WHEN YOUR DOCTOR SAYS YOU'RE TOO YOUNG FOR PERIMENOPAUSE

It’s bonkers how many women present with clear signs of peri at their doctor’s office, only to be told they're too young, and send on their way.

Facts: Many healthcare professionals just aren’t up to date on peri literature, and are still operating on the assumption that peri is something that starts around age 45 and lasts 4-7 years.

In recent years, it's become clear to many practitioners that peri can start any time from your mid-late thirties onwards, and if you are in the region of age 40, it would not be crazy for you to experience symptoms.

"Peri commonly starts between 35 - 45 years of age"

"Perimenopausal symptoms commonly start between 35 - 45 years of age," says OB-GYN Dr. Carolyn Moyers of Sky Women's Health in Forth Worth, TX. "One reason why perimenopause is often misdiagnosed is that many women are not aware of the condition or the symptoms associated with it."

"I see symptoms in the late thirties to early forties."

"The CDC and Google say the average age of peri in the US is 47," says board-certified MD Dr. Heather Hirsch, "although I think it's much younger. I see symptoms in the late thirties to early forties."

Try telling 99% of doctors that. No one wants to walk into their doctor’s office claiming to know more than the doctor does, as it can often rub them the wrong way.

What if the doctor gave you a blood test and said your hormone levels were normal? First of all, a single blood test will not confirm if you are peri. Your symptoms tell you all you need to know. A blood test may be taken to rule out possibly underlying issues (think thyroid dysfunction, for example), but a single blood test cannot confirm peri.

"There are currently no established lab values or tests that determine that someone is in perimenopause"

"There are currently no established lab values or tests that determine that someone is in perimenopause, especially early on," says Dr. Anna Barbieri, a functional and integrative practitioner based in New York. "The reason for that is that hormones and especially estrogen fluctuate a lot day to day and at different times of the cycle."

People will then say ‘Oh you don’t need estrogen, it’s is really high, when in fact it was only high at that minute.”

“During the perimenopause, our hormones really fluctuate,” says the UK's foremost peri and meno expert Dr. Louise Newson. “Sometimes they are high, sometimes low. Often blood tests will show very high estradiol (estrogen) levels, but it just means at the time of the blood test their hormone levels were high. People will then say ‘Oh, you don’t need estrogen, it’s is really high, when in fact it was only high at that minute.” 

So what do you do if your doctor says you're too young to be in perimenopause? NAMS has a database of practitioners where you can find a new doctor.

The Perisphere is not medical advice. The information provided should not be used for diagnosing or treating a health problem. Always seek the advice of your doctor or other qualified health provider.