The perimenopause, for some women, may be a time of lots of changes that may feel tricky to navigate. Your sex hormones levels fluctuate and, as well as experiencing a number of horrible symptoms, it can affect many areas of your life. For example, the constant hormonal shifts that lead to mood swings can have a considerable impact on your emotional well-being, your relationships, and your sense of identity.
Physical Changes
Perimenopause brings various physical changes, including changes to periods, hot flushes (including night sweats), weight gain, aching joints, breast tenderness, vaginal dryness, UTIs and changes in skin elasticity. Often women may experience disrupted sleep that impacts your energy levels, which can impact your mood swings and stress and anxiety levels. Other physical symptoms may include allergies, osteoporosis, electric shocks, tingling extremities, bleeding gums, dry mouth, burning mouth, itchy skin, brittle nails, changes to hair, body odour, digestive issues, heart palpitations, dizziness, headaches.
Hormonal Fluctuations
Hormonal imbalances during perimenopause not only trigger physical symptoms but they can lead to mood swings, irritability, brain fog, difficulty concentrating, depression, anxiety, loss of motivation, low sex drive and fatigue. You may find it hard to regulate your emotions and it can feel distressing to have unpredictable mood changes.
Emotional Well-being
Emotional well-being can be affected by anxiety, depression, and a sense of loss during perimenopause. You may find that you’re experiencing feelings of sadness, frustration, or fear of aging. This can lead to a loss of confidence, not being able to make decisions and feeling the need to seek reassurance.
Maintaining Relationships
Perimenopause may lead to a strain relationships. This could be for a number of reasons, loss of intimacy (including physical, emotional and intelligence) due to low sex drive, a lack of understanding from your partner about the impact of perimenopause. This may lead to communication difficulties and mistrust.
Many women may find the perimenopause can impact their professional relationships. For example, research carried out by the Newson Health Menopause Society found 99% of respondents said their perimenopausal or menopausal symptoms had led to a negative impact on their careers, with more than a third calling the impact ‘significant’. 59% had taken time off work due to their symptoms: 18% were off more than 8 weeks. changes in intimacy.
Adapting to Shifts in Identity and Self-Image
Perimenopause can often lead to a shift in your identity, which may impact your confidence and self-esteem. Many women describe losing their sense of self and report feelings of loneliness. They find gender stereotypes exhausting and reject misogyny and start to redefine the sense of purpose.
Navigating perimenopause involves acknowledging these challenges and actively seeking strategies to support your well-being. Embracing change, seeking support and prioritising your self-care cannot be underestimated.
If you are finding the challenges associated with perimenopause hard to navigate, why don’t you book in for a free, no obligation chat with me? Click here to book.
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