Is this perimenopause?

[PollyIndia]

I’m nearly 49 so peri and menopause are just around the corner, but to date, not had many of the classic symptoms. Period was super regular, started having the odd short or longer cycle but just by a day, this year. This time though, I’m over a week late. I’ve had all the pmt symptoms I usually have for the day prior to my period - achey back and right thigh, low mood, spits and sore boobs, bur for over a week! So presumably I’ve landed in peri with a bang. Is there anything I can do to bring the period on? Or is this just how peri is and maybe it’s time to start hrt? I’d love any thoughts or advice, thank you. I’m off to Glastonbury this week too. Most inconvenient that my body is not playing ball!

Do a pregnancy test if that's a possibilty too, but most likely peri. Have you any other symptoms - issues falling or staying asleep, brain fog, memory issues, tinnitus, changes in or developing allergies, joint pain, theres a whole list of symptoms

Well my sleep is always rubbish the night before my period and it’s not been great this last week. I feel like my period is stuck - if that makes any sense at all. Feel like it’s about to come all the time but it isn’t. I’ve been sniffly this week too - never really had allergies but that could be something I guess. Not really the other things, no hot sweats or anything like that. Thanks for responding x

Weird, I could have written this. Am in exact same situation but I had a full blown virus last week not just sniffles. It was very bad, but I didn't test for Covid. You don't think you have non symptomatic Covid do you? Viruses mess with periods.

I am a week late and feel like I am stuck too. Like a sneeze that never came. I was wondering what happened to all the build up inside?

The reason I don't think it's menopause is because my Mother and oldest Sister both didn't enter menopause until 60. I am definitely not pregnant.

Oh that’s really interesting as my nephew had what I suspect was covid, my son’s eczema flared which always seems to
happen whenever he comes into
contact with a bug, and I’ve defo been in contact with it - a few people at work still testing hence knowing. So yes maybe this is it! It’s just annoying with Glastonbury as this is my one weekend off a year from parenthood and my business and be nice not to feel like this!
i guess at some point periods just get less and less frequent though, and my mum said she was 50ish when she had hers and my sister had early menopause so could still be that for me.
Hope we both get unstuck soon!

I was post menopausal by 38 ish, my sister is 45 and still has v regular periods with no peri symptoms, my mum was still having periods when she had to go on Tamoxofen for breast cancer in her early 50s so although genetics do play a role you may not all having the same experience.
Covid of all virus definitely messes with cycles so very well could be that too

Interesting about not necessarily being the same experience for all women in the family, so yes maybe it is menopause... but would there be zero other symptoms? I had my hormones checked recently for a general health check and doc said no fluctuations or menopausal signs. I don't have any other symptoms but of course no period is a bug symptom.

I have missed periods before during times of stress and sickness but who knows what is going on now.

Hope you get to enjoy Glastonbury regardless and you get unstuck. Maybe it's waiting for you to be in a tent with limited access to toilets 😅

I’m similar. Same kind of age. I’ve had anything from 3 weeks to 9 weeks between periods for the last year but generally no other symptoms at all. My period always comes at the worst time so the day I’m going on holiday or just before I’m due to be out all day without good access to a toilet. They’re generally about 5 or 6 weeks apart and I’m hoping they just gradually disappear and I’m done but I doubt I’ll get away with it that easily.

You don't need to have other symptoms, it's great that you don't! It's quite normal that some periods will be late by this age (we are the same age, and about 2 years off the average age of menopause). For me, the cycles got shorter from about 45; I still get periods, but they've been irregular lately (this year, my cycle history is 13, 31, 24, 28, 21, 29 days). I am taking Utrogestan - progesterone - as I have some symptoms of peri, and it's made them better, particularly my sleep.
You don't need to start HRT if you don't have bothersome symptoms, many women manage the peri/menopause time without issues.

I had no symptoms at all during peri bar my periods went to 1 every 2 months and then less than that (and it would have sent my osteopenia into osteoporosis). My sleeping issues possibly started towards the end of peri, but as I'd gone from pregnancy/being a mother into peri I was used to my sleep not being great. It got much worse post menopause

Haha, I mean that’s exactly what’s going to happen isn’t it! We are borrowing a friend’s camper van, so that’s even worse!

Thanks toptwins and Slavica, this is what’s happening and I guess it is going to start sometime. It’s just the constant pms symptoms that are annoying too, fhat usually go away when I bleed. But I’ll just try and forget about those those weekend and medicate with a few beers. I don’t usually drink much as my body doesn’t like it as I get older, but Glastonbury is a bit different.

re hrt, there’s so much noise around the benefits, I do wonder if I should just start it when my periods start to stop for all the other things… but that’s another convo