Hello Reader,
This is your friendly PSA from someone who didn’t expect to be saying this at 36:
I’m in perimenopause.
After a year of hell, I finally went to an OB's office and got the help (and validation) I needed.
I thought I was "just tired". Or stressed. Or the usual “busy life + mom brain” equation. But things started to feel...off. And not just in a “skip coffee” kind of way. More like:
- Absolutely terrible sleep
- Mood swings that hit out of nowhere
- Weight that suddenly won’t budge and distribution of fat that made no freaking sense.
- Brain fog and a general feeling of “off”
- ADHD meds not working as well
- Super dry skin and hair
- Weak pelvic floor
- ...plus so many others.
Sound familiar?
I’m sharing this because if you’re in your 30s or 40s and feeling these weird shifts in your body, you’re not crazy, and you’re not alone. It could be perimenopause, and no one tells us how early it can start.
Keep in mind it's not common to be in perimenopause at 36, but it could happen. I mean...here I am.
My best advice? Speak with your health care professional, advocate and get the testing you need.
This has been a long process, we crossed off everything else on the list over the past year. Then my GP went on mat. leave, and instead of waiting, I decided to pay privately to a OB's office that focuses on women's health.
I saw a Nurse Practitioner, had labs drawn (which was covered by our provincial plan) and the evidence was there and now I'm working with her to help my symptoms.
💡 What I Did & What I'm Doing:
These are not fixes, but real things I've been doing to support my health throughout this process.
- Eating more protein (especially earlier in the day). I'm not a breakfast person, but I am doing my best to eat 30ish grams of protein (with fiber) in the morning. Overnight oats, Breakfast bakes, heck even Chex cereal with Premier Protein shakes.
- Walking more. I take a walk daily. If I'm short on time, I break it up. 10 minutes is better than nothing! I aim for 8-10k steps a day.
- Tracking my cycle and symptoms. I track my cycle using the native Apple health options and Flo. Yes, I use two apps. Flo has a better calendar view, but Apple Health tells me cycle lengths and data I used for my appointment.
- Strength Training. I lift weights 2-3x a week. Heavy weights.
- Working on my sleep. This is a tough one, but I am doing my best to prioritize my rest. This also means taking it easier during the day (which is why I have been MIA with emails).
- Supplementing. I take Creatine, Vitamin D, magnesium, and now I have added a Cortisol support. Please keep in mind, this is what I am taking, it doesn't mean you have to. Discuss supplements with your health practitioner before adding anything.
- HRT. Hormone replacement therapy. Technically I have been doing HRT since 2011 (no thyroid club here), but last week I have added a bioavailable testosterone and progesterone to the mix as prescribed by my Nurse Practitioner.
- Pelvic Floor Health. I will be seeing the OB next month for a pelvic floor check to make sure everything is healthy. However, I feel super weak.
- Tracked everything with AI - I used ChatGPT to record my symptoms. I sent screenshots of charts of my nutritional information (from Cronometer), my Apple Fitness data (all my workouts), my Hevy data (what I do with my weight lifting), my cycle charts, etc. It helped me put everything I needed in bullet point to understand that yeah, I needed to speak to a professional and stop trying to solve it all myself.
Keep in mind I was doing these before my diagnosis. However, I am still working on these points. The new thing I have added is my HRT.
I don’t have all the answers yet, but I’m in it and I’ll keep sharing what’s helping as I go.
If you’ve been dealing with weird changes and brushed them off as “just life”… maybe it’s worth taking a closer look. You deserve to feel good in your body.
Let’s keep talking about this stuff! The more we say it out loud, the less alone we all feel.
Feel free to reply to this e-mail if you're also wondering what the heck is going on and I am happy to share my experience.
