Milestones

April 30, 2014

Milestones

So I threw this on twitter, but I’m repeating it here: I’m 48 years old & it’s been over a year since my last period.

I’m OK with the first. I’m HAPPY about the second — and yes, it means I’m “officially” considered menopausal. I had a few years of skipping periods in the fall & winter, then getting returning to regularity each summer.

I wasn’t entirely sure I was in perimenopause, at first, despite the irregular periods. I would sometimes feel suddenly warm and turn on a fan or ditch my cardigan, but not often. I had problems sleeping and sometimes use ambien, but that was during some major life changes and I didn’t think much of it. After I skipped 6 months I was pretty sure it was the start of menopause — and then I started having periods again. For a few months. And… yeah.

Regularity? What’s that?

I had my first period at age 10. It’s been nearly 40 years. I’m fine with being done.

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health, Me, menopause

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Living 400lbs

I blog about what it’s like to be live life at about 400lbs. :)

10 responses to “Milestones”

Virginia

May 1, 2014 at 4:47 am

My last real period was in July of last year. I had horrible hot flashes many times a day ( turned bright red, sweat rollling down my face), night sweats, the whole 9 yards. Black cohash helped for a while, then stopped working. I finally found Smokey Mountain Naturals, and bought estogen & progestorone cream. Wonderful stuff. I don’t work for them, by the way. Just sharing what worked for me. It’s been 3 weeks without hot flashes and I feel great.

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kprofou

May 1, 2014 at 6:54 am

Congrats! I too am looking forward to the end of periods.

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Twistie

May 1, 2014 at 6:59 am

Fifty-one and entering peri-menopause, here. I’ve had half a dozen hot flashes and skipped about three periods in a row before they returned. Frankly, I’m looking forward to it being over… but if I’m anything like my mother (which I have been about pretty much every other aspect of menses) I probably have another couple years to go on this.

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1. Living 400lbs
  
  May 1, 2014 at 11:48 am
  
  Yeah, I had a couple years of skipping periods. :)
  
  Reply
Karen Strickholm

May 1, 2014 at 9:32 am

ONE IN FIVE — Not to scare you, but the same thing happened to me, and a big weight gain too. Turned out I had a pituitary adenoma — a type of brain tumor that isn’t cancerous, but it can kill you. It took until age 50 to get a diagnosis — I had symptoms and multiple other diagnoses, until a smart doctor finally figured it out.

It’s probably just menopause, but I would feel remiss if I didn’t tell you about pituitary tumors. YES, one in five humans have a pituitary tumor. Visit http://www.pituitary.org to learn more.

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Patsy Nevins

May 1, 2014 at 12:40 pm

I was 57 by the time I finished, so, except for two pregnancies & some months of intensive breastfeeding, it was 45 years. I know nothing about pituitary tumors, but I do know that the patterns described are very common of perimenopausal symptoms, which I had some of for about ten years.

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James

May 1, 2014 at 1:22 pm

Just a random question): is menopausal weight gain inevitable/common? And how do women deal with the weight gain? Just curious ’cause I’m a fat guy and have no experience with this stuff but would like to know what to expect with regard to my partner

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quiltluvr

May 2, 2014 at 12:48 pm

Please be aware that if you have any spotting or bleeding or what feels like a “period” after onset of menopause, it is NOT normal. I didn’t even think such a thing was possible. But it happened to me. I did have a good doctor (not fat-friendly, but evenly fat neutral); I had a D & C which showed abnormal cell growth. That led to a hysterectomy which found a small uterine tumor. I’m very grateful I did not delay going to the doctor.

Otherwise, no-periods rock!

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Some Things I’m Learning | Living ~400lbs

June 15, 2014 at 11:32 pm

[…] 48 can be a little too young for menopause. […]

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The Well-Rounded Mama

August 17, 2014 at 5:40 pm

Yes, what quiltluvr said. Any spotting or bleeding after the onset of menopause is not normal. High-BMI women are more at-risk for endometrial (uterine) cancer, probably because of PCOS, and so it’s important to have any spotting after menopause checked out quickly.

The hard part sometimes is knowing you’re in menopause for sure, but sometimes care providers can do blood tests to confirm or deny. Then you’d know whether any spotting was alarming or just a return to perimenopause.

It’s hard to find good information on obesity and menopause but from what I’ve found, it sounds like we tend to have a later and longer perimenopause before we finally reach menopause for good. However, obviously there is a range of normal so some fat women will reach menopause sooner than others.

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