.avif)
After years of blaming my emotions on “just getting older,” I finally discovered why watching someone steam clean a carpet could make me cry.
I am now a proud (and slightly bewildered) member of the Perimenopause Club.
For years I put it down to just getting… well, old.
Things that never used to bother me started to drive me nuts.
There were some days that even the sound of my partner breathing would start me imagining ways of suffocating him (metaphorically… mostly).
But the biggest sign that I had NO idea was related to peri-menopause?
“I just don’t feel like myself”.
Yep, they did a study on it… and there is even an acronym for the term: NFLM “Not Feeling Like Myself” (1).
Main symptoms?
- Feeling exhausted ALL. OF. THE. TIME.
- Brain fog that stops me mid sentence.
- An ‘interesting’ (that’s sarcasm) combination of sadness and apoplectic rage.
- Oh and don’t let me forget the oh-so fun combination of hormonal acne with the joys of black chin hairs.
I know, I know. It sounds intense. And honestly, some days, it was.
But amidst the unpredictability and now out the other side using HRT, I've found something unexpected: a comical sense of self-acceptance.
Especially throwing out the old-school narrative that we just have to "suck it up" when our bodies start changing.
The single biggest takeaway: be proactive.
If you’re feeling off:
- Talk to someone about it.
- Research your options.
- Stay out of jail.
We talk about leadership, resilience, and emotional intelligence... but this is part of it too: leading ourselves with awareness, humour, and self-respect.
Don't let discomfort or outdated stuffy stigmas dictate your quality of life. This is not the end of a chapter;
it's the start of a new, well-managed, and (dare I say while cringing uncomfortably) empowered one.
DrK x
(1) For further reading: “Not Feeling Like Myself in Perimenopause” — Menopause Journal, 2024
