Perimenopause, periodt. Get you on that HRT girls. I don’t know about you but I don’t care to go thru puberty twice. (Because that’s how it feels.)
Edit: for those of you interested in a doctor who is ALL ABOUT PERI AND MENOPAUSE, check out drmaryclaire on Instagram. She has a ton of resources and info on it and gives out a free guide when you sign up for a free newsletter.
Just how necessary it is to advocate for your health. Medical gaslighting is incredibly common for women, and it’s so important we look out for our health at every point along the way.
If you’re dismissed – see someone else, get a second opinion.
My overall health would be so much better if, 20+ years ago issues I raised were taken seriously but now I have several chronic and incurable conditions which could have been prevented if I had been taken seriously by medical professionals as a young woman in my late teens/early 20s.
PMDD. Someone on Reddit in a post like this once mentioned it and then it all clicked. Talked to my doctor shortly after, started an SSRI which ended up helping an incredible amount. Like, literally life changing maybe life saving learning that 1) that was even a thing, and 2) being lucky enough at the time to have a decent doctor to discuss it with.
How much suppressed emotions can make us sick, how much society tells us to do exactly that. If you want to be emotionally and physically healthy you have to find safe ways of expression and movement.
90% of my weight problems were due to emotional eating, which I unfortunately picked up through the unhealthy patterns in my family. No diet or workout program ever worked until I fixed my mindset and my relationship with food.
That we are not just smaller men, and many treatments have not been tested as much on women. That sometimes I know more about what’s good for my body than a doctor.
Allmost all medicine was tested primarily or exclusively on men. Women may have vastly different efficacy, reactions, side effects etc and should proceed with caution.
That’s doctors don’t take us seriously if we do not fit into the bell curve. If we have anything that is an outlier, we are the problem. You have to look for a doctor who is also female, about your age, and has the same experiences. Otherwise, it’s always the same thing, lose weight, less stress, and or, get more sleep.
I am a nurse who has worked in primary care, crisis management, orthopedic rehab and corrections.
Strength training and mobility training is SO important for women and that need only grows with time. We lose muscle mass and bone density FAST in our older years. Muscle mass is easy to lose and harder and harder to gain as you age.
A sedentary lifestyle will destroy your body. I have taken care of many older women who lived either a life of sedentary tendencies or moved into a sedentary lifestyle after retiring, and all it took was one major injury to start the decline to death. When you stop moving, you start deconditioning.
Your body will give you exactly what you give it. You can make a hundred excuses for a sedentary lifestyle, but at the end of the day you will be the one to reap the benefits or consequences of the choices you made.
Move in SOME way, every day.
Don’t smoke.
Limit or eliminate alcohol.
Ask yourself “Would 70 year old me be happy that 27 year old me made this decision about my health?” because I have heard too many 70+ year old women tell me through tears that they wish they had taken care of themselves when they were younger.
That continued use of hormonal birth control can increase your risk of breast cancer and if you have a family history of breast cancer you shouldn’t be on hormonal birth control for years.
I wish Health or Sex Ed classes in junior high or high school taught about disorders like Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder, or Premenstrual Exacerbation. I have PMDD and this would have saved me years of suffering.
How much diet effects fertility. As a teen showing signs of PCOS the doctor just put me on BC and told me not to gain weight. Okay thanks!
Fast forward to my thirties I get diagnosed and a doctor not in the US does a whole blood panel and talks to me about high cortisol levels and diet changes that can help. I increased my protein, focus on anti inflammatory foods.
Within a year I was regular and just had a baby.
Note: not saying diet will cure infertility at all I know this is a huge uphill battle. I personally was pissed to find out all my issues were caused by diet. That won’t be the case for every woman. And yes I still have PCOS.
How common miscarriage is. The stats are 1/5 or 1/4 depending on where you look. It’s the most heartbreaking thing I’ve gone through (twice) but once you start talking about it you learn how common it is. For me talking to people about it was one of the only things that helped as well.
How much your mental health affects your physical symptoms. I used to think I was being dramatic about cramps and headaches but once I started managing my anxiety better so many of those issues improved.
Your discharge changes throughout your cycle and that’s totally normal! I used to panic every time it looked different but turns out it’s actually a good way to track where you are in your cycle.
Comments
Your periods can come MORE frequently during perimenopause
Perimenopause, periodt. Get you on that HRT girls. I don’t know about you but I don’t care to go thru puberty twice. (Because that’s how it feels.)
Edit: for those of you interested in a doctor who is ALL ABOUT PERI AND MENOPAUSE, check out drmaryclaire on Instagram. She has a ton of resources and info on it and gives out a free guide when you sign up for a free newsletter.
Having an abortion will still messes with your hormones.
We have a flora down there.
Your thyroid controls a lot more than you think. If it’s out of whack, a lot of things are going to be.
How important strength training is for health. Muscle is a major key to aging well.
The Vagina is self-cleaning, the vulva isn’t.
Wash the outer part ladies.
And if it smells, itches etc – see the doctor.
that mandatory physical activity and movement are such crucial aspects of an overall healthy body and mind and life
That fibroids just happen and no one knows why.
Periods are supposed to be obnoxious, not debilitating. If they’re debilitating, see a doctor.
Wet dreams are not just for boys.
And multiple orgasms are really hard but that doesn’t mean you should feel like a failure/not a woman for only being able to have one.
