3 Myths about Menopause for World Menopause Day

On October 18th, we celebrate World Menopause Day which is pretty cool except I personally feel we should be celebrating this huge transition every day! And why not?

You’re going to spend 1/3 to ½ of your life in menopause! That’s a big deal!

Menopause is officially defined as ‘once you have gone twelve consecutive months without a period and you are of an appropriate age.” At that thirteenth month, you’re crowned menopausal. This doesn’t mean your symptoms stop, but your period did and that’s the official determination. 

There is a lot of misinformation around menopause that I want to help clear up. This is unfortunate as all women go through it - we can’t stop it - so we might as well do it with our eyes wide open!

Myth #1: There’s nothing you can do about it. 

Truth: There is SO MUCH you can do! First and foremost, you’re not going crazy, you’re transitioning out of your cycling woman era into a menopausal one. Do you remember going through puberty? Now back out of it. Finding a menopausal savvy practitioner will help you on your journey. While I’m not seeing patients, I work quite often with Nutrition Dynamic (Vidal) who help coach their clients through everything from the hot flashes to the GI distress, weight gain, brain fog, fatigue, stress response, what to eat, and more!

Maybe you have a practitioner that you like for your yearly physical or acute ailments but they don’t know much about menopause. That’s ok! Keep them and add to your healthcare team.

Myth #2: All hormone replacement is bad.

Truth: This is wildly untrue! It’s also a very general, out of context, blanket statement that doesn’t apply to most women. There are several types of hormones and several types of hormone replacements to consider!  Depending where you are on your menopausal transition, you may find you only want one or two hormones or you may want them all! The powerful estrogen known as Estradiol is the one that most women are concerned about however, even that tide is changing based on ongoing research! If you haven’t looked into it, check out the book, Estrogen Matters, or look them up on Instagram. The book was written by Dr. Tavris and Dr. Bluming who routinely keep their instagram page updated with the latest estrogen research. 

Myth #3: All menopause transitions are the same.

Truth: There are some similarities between menopausal women but the variety of symptoms you might experience is huge! Maybe you’re the person who feels all the anxiety, night sweats, and vaginal dryness while your best friend might have terrible joint pain, itchy skin, and gain 15 pounds around their belly. 

One time I had a colleague tell me that a notable ob/gyn in her area told all of her patients that all women go through menopause at 51 years old, give or take a few months. We laughed as it’s true, the average age of menopause is 51-52 years old, however it’s not absolutely set in stone. You might have gone through menopause in your early forties, or your period might have stopped on your 54th birthday. My point is, everyone’s journey is not the same.

I understand that this transition can feel overwhelming or confusing sometimes, but you’re literally transitioning into the next level of YOU! Embrace it, show yourself some love, and seek menopausal help when you need it.