took a bit of trial and error to work out the right combination for me but I have never felt better. I absolutely LOVE not having periods.

Even for people who don't have bad menopause symptoms it's well worth looking in to HRT because of all the health benefits.

I didn’t have periods as I had a Mirena coil. Just assumed I must have gone through menopause due to age but no symptoms at all. I do wonder if talking up and normalising the worst case scenarios might be detrimental to women’s careers?

I had a Mirena coil fitted & thanks to that I don't remember much about the menopause so it must have been a breeze lol. I'm 70 now & tbh I can't really remember suffering much at all, only a couple of heavy periods prior to having the Mirena fitted at age 53.

I'm not sure, women get the 'oh she might get pregnant' when you are young, 'oh christ she'll be off all the time when they are ill' when the kids are young, then 'she'll be a crabby complaining about the heat all the time mare' when you are old.

So I'm not sure talking genuinely about the problems that some women face, and that things like a later start (to account for insomnia), that they might appreciate a fan in the office, that they might need some allowance made while they sort out medication to stop them thinking they are going mad....will make much difference really.

It'll help those who are with more enlightened employers, and the dinosaurs are going to dinosaur.

To be honest, my grandmother sailed through it without so much as even noticing. Then again she did the same with chemotherapy, the woman was a machine. My mum had a surgical hysterectomy so went directly into surgical menopause and I think she suffered more - hot sweats, depression etc. I am peri menopausal I'm sure a d my anxiety is insane, my moods are beyond ridiculous, even I can't keep up with myself so I am not looking forward to the next 15 years.

Yes it's been fine.

I had no problems at all. I only realised I was going through the menopause when I realised I hadn’t had a period for 6 months. It was an early menopause (aged 40)

You should've sort medical advice. Even if women don't choose hrt at normal meno ages it is well documented that a premature menopause should have hrt meds even if the woman then chooses to discontinue when in the normal age range.

I was one of the lucky ones periods just faded away then stopped no other symptoms. After a year came the best bit - throwing away those bloody condoms.

I went through forced menopause thanks to hormone positive breast cancer at age 39. I can't take HRT. Through the whole cancer treatment the thing that scared me most was the menopause bit because from everything in the media I assumed I'd be a balding jibbering wreck, in constant pain and unable to work or manage my life.

In reality, I had one or two hot flushes which stopped pretty quickly and now find it harder to lose weight, but am otherwise exactly the same as I was before menopause. In fact, things are better because I don't have to have periods.

I feel sorry for people who had a bad experience, but it's not universal. And not everyone can take HRT.

My menopause was absolutely fine. I had no hormonal birth control and no coil. Regular periods continued until I was 55 - bleeding reduced considerably towards the end - and at 56 a blood test showed that I was all done. I was a bit shocked really because my mother and aunt had hysterectomies and no one I knew had a natural menopause. I had no idea regular periods could carry on so long.

HRT wasn’t normally given then - was a far few years ago 😂

I think my honest answer is that I’m not sure!

I occasionally have bouts of night sweats, I am increasingly irritable and depressed and some days I can’t function properly but I also changed jobs 3 years ago so don’t know how much is being in a job I hate vs menopause.

Think I have some minor symptoms but my main issue is facing the sad reality of retirement never quite being within reach

Some women have unproblematic menopause. I’m not sure they are the lucky ones really though - HRT has some well documented advantages for brain, joint and even bladder health in later years.

All I can tell you is I started HRT two years ago. 50 very soon. I just don’t think about it at all. Yes my libido is gone. Came back with testosterone gel then they made it impossible for me to get more, so I’ve shelved that for the moment as I assume I’ll have to go private. Everything else though is normal. No brain fog. No sweats. No additional anxiety (aside from the drama life throws up). Honestly I have a period every 28 days and that’s all I know. It might change in four years, but as it stands I am perfectly normal.

There are links to that. Lots get a frozen shoulder.

Cordyceps capsules are good for libido.

I think there is something to be said for independent verification that you haven't had any menopause symptoms. I've sat and listened to a few older women now who've said 'Oh I sailed through it' and watched for the sideways glance from their partners and occasional flinch or for them to go a bit pale....

My FIL in particular.

You can use topical, vaginal oestrogen cream near the urethra for bladder health, without needing to go on systemic HRT.

And for dementia, osteoporosis, joint health?
It’s not perfect, but it does provide things the body needs for various purposes.

Oh, well done. I'm surprised it took this long for someone to get out the old skeleton and rattle the bones.

For dementia, and osteoporosis, there is diet and exercise, and other well-studied lifestyle factors. Likewise, for joint health, though I find fish oil also helpful there.

The jury is out regarding dementia as there is conflicting evidence, but yes hrt prevents against osteoporosis for only as long as it is taken I believe.