Joining the dots between periods, pregnancy, and perimenopause

Right now there are a lot of conversations going on about menopause. But very little about what happens 40 years before that on the hormone highway from periods to perimenopause. 

For someone born with ovaries and a uterus, compared to those who are not, there is a unique set of circumstances that unfold from the moment menstruation begins.

It wasn’t until I reached 48 that I finally believed in menopause. Of course, I had heard the word, I knew that periods started, and then stopped, but beyond that, I was fairly clueless.

By this point, I had already spent several years wondering what was wrong with me, from aches and pains in all sorts of places for no apparent reason, to crushing fatigue and memory loss. It wasn’t until my periods became unbelievably heavy and unpredictable that it was suggested I was starting my menopause transition. Whereas I had imagined periods gradually stopped at menopause, whenever that was going to be, it turns out that is not what happens. At the time I was teaching A-level Biology and despite my alleged understanding of human physiology it still took me by surprise that there was a 10-year prequel to menopause called perimenopause.

The build-up to menopause starts the moment two x-chromosomes unite when the menstrual health timeline is forecast.

The Menstrual Health timeline is a blueprint that is genetically predetermined, with a pair of ovaries programmed to operate for around 40 years, from the point of puberty to menopause.

During this time the ovaries produce a group of sex hormones*, with over 400 roles in the human body.

The ovarian source of these sex hormones is created during a special sequence called the menstrual cycle. Which you will be surprised to find out is for more than just the purpose of creating more small humans.

That year, back in 2016 I started writing and talking with others about the topic, and even had a go at my first podcast, to get a deeper and wider sense of what was happening and also, how on earth had I missed the menopause memo?

To be honest, I was fairly pissed off, and I guess a tad humiliated that I didn’t know. It turns out I wasn’t the only one. In the years that followed with just a little scratching of the surface, I was able to pull back the curtain on menopause and discover a whole catalogue of hormone health basics that have been sitting in plain sight, for decades. 

Using my teaching and biology background, with a side order of Holistic therapy, I have taken everything I have learned and created The Menopause School – A place for wellness professionals to learn how to create confident conversations around menstrual and menopause health. 

I have discovered that the entire menopausing process is fairly straightforward in biological terms, but no one was sharing any information about the essentials when I was younger. If I had known when I was a young mum the importance of my menstrual cycle and how closely it is linked to mental and physical health, I would certainly have paid much closer attention to the power of ovulation. 

It also turns out that menstrual health is like the 5th vital sign. Mind-blowing!

I’ve created a practical illustration of the menstrual health timeline to show how it looks in its simplest form and hopefully make you curious to learn more.