Hi Bevey, yes I've been there and it's a tough time. Perimenopause is like having daily instead of monthly hormonal fluctuations. You can go from feeling like a horny adolescent to an achey 90 year old in a couple of days. There's no escape, some women are lucky and have mild symptoms but I don't believe that many 'sail through' menopause. Symptoms depend on many other factors, like diet, exercise, lifestyle, personality, support from family, friends. Information and relaxation techniques are the best weapons in this war, but if you can't cope with symptoms because of demanding work, partner, children, etc. you can resort to HRT.
'Why does this have to be so hard?' It doesn't have to be so hard, but we're just beginning to educate ourselves about a subject that has been treated as a taboo by a male orientated society, where women are valued for their reproductive and beauty status. This may sound feminist, but it's not, it's a fact that applies to men and women in general.
