Three early menopause symptoms – and no, they‘re not hot flushes
Feeling low, anxious or inexplicably irritated by everything? It might be symptomatic of the pressures of modern life – or it could be the menopause talking. New research suggests that the first signs emerge earlier than you might think. But since they are unlikely to feature the stereotypical hot flushes, many women wait years before seeking medical help.
Flo, a popular women’s health app, conducted a new survey of 4,500 women in the US over the age of 30, employing the Menopause Rating Scale (MRS), a standardised questionnaire used to assess the degree to which menopausal symptoms affect a woman’s quality of life.
It found that two-thirds of women aged 36-40 experienced moderate to severe symptoms of perimenopause. And not only were these signs showing earlier than expected, but the first to emerge were not those classically associated with the menopause.
For those in the youngest group, aged 36-41, irritability, depressive mood and anxiety were the most common symptoms experienced.
‘Mood symptoms are most prominent in early perimenopause, and vasomotor and other physical symptoms are more prominent in later perimenopause, which has not been demonstrated before,’ said Dr Jennifer Payne, professor of psychiatry and neurobehavioral sciences at the University of Virginia, who co-authored the study.
In fact, when menopause specialist clinic and research centre Newson Health conducted a survey of 5,700 perimenopausal and menopausal women, they found that 95% reported a negative shift in mood. Why? Well, it’s all down to that hormonal shift, says Good Housekeeping’s Dr Sarah Jarvis.
‘Brain fog and mood changes are very common in the perimenopause – the years leading up to your official “menopause”, which is defined as when your periods stop,’ says Dr Jarvis. ‘We know that your hormones have a major impact on brain performance and mood. During the perimenopause, your oestrogen levels are fluctuating much more than usual. Oestrogen and progesterone can also have a major impact on mood, and many women have symptoms during perimenopause that are similar to PMS.’
‘Menopause is about so much more than hot flushes and night sweats,’ agrees Dr Louisa James, consultant psychiatrist and head of the psychiatry service at Newson Health. ‘It is so important that women are aware of what psychological symptoms to look out for, so they can speak to their GP and get the treatment that is right for them. Symptoms that you may not associate with menopause, such as anxiety, low self-esteem, brain fog and depression are actually incredibly common; as your oestrogen drops, levels of the mood-boosting hormone serotonin falls, while cortisol (the primary stress hormone), rises.’
Awareness that psychological symptoms are common is only the first step, Dr James suggests. The second is putting that knowledge to use. She suggests keeping track of your psychological symptoms as well as your physical ones, and asking yourself if your low moods always happen at the same time in your cycle, or whether the anxiety you are feeling is different to something you normally feel.
Dr Jarvis urges women to discuss symptoms with their doctor. ‘If someone came to see me with any of these symptoms, I would discuss all the options – including HRT,’ she says. ‘Remember, you do not need to have stopped your periods completely to have HRT.’
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