There's nothing quite as unsettling as feeling something is off within your own body. In losing who you are or thought you were, and having things feel like they're spiralling out of your control.
This is what it can feel like as you head into perimenopause and menopause. While this story isn't true for everyone, women reach this stage in life; some move past this period with little to no changes or disruption. For the most part, the majority of women will experience at least one change or symptom due to hormone fluctuations during their 40s or 50s. Some as early as their 30s.
And the key to perimenopause and menopause is to understand how hormone changes affect your quality of life. Your body will react differently to changing levels of estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone. While you can opt for natural treatments, lifestyle changes, or HRT, you can work with a professional to get personalized hormone therapy prescribed online to help you through this part of your life.
Let's take a look at how perimenopause and menopause impact your quality of life.
Skin Health
Your skin goes through a lot of changes in life, but when you reach menopause, you might notice a decrease in elasticity and moisture. This is down to estrogen. It plays a crucial role in your skin's moisture levels, and dropping levels can increase wrinkles as skin loses elasticity. This is a natural part of aging anyway, but it can feel more pronounced, or you might notice more wrinkles coming in faster.
Some women also struggle with acne flare-ups. Sadly, it's not just a teenage problem. It's a hormonal issue, and changing hormonal levels will result in changes to your skin, not just on your face but your entire body too.
Some lifestyle changes you can make include drinking more water, using moisturising products that help to improve elasticity, collagen, or are designed for mature skin that needs more moisture.
Mental Health
Your mental health can take a huge hit as your hormones change. Estrogen and progesterone both impact neurotransmitters in the brain. Specifically, serotonin, which is a mood regulator.
This explains why many women frequently experience uncontrollable or irrational anger, they feel low, don't care, have shorter tempers than they did before, or suffer from extreme mood swings.
Anxiety, feeling of dread, and a dullness of life are also extremely common, and honestly, they're not nice to experience.
You can talk to your doctor about how you feel, as there will be treatment options for you, including HRT, medication for mental health, or therapy.
Bone Health
As you get older, your bone density will start to decrease. Again, it's the estrogen here playing a role. As it declines, so too does bone strength, leaving you at risk of osteoporosis.
Managing your hormones here can be helpful, as is eating a diet rich in calcium. Doing more weight-bearing exercises, and of course, HRT can also help you to improve bone density and will support your body so it’s fit and strong.
Eye Changes
Did you know your eyesight is more likely to change in your 30s and 40s than at any other time outside of childhood? Even if you're not going through peri menopause or menopause, they will likely change, even if just slightly.Â
But if you are in perimenopause territory, these changes can be more extreme, and it's not just a case of needing reading glasses. You might find you get blurred vision, light sensitivity, dry eyes, or changes to eye health, such as increased infections.
Your eye doctor can rule out anything else going on and assess your eyesight to see if you need prescription glasses. But if you're noticing a change in your eye health, it's worth getting things checked out regardless.
Sleep Changes
Sleep is one of the major changes thanks to hormone imbalances. Your fluctuating hormones can impact your ability to get to sleep, stay asleep, and feel rested when you wake up. It can also bring with it night sweats or hot flashes that make sleeping more difficult or uncomfortable.
Plus, an increase in anxiety will help to stop you from getting to sleep, and it can even impact your ability to metabolize caffeine, meaning just one cup too many or too late in the day can throw your sleep schedule out the window, too.
Over time, a lack of sleep can impact your life, and chronic fatigue can result in a weakened immune system, an increase in weight gain, and changes to your mood. It's really important that you get help for disturbed sleep as soon as you can to avoid further complications.
Energy Levels
Your energy levels will primarily be impacted by a lack of sleep. So if you're having trouble sleeping, this will, of course, knock over to your energy levels. But even if you're sleeping well, you might also still feel drained and lethargic. Your first port of call will be to get things checked out to make sure nothing else is at play here, too.
But those pesky fluctuating oestrogen and progesterone levels can also alter how your body uses energy, which will make you feel sluggish, foggy, or even drained all day, even with a good night's sleep.
You can, of course, make lifestyle changes, improving your diet, making sure you're getting all of your supplements, and increasing exercise levels. All will be helpful even if they don't feel like it. Getting as much vitamin D and getting outside in the sunlight will also help. But if you're worried, your doctor can walk you through your options, and that might include starting HRT, too.
There are many changes your body will go through when your hormone levels start to change. Perimenopause and menopause can be gruelling to the body for some people, and you can find yourself impacted in ways you didn't even realise would be affected. Knowing what to expect, understanding your hormones, and getting the right help can help minimize the impact and help you start feeling more like yourself again.
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