Is it exhaustion? Or is it perimenopause?

Here’s what I’m learning. (Buckle up!)

I pay attention to my body these days more than I ever have. Not so much to the way I look, but to how I feel. I think that shift in perspective comes with age. Over time, I’ve begun to approach nutrition, exercise, and self-care in ways that are a bit upside down from the ways I used to approach them (as many of us probably did / do, sadly). For example — eating for nourishment and energy, rather than eating in a way to achieve a certain look… moving my body to get stronger, rather than smaller… and resting / taking care of myself because it makes me feel good and don’t have to earn it, not because I’ve pushed myself to the brink and am trying to recover.

Goodness knows I’m not always 100% on these things, and I for sure still have that number in my head I think the scale should have read from the age of 20 until the end of time, but I’ve definitely leaned out of caring so much about that.

But… lately (the last few years?) I’ve been noticing that my body requires more than she used to. She’s all go-go-go in the morning, but I’m sensing that I need to put on the brakes earlier in the day than I have in the past. I haven’t made any huge lifestyle changes, I’m not more stressed than usual. My sleep is okay. So it all makes me wonder, What’s up? What might be happening here?

Part of me wonders if, at 41, it might be perimenopause. (:: Throws rocks bc WHY whyyyyy whyyyyyyyyy do girls have to go through so much. The men will never understand ::). I have some additional feelings about that, but you know what the #1 feeling I have is? This is all completely normal. And