I choose to age gracefully.

This year I was hit hard. It all became clear in the spring, but I only felt ready to share it now. It’s still not easy for me to expose my experience in the public space. But I hope it will be helpful to those women who are going through this right now.

In the spring of this year, I noticed some changes that I really didn’t like.

As usual, I was training actively (spoiler — turned out to be even more than I needed), going to bed on time, waking up at the same time, eating healthy food — in general, I was doing all that healthy routine stuff that I’ve been sticking to for a long time.

But it seemed like that stopped working. ‍♀️ There was morning apathy, wrinkles deepened on my face, and my waist seemed to start gaining. Sleep quality worsened, and I felt more anxious.

I was lucky during that time to be under the care of Vera @veradetenerife. It was Vera, a cosmetologist, who advised me to see a doctor and get a hormone test done. Not only did she suggest it, but she also outlined exactly which tests to take.

Then I was lucky a second time. I randomly got an appointment with a gynecologist — the first one I could find — and honestly told her about all my symptoms. This wonderful woman didn’t just send me to treat symptoms — hair loss with vitamins, apathy with iron, and anxiety with antidepressants. Instead, she immediately referred me for steroid hormone testing and a bunch of additional tests.

A couple of weeks later, I returned to her for a follow-up on the results.

Almost complete depletion of ovarian resources. Perimenopause. The female hormone estrogen is at zero, prolactin is off the charts, everything else is normal.

Then, dear ladies, there’s a fork in the road. You can choose hormone replacement therapy (HRT), or you can choose phytoestrogens (to soften the processes), or you can leave everything as it is.

I chose HRT with estrogen, which was prescribed to me after a series of additional examinations. It’s important to ensure there are no contraindications, so the decision about this therapy should be made by a doctor.

Once again, folks, I was very fortunate to catch and identify this early, before perimenopause caused damage to my body, like hot flashes (which destabilize the cardiovascular system), calcium depletion from bones (osteoporosis), and depression (which begins as anxiety and lack of sleep).

Starting in May, every day I take my minimum dose of estrogen every morning. And no, it’s not a pill for youth. But it’s what will help me slow down the hormonal train speeding downward and keep it under control.

I feel more energetic. My morning strength has returned. My reflection in the mirror brings me joy again. There’s a sparkle in my eyes; my libido has returned. My anxieties, hair problems, and poor sleep have almost disappeared.

Dear girls, if you are young and this hasn’t affected you yet — save this post to come back to when the time comes. Guys — if you see that your significant other is going through something like this, give her your full support now. Send her to the doctor, help her get tested. Discuss it with her, support her. This is a very challenging stage in a woman’s life.

I would like to help reduce the stigma around the topic of perimenopause. Many gynecologists write and talk about pregnancy and childbirth. But perimenopause is an important period in a woman’s life that can last 10-15 years (!!!) before menopause begins.

By the way, with the decrease in testosterone levels, men fall into the same pit. So, guys, don’t hesitate to see a urologist if you notice something like that.