Menopause- gentler reactions

[Crankin]

Mine was mostly mild, maybe on the medium side. I started having symptoms in my early forties, actually late thirties! My periods got heavier and more irregular, until finally, around age 45-46, I had a couple of occasions of seriously heavy bleeding when I was out of the house, which was scary for me.
I gained some of weight during this time. Then I started cycling. I had 2 years where I went for 10-11 months without a period, and then I had one. That sucked. They finally stopped when I was 48. For the first year, I had no symptoms at all. Then I started getting flashes, but more like what Shooting Star describes. Always first thing when I woke up. I would get them a few times during the day, mostly in the AM, and not lasting very long. I just drank a lot of water to deal with it. My classroom was very warm and I had to make sure I wasn't overdressed for that. It seems like being in a warm environment made it worse. The flashes lasted for a couple of years, then went away, until I started taking medication that made them come back. I no longer take that medication, so no more flashes.
The worst symptom I've had is the dryness, which has been solved with using the E-string. It was severely affecting my riding when I first got a road bike, but thankfully, my doctor is a triathlete and she knew how important it was for me to be comfortable (not to mention how this problems affects the love life).

[Biciclista]

yes my doctor said it's not official until 12 months had passed. sure enough, 11 months later, it started up again for another 1/2 year... then... peace... ahhhh

[redrhodie]

I just want to thank you all for sharing your experiences. I'm not there yet, but I'm 43 and I know it's on the horizon. I don't have any female relatives to talk about this with, and I'm a bit older than all of my friends. It's really good to know what to expect, what is normal, that everyone's experience is unique. I'm less afraid now since it's not as mysterious. Thank you.