Dread and Ignorance
For most of my life, I ignored my menstrual cycle. Like many people, I vaguely dreaded my period. Through my teens and twenties, my period’s warning was breast tenderness and, once it arrived, a day of sometimes curl-up-in-a-ball cramps until the ibuprofen kicked in. Otherwise, I paid it little attention.
Surprise and Appreciation
When I was trying to conceive, a friend suggested I take my morning temperature to determine when in my cycle I ovulated. I was perplexed by her suggestion, what did my temperature have to do with ovulation? Once I learned about the relationship between ovulation, progesterone, and a sustained rise in body temperature, I wondered why I had never known about this connection? [Note: In asking an advisor to review this post, I learned that my understanding was still incorrect. She explained that once your temperature rises, your window for conceiving is just about closed. Ovulation happens prior to and causes the rise in temperature.]
In my trying to conceive days, I managed to take my daily temperature for one cycle and saw the ovulation-associated temperature rise. But this data collection effort didn’t last. Too many days I’d jump out of bed forgetting to take my temperature. I defaulted to the more basic method of using a spreadsheet to record the 1st day of my period each menstrual cycle and then predicted ovulation by counting back 14 days from the end.
After my childbearing years, the premenstrual breast tenderness and cramps went away. My new premenstrual warning system was a vague sense that it had been about 33 days, more fatigue than usual and sometimes a headache.
Wait, What’s This?!?
And then, in my early 40s, while I was still getting regular periods, premenstrual breast tenderness and cramps returned. Around the same time, I started waking at 2 am and couldn’t get back to sleep for often over an hour. A few months later, I began to notice I felt more fragile and less able to cope with things. I just didn’t feel like myself.
It did not occur to me that these changes could be linked to hormonal fluctuations. I was 42 and still getting a regular period and had no hot flashes. Likewise, my healthcare providers didn’t see these changes as perimenopausal because I was still getting regular periods.
So, what was the cause of feeling so not like myself? I dug into the scientific research and found a few studies that led me to believe these changes were connected to perimenopausal hormonal fluctuations. It was then that I returned to listening to my body for answers.
A Clue to The Chaos
I went back to tracking the length of my cycle in a spreadsheet. I saw that over many months, my cycles were shortening. This was something I’d read about in scientific papers. This confirmed I was on the path to menopause.
Seeing the Signal
About two and half years ago, I started using a more sophisticated tracking device that captures my overnight temperature. And lo and behold I can clearly see a rise in temperature after ovulation!
During my period and through the first two weeks of my cycle (the follicular phase) my temperatures drop overnight. Then between days 12 and 14 my overnight temperature rises for 12-14 nights in a row. On the first morning that I see a drop in temperature, I know my period will begin within 24 hours. This predictability feels empowering. I feel knowledgeable about and in tune with my cycles in a way I haven’t before.
And Then the Flash!
Over the past 6 years, I’ve dedicated myself to studying the years leading up to menopause in the hope of creating a better understanding of this phase of life. It’s no surprise then that I’ve read many accounts of a hot flash. So, when 4 weeks ago, I woke up with intense heating from my core, I thought, “wow, it’s happening, so cool!” These began on day 5 of my cycle and continued waking me nightly for a few seconds every 2 hours throughout the night. About two weeks later they stopped.
I was curious to see if the hot flashes might bring a corresponding change in my cycle. And guess what? For the first time in 2.5 years of tracking my temperature, it did not begin to rise around night 14. In fact, my temperature didn’t rise until day 30. That cycle turned out to be 44 days when the previous average had been 28 days. The hot flashes and the recent variability in my menstrual cycle length tell me that clearly, a change is afoot and that one day soon-ish my cycles will cease altogether. And the thought of that surprisingly leaves me with a little bit of dread.
For the Curious
- A refresher on the basics of a menstrual cycle here.
- How things change on the path to menopause here.
- Symptoms that can arise on the path to menopause here.
- For a deep dive into menstrual cycles, CeMCOR is a great resource.
