Hormone Health After 40

You don't need a science degree. Here are the main players:

• Estrogen: Helps run your cycle. It also touches sleep, mood, bones and digestion.

• Progesterone: Supports your cycle and often has a calming, sleep-friendly effect. It can shift early, before your periods change.

• Cortisol: Your stress hormone. Ongoing stress and poor sleep can throw it off, and your gut feels it too.

• Thyroid hormones: They steer your energy and metabolism. Thyroid issues can look a lot like perimenopause, so they're worth asking about.

What changes, and when

Perimenopause is the stretch before menopause. For many women it starts in their 40s, and some notice changes earlier. It usually lasts several years. Menopause is officially 12 months without a period, and in the U.S. the average age is around 51.

Those are typical ranges, not rules. Your timeline can look different.

What perimenopause can look like

• Periods that get shorter, longer, heavier, lighter or less predictable

• Hot flashes or night sweats

• Trouble falling or staying asleep

• Mood changes or feeling more on edge

• Vaginal dryness or urinary changes

• Bloating, constipation or other digestive changes

It might not be perimenopause

Thyroid problems, low iron, stress, poor sleep and some medications can cause the same symptoms. That's why tracking matters. Notes over a few weeks help your provider figure out what's going on instead of guessing.

What to track

Pick a few and keep it simple. Two minutes a day is plenty.

• Your cycle: start date, length, flow

• Sleep: hours and how rested you feel

• Hot flashes or night sweats

• Mood and stress

• Bloating and bowel changes

• What you ate and drank

Questions to bring to your provider

• Could my symptoms be related to perimenopause, or is something else going on?

• Which tests, if any, make sense for me?

• Which of my symptoms should I keep tracking?

• What are my options for managing symptoms, and what are the risks and benefits of each?

• When should I check in again?

Call your provider sooner if you have

• Very heavy bleeding, or bleeding after 12 months without a period

• Severe pelvic or abdominal pain

• Blood in your stool

• Unexplained weight loss

• Bowel changes that don't go away

Educational information only. This page doesn't diagnose or replace care from a qualified healthcare professional.