OP, that happened to me. 46 and doing a pregnancy test at work! Then periods again, then a skip, etc. I had occasional hot flashes. At 51 I started having mood swings, anxiety, rages I now see were hormone related, plus a hot flash now and then. Still periods but lighter,
At 55-1/2 had a period, thought this is it. Then had one a year later. That was the end.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My cycle started to get shorter by a few days in my early 40s. Occasionally woke up in the middle of the night completely drenched in sweat. Then I started having crazy heavy periods. Then I had a period that lasted for about 50 days straight, but that began the day after my first Covid shot, so not sure if that had anything to do with that. Then my hair started noticeably falling out in bigger clumps in the shower.

All of that was awful, but I got an IUD and now I have no periods at all, so that’s a win. My mood is way more stable than it used to be in my 20s and 30s, too. No more falling into a black hole of depression once a month. I’ll take what silver linings I can.

That is a great silver lining! Did your hair stop falling out?

Yeah, I’d say it’s stabilized. It’s way thinner than it used to be. No bald spots or anything, but my part just looks whiter and more noticeable (I have dark hair). And my eyebrows are sparser, too.

Anonymous wrote:My cycle started to get shorter by a few days in my early 40s. Occasionally woke up in the middle of the night completely drenched in sweat. Then I started having crazy heavy periods. Then I had a period that lasted for about 50 days straight, but that began the day after my first Covid shot, so not sure if that had anything to do with that. Then my hair started noticeably falling out in bigger clumps in the shower.

All of that was awful, but I got an IUD and now I have no periods at all, so that’s a win. My mood is way more stable than it used to be in my 20s and 30s, too. No more falling into a black hole of depression once a month. I’ll take what silver linings I can.

That is a great silver lining! Did your hair stop falling out?

My cycle started to get shorter by a few days in my early 40s. Occasionally woke up in the middle of the night completely drenched in sweat. Then I started having crazy heavy periods. Then I had a period that lasted for about 50 days straight, but that began the day after my first Covid shot, so not sure if that had anything to do with that. Then my hair started noticeably falling out in bigger clumps in the shower.

All of that was awful, but I got an IUD and now I have no periods at all, so that’s a win. My mood is way more stable than it used to be in my 20s and 30s, too. No more falling into a black hole of depression once a month. I’ll take what silver linings I can.

I will add one symptom that came out of the blue for me - vestibular migraine. I’ve had migraines (2-4x a year) my whole life. I got hit with a vestibular migraine while doing a 3 hour drive. I had no idea what was hitting me, had to get off the highway, take a 30 minute rest and finish the drive on back roads so I could easily pull to the side if I started to feel dizzy again.

During the migraine I thought it was probably the beginnings of a regular migraine, but the headache and typical flashing lights never started. It was so bad I had a couple of minor panic attacks when getting on the highway for the next following months.

Weight gain, extremely heavy periods, long & light periods, fatigue, etc. joy.

Anonymous wrote:Yes you can go back and have normal periods again but you are in perimenopause and they will become irregular again until they finally stop altogether.

Thanks.

Also my boobs has totally deflated. I did breastfeed for four years in total which didn’t help their condition but this year it’s like someone popped an already soft balloon… they are like pancakes now.

At least both knees and my spine still work, right? Sigh…

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m 45 and the last six months have had a variety of symptoms crop up, seeming out of nowhere, including a bout of hot flashes (resolved after a month) and now a period that is almost 50 days late (I haven’t had one in 75 days).

I did bloodwork and all my results are normal, including hormones (estrogen and thyroid hormones).

Is it possible that my body goes back to having somewhat regular periods? Or is there no way of knowing? It is SO bizarre to not have a period for 2.5 months.

FWIW, I got pregnant easily at ages 35 and 39.

Not sure what you mean by late perimenopause? Do you mean like this is the end of peri and you're heading straight to menopause? Or you think it's coming at a late age? In any event, my peri symptoms started at age 45 with shorter cycles for about a year, a round of hot flashes here and there. It then shifted to just very irregular periods, increasing hot flashes that go very bad about 6 years later, still with short cycles intermingled with really long ones, incredible anxiety and irritability. This all lasted for about 7 years. Had my last period at age 54. Almost two years later I still suffer from very bad hot flashes. About 10 times or more per day. I never really thought that seemed like such a bad symptom and thought women were just being wimpy, but when they are so frequent and they often come with a quick but painful headache and racing heart, it really does get annoying. So, there you have it. Everyone is a little different. Good luck!

Thanks a lot. From what I’ve read, having periods further than 60-70 days apart is the hallmark of “late perimenopause,” meaning the last stage before actual menopause. My cycles have varied in length for the last two years but not really more than 7 days, so the sudden very long stretch was surprising.

I also had one episode of really weird irritability near the start of this 75+ day cycle.

Thanks for sharing, it helps to know your experience.

I did not become irregular until 52 and then became post menopausal and done at 53.

Yes you can go back and have normal periods again but you are in perimenopause and they will become irregular again until they finally stop altogether.

Crampier periods. Spotting/brown discharge. Moodiness. Acne.

Anonymous wrote:I’m 45 and the last six months have had a variety of symptoms crop up, seeming out of nowhere, including a bout of hot flashes (resolved after a month) and now a period that is almost 50 days late (I haven’t had one in 75 days).

I did bloodwork and all my results are normal, including hormones (estrogen and thyroid hormones).

Is it possible that my body goes back to having somewhat regular periods? Or is there no way of knowing? It is SO bizarre to not have a period for 2.5 months.

FWIW, I got pregnant easily at ages 35 and 39.

Not sure what you mean by late perimenopause? Do you mean like this is the end of peri and you're heading straight to menopause? Or you think it's coming at a late age? In any event, my peri symptoms started at age 45 with shorter cycles for about a year, a round of hot flashes here and there. It then shifted to just very irregular periods, increasing hot flashes that go very bad about 6 years later, still with short cycles intermingled with really long ones, incredible anxiety and irritability. This all lasted for about 7 years. Had my last period at age 54. Almost two years later I still suffer from very bad hot flashes. About 10 times or more per day. I never really thought that seemed like such a bad symptom and thought women were just being wimpy, but when they are so frequent and they often come with a quick but painful headache and racing heart, it really does get annoying. So, there you have it. Everyone is a little different. Good luck!

I’m 45 and the last six months have had a variety of symptoms crop up, seeming out of nowhere, including a bout of hot flashes (resolved after a month) and now a period that is almost 50 days late (I haven’t had one in 75 days).

I did bloodwork and all my results are normal, including hormones (estrogen and thyroid hormones).

Is it possible that my body goes back to having somewhat regular periods? Or is there no way of knowing? It is SO bizarre to not have a period for 2.5 months.

FWIW, I got pregnant easily at ages 35 and 39.