Ida Tin’s “Dear Men” Series: Part 25 of 29 – Menopause

Dear Men, this is post 25/29 on what it feels like to have a woman’s body. This time it’s about one of life’s biggest body transitions — menopause.

When a woman hasn’t had her period for 12 months, she is considered to be in menopause, meaning her periods have stopped and will never come back. It can happen in the 40s or 50s. If it happens earlier, it is considered “early menopause”. If it happens much later, I don’t know… it just doesn’t really, because this is how nature has sorted things.

For some it is a relief, free from the mess, pain and risk of pregnancy, for others it feels… like what? When you Google it, it is noticeable how physical symptoms are well described whereas the psychological and emotional aspects are less articulated other than what I just wrote: yay, I can’t get unwanted pregnant anymore, and then back to the body changes: “For other women, the menopausal transition can bring various symptoms, including hot flashes, night sweats, trouble sleeping, joint and muscle discomfort, pain during sex, moodiness and irritability, forgetfulness, difficultly concentrating, or a combination of these.”

And then there is the brittle bones, the cancer risks… Oh, great.

I continue reading on the internet, this is from the National Institute of Aging (that the Trump admin still hasn’t closed… !) “The body’s production of estrogen and progesterone, two hormones made by the ovaries, declines greatly.

Symptoms related to menopause can last for between two and eight years, though the timing and symptoms are highly variable among women. These factors are likely influenced by a woman’s genetics as well as external factors, such as race and ethnicity, culture, lifestyle, and environment.

Compared with White women, Black women are more likely to have an early onset of menopause, experience more menopausal symptoms, and have symptoms for longer, while Asian women are less likely to suffer from menopausal symptoms.

In addition, during the menopausal transition, the body begins to use energy differently. The distribution of fat in the body changes, and women may gain weight more easily. They may also experience changes in their bone density, heart health, body shape and composition, or physical function.”

Some use hormone replacement therapy. Because, well, all this sounds like something you’d eat a pill against. Too bad some cancer cells feed off estrogen… and when do you know when suddenly you have one in your body. Taking hormones or not, that’s a hard choice to make… one that all women face.

And then there is the whole question of how society perceives women after their fertile years. That’s for some other time. Just, humph! for now.

Feel free to share your experience of menopause too.

Artwork by Kyle Leuck

-This post by Ida Tin is shared on LinkedIn and is republished here with her permission. The SheSight Team has not made any changes to the content.