Can i have been in Perimenopause since i was 35...Really ?

[erilou38]

I'm 38, 39 in 4 months time and believe i have been in Perimenopause since i was around 35. I'm really gutted and heartbroken as i have been trying for ababy for the past 15 months with no success. I already have children from a previous relationship but none with my husband who has no kids of his own. With all my children i got pregnant in the first month of trying so i was super-fertile! My last child i had was 7 years ago when i was 31. When i was about 35 i noticed that i had began to stop ovulating (releasing an egg) each month. At first this didn't cause me concern as i wasn't trying to conceive. As time went by my periods became irregular, 2 or 3 days late after always having a regular 28 day cycle. Then 2 years ago they became more irregular, a week late. Now, they are all over the place, some 28 day cycles, some 35, some 42. I even had 2 that were just 20 days apart. From all the literature i have been reading recently is points to perimenopause. Since last year i have been getting a bit of vaginal dryness and the last few weeks i have been waking up at night with my chest covered in a pool of sweat. Also i have palpitations and mood swings. My doctor thinks it might be perimenopause as i had ahigh day 3 FSH reading last year which indicated borderline menopause. Lately though my FSH has been quite alot lower. My infertility clinic doesn't think i am in perimenopause, the nurse thinks i jhave a hormone imbalance. Isn't that the same thing ? I have ovarian cysts which the nurse says could be making my hormones go out of whack. Surely cysts wouldn't cause vaginal dryness and night sweats though ? My doctor suggested HRT which i think is ridiculous at my age, although he did prescribe me vaginal HRT pessaries for the dryness. They have helped abit. It even says on the packet though that perimenopause happens in women over 45, not 35!!! I'm clinging onto some vain hope that my symptoms are caused by me stressing about not being able to become pregnant, which is taking it's toll on me, rather than being perimenopausel. Could stress really cause similar symptoms ? I'm naturally a very anxious person but have got worse lately and the last couple of years i have been tired most of the time. Iv'e had numerous blood tests the past few years, all of which have shown that i am in perfect health. My Mum was over 40 when she had her menopause, so not as young as me. I always imagined that i would be fertile well into my 40s. I don't understand how menopause could come on at such a young age in someone like me. Do you think it really is perimenopause ?

Hi erilou, I don't have any expertise in relation to this but I just wanted to bump your message up so that hopefully someone else will see this and write a helpful answer for you.

Perimeno can happen pretty much anytime, but from mid-30s onwards is not that unusual I'm afraid. Usually really kicks in in late 30s, but it can be very gradual or quite fast - depends on the individual.

TBH, I don't know how you will know whether it's a hormonal imbalance or perimenopause? What are they doctors suggesting?

Peri isn't the same as menopause, so your Mum having her menopause over 40 doesn't mean she didn't start her perimenpause (the period of time before menopause) in her 30s.

My own mother went through menopause in her early 50s. But my sister's periods stopped suddenly at the age of 40, and that was that - and I was definitely in perimenopause in my mid-late thirties, though my periods didn't stop until I was about 46.

I totally understand the pain about fertility going.... I married in my 30s, had a lot of miscarriages, and eventually had my children via egg donation - and although I grieved my fertility in the m/c and ttc days, I couldn't be happier now and wouldn't swap my dds for anything! Very painful not being able to conceive in my 30s though, I remember it vividly - and wish you loads of luck.

If your mum was between 40 and 50 when she had her menopause, that's actually relatively young and she may have been in perimenopause in her late thirties. I think the average age of menopause is more like 53 or so.

I'm now 42 and through the menopause, doctor reckoned peri menopause started about 35.

The average age of meno is 51.
The range is from 45-55.

Something like 50% of women are post meno by age 48, and the rest by the age of 51-52, though a few women go until they are 55.

Peri can last for 10 years so it is feasible for peri to start at 35 and to have a last period at 45.

However, any cessation of periods before age 45 is considered premature ovarian failure or prem meno.

If you are trying for a baby OP then ask your dr for referral to a gynae or fertility expert for help asap.

If you aren't wanting a baby now, then do think about HRT- it's now always prescribed for women who have a meno before age 45.
Hope you get some help!

Iv'e decided that if i'm not pregnant by the end of this year then i'm going to forget about it and go on HRT. My doctor suggested it a few months ago but i wanted to pursue the baby thing first. It's been established this week that i am in fact still ovulating so i must have some eggs left in my ovaries. I just feel cheated because i haven't been able to complete my family, all i wanted was a couple more years of fertility. It doesn't seem fair that some women are still having babies well into their 40s. Think maybe i will need counselling to come to terms with all this. I know i must sound like a bit of a drama queen but i just wasn't expecting this and feel a great sense of loss.

I know what you mean about it not being fair, but that's how cruel nature can be. I found out I was menopausal at 34, by 35 my periods had stopped completely. I had only been married a year and we were TTC a first baby. No family history, my mother had periods into her 50s.

HRT is a god send for premature ovarian failure. Symptoms disappeared and I was my old self again, although nothing will get me past the pain of never being able to have my own baby. HRT is definitely worth looking into.

Best of luck.