5 ways to survive perimenopause

(Sydney Loney/ Chatelaine) –– Many of the patients Dr. Wendy Wolfman sees as director of Mount Sinai’s Mature Women’s Health Clinic in Toronto are surprised—and less than thrilled—by the sudden onset of perimenopause symptoms. “They often feel that they haven’t been told enough about what’s happening to their bodies,” she says. “And many women put up with symptoms unnecessarily.”

Perimenopause means “around menopause” and usually kicks in during your 40s (or even in your mid-to-late 30s) as your ovaries start producing less estrogen and your reproductive system starts winding down. It can last anywhere from five to 10 years—until your periods stop altogether (once you hit 12 months period-free, you’re officially in menopause). (…)