I Went Into Menopause Overnight. Here’s What It’s Actually Been Like
An honest assessment.
If you’re a woman of a certain age (shoutout to my fellow elder millennials), talk of menopause is everywhere, and almost all of it is overwhelmingly negative. Hot flashes, mood swings, no sex drive, weight gain, thinning hair, insomnia, face collapse (okay, I made that one up, but there’s a lot of talk about jowls and sagging skin)...
If you’re in your late thirties/early forties, it feels like you have maybe a handful of good years left before falling off a cliff into sad land where everything is dry and everything hurts.
I’ve been in medical menopause for two years and I’m here to tell you: it hasn’t been that bad.
Now, that doesn’t necessarily mean that’s always going to be the case. However, considering how difficult this whole cancer thing has been, I’m going to grab the silver linings where I can.
I was put into medical menopause at 40 after I was diagnosed with breast cancer. The type of cancer I had was hormone positive, which in simple terms means estrogen feeds the cancer cells and helps them grow. So part of the treatment is to cut off all sources of estrogen so the cancer has nothing to fuel it.
For me, that looked like a monthly shot to shut down my ovaries (the body’s main estrogen producer), followed by a daily medication after chemo and radiation to keep estrogen levels low. The shot alone puts you into menopause because it stops your period.
And what most women with breast cancer will tell you: Your oncologist will brush over the menopause side of things, and very little time will be spent walking you through what to expect, and more importantly, how to manage the side effects.
One day you’re a fertile woman walking around with both breasts, the next day you’ve lost one or both said breasts and your period has stopped, sometimes forever. And you’re just meant to manage that transition while also fighting for your life.
It’s a lot.
But here’s the truth: my symptoms have been manageable, and some barely show up at all. Here’s what I’ve dealt with so far, including a couple of surprises.
