Not feeling like myself comes from a combination of factors
Consider the combination of the changing hormonal patterns depicted below and the concept that hormones do their jobs by activating receptors in many organs throughout our bodies.
Hormones enable processes in our brains, lungs, skin, and digestive systems. See Hormone Woman below. This explains a lot about why we might say, “I am not feeling like myself” during perimenopause.
Professor of Endocrinology and Metabolism, University of British Columbia
How hormonal patterns change over time
A woman’s hormonal patterns across the lifespan can be thought of as three chapters.
And really there is a Chapter 0 that begins when a girl has had her first period (menses). It lasts until her hormonal patterns settle into a regular rhythm and her cycle becomes more predictable as in Chapter 1 (below). This phase is called puberty. The official name for the first period is menarche.
Chapter I:
Predictable Cyclicality
(aka the reproductive years)
Cycles stabilize a few years after the first period (menarche) and, in theory, hormones move in predictable patterns creating a typical menstrual cycle. Repeating that cycle over 6 months (180 days) would look something like this:
This phase is also sometimes called premenopause.
Chapter II:
Unpredictable Chaos
(aka the menopausal transition)
Hormonal patterns begin to change in the late 30s/early 40s — due to the fluctuating, often higher than before estrogen, and occasionally lower progesterone. These fluctuations cause things look (and often feel) chaotic.
This phase is referred to as the menopausal transition or perimenopause.
Chapter III:
Relative Stability
(aka menopause)
After menopause, the ovaries no longer produce follicles so the hormones that rose and fell to govern cycles stay at even levels. Low levels of estrogen continue to be produced by the adrenal glands and in fatty tissue.
A woman in this phase is said to be “in menopause” or post-menopausal.
Hormone receptors are body-wide
Hormones act all over our bodies and far beyond our ovaries!
We were amazed to learn how many places in the body have active receptor sites for estrogen and progesterone. When these hormones are fluctuating, it’s no wonder it can cause such a wide array of symptoms, and we feel off-kilter!
Meet Hormone Woman
Changing hormonal patterns + receptors body-wide = Not Feeling Like Myself
Our research
We investigated what symptoms were most associated with the phrase “Not Feeling Like Myself” in our research of women ages 35 to 55.
The most highly correlated symptoms were not hot flashes and vaginal dryness.
The most highly correlated symptom with “Not feeling like myself” were:
- Fatigue
- Overwhelm, feeling less able to cope
- Low feelings
- Anxiety
- Irritability