Eat more protein!
Just how necessary it is to advocate for your health. Medical gaslighting is incredibly common for women, and it’s so important we look out for our health at every point along the way.
Literally anything about menopause, but especially anything AT ALL about perimenopause and the fact it routinely lasts seven to ten years.
Your body is going to change shape and weight throughout your entire life which is normal and expected.
Protein, fat, and carbs are equally important and contribute to numerous body structures and functions.
That our bodies are very complicated biomechanical machines, and things aren’t so simple as “just do X”.
Most Drs won’t take us seriously. Including women Drs.
The medical model of healthcare is based on men.
You have to advocate HARD for yourself.
If you’re dismissed – see someone else, get a second opinion.
My overall health would be so much better if, 20+ years ago issues I raised were taken seriously but now I have several chronic and incurable conditions which could have been prevented if I had been taken seriously by medical professionals as a young woman in my late teens/early 20s.
PMDD. Someone on Reddit in a post like this once mentioned it and then it all clicked. Talked to my doctor shortly after, started an SSRI which ended up helping an incredible amount. Like, literally life changing maybe life saving learning that 1) that was even a thing, and 2) being lucky enough at the time to have a decent doctor to discuss it with.
How much suppressed emotions can make us sick, how much society tells us to do exactly that. If you want to be emotionally and physically healthy you have to find safe ways of expression and movement.
PCOS and PMDD suck big time and can really mess you up.
90% of my weight problems were due to emotional eating, which I unfortunately picked up through the unhealthy patterns in my family. No diet or workout program ever worked until I fixed my mindset and my relationship with food.
That we are not just smaller men, and many treatments have not been tested as much on women. That sometimes I know more about what’s good for my body than a doctor.
Allmost all medicine was tested primarily or exclusively on men. Women may have vastly different efficacy, reactions, side effects etc and should proceed with caution.
That whole “burning when you pee” sign of UTIs can stop as you age. The ER had to tell me that one.
Which is annoying because it was a very obvious symptom, so now it can become worse before I notice.
Pregnancy is way more fucked up and has way more risks than they let on
That’s doctors don’t take us seriously if we do not fit into the bell curve. If we have anything that is an outlier, we are the problem. You have to look for a doctor who is also female, about your age, and has the same experiences. Otherwise, it’s always the same thing, lose weight, less stress, and or, get more sleep.
The dangers of alcohol. Any amount.
Being mentally prepared for perimenopause in late 30s. It was a long while before I was able to figure out what is happening with me.
I am a nurse who has worked in primary care, crisis management, orthopedic rehab and corrections.
Strength training and mobility training is SO important for women and that need only grows with time. We lose muscle mass and bone density FAST in our older years. Muscle mass is easy to lose and harder and harder to gain as you age.
A sedentary lifestyle will destroy your body. I have taken care of many older women who lived either a life of sedentary tendencies or moved into a sedentary lifestyle after retiring, and all it took was one major injury to start the decline to death. When you stop moving, you start deconditioning.
Your body will give you exactly what you give it. You can make a hundred excuses for a sedentary lifestyle, but at the end of the day you will be the one to reap the benefits or consequences of the choices you made.
Move in SOME way, every day.
Don’t smoke.
Limit or eliminate alcohol.
Ask yourself “Would 70 year old me be happy that 27 year old me made this decision about my health?” because I have heard too many 70+ year old women tell me through tears that they wish they had taken care of themselves when they were younger.
That continued use of hormonal birth control can increase your risk of breast cancer and if you have a family history of breast cancer you shouldn’t be on hormonal birth control for years.
That eating disorders are actually mental health issues
[removed]
I wish Health or Sex Ed classes in junior high or high school taught about disorders like Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder, or Premenstrual Exacerbation. I have PMDD and this would have saved me years of suffering.
Cramps that make you puke ARE NOT NORMAL and you should stop letting doctors gaslight you 🙂
How much diet effects fertility. As a teen showing signs of PCOS the doctor just put me on BC and told me not to gain weight. Okay thanks!
Fast forward to my thirties I get diagnosed and a doctor not in the US does a whole blood panel and talks to me about high cortisol levels and diet changes that can help. I increased my protein, focus on anti inflammatory foods.
Within a year I was regular and just had a baby.
Note: not saying diet will cure infertility at all I know this is a huge uphill battle. I personally was pissed to find out all my issues were caused by diet. That won’t be the case for every woman. And yes I still have PCOS.
That women are grossly misheard, misdiagnosed, underdiagnosed, are offered less pain relief than men, and women’s diseases are vastly underfunded.
Always go pee after sex. UTI’s and bladder infections are no fun.
How common miscarriage is. The stats are 1/5 or 1/4 depending on where you look. It’s the most heartbreaking thing I’ve gone through (twice) but once you start talking about it you learn how common it is. For me talking to people about it was one of the only things that helped as well.
Stress can mess with your hormones and thyroid. Imbalanced hormones can cobtribute to endometrial cancer.
That mood swings and constant fatigue aren’t just “part of being a woman” they can be hormone issues, and you can get help for them
strength training is key, keep it up
How much your mental health affects your physical symptoms. I used to think I was being dramatic about cramps and headaches but once I started managing my anxiety better so many of those issues improved.
Your discharge changes throughout your cycle and that’s totally normal! I used to panic every time it looked different but turns out it’s actually a good way to track where you are in your cycle.