Just a few words about perimenopause and neurodivergence.
By 2030, the number of women aged between 45 to 55 will reach nearly 500 million, meaning that roughly 6 percent of the world’s population will be in menopause. (CDC) Because of the erroneous information about HRT that was accepted in the early 2000’s, many women find themselves being denied needed treatment and the resulting uncomfortable and sometimes debilitating perimenopause symptoms wreck your self esteem and your life.
As hard as this is on neurotypical brains, it is even harder for those who are neurodivergent. For a growing number of women, it is perimenopause that rips the mask off revealing that they were neurodivergent all along. This can hit like a truck and send people into a quicksand like pit of negative emotion. The loss of estrogen reduces the already low levels of dopamine that most ND women are already coping with making a difficult situation worse. ND women have higher prevalence of severe perimenopausal symptoms. These symptoms present at an earlier age than among NT women, indicating an earlier onset age of perimenopause..
Neurodivergent women may struggle with a number of issues during perimenopause and menopause, including intensified sensory sensitivities, difficulty with mood and emotional regulation, executive function challenges, difficulty with the lack of predictability around bodily or sensory experiences, difficulty recognizing internal body states or needs, difficulty recognizing and communicating emotions, and difficulty seeking support. Add to that, neurodivergent women tend to react more to hormonal shifts and you have a recipe for severe YUCK. (Don’t you love my use of technical terms).
A 2021 qualitative study found that mental illness and suicide risk peak at menopause for neurodivergent women. Cognitive changes often observed during the menopausal transition may also affect ND women differently. Previously effective medications may no longer be as helpful, and individuals may require updated doses or new medications to help manage mental health symptoms. All of this makes it helpful to consider seeing a therapist to help you sort out what can be changed, what needs to be replaced and what needs to be eliminated from your life.
Life transitions can be scary. Change usually is. The upside is that once you successfully pass through menopause, not only do your emotions become far more stable but you will find it easier to set and hold your boundaries and to focus on what you want out of life. I have both the training and the personal experience to assist you in the building of the second half of your life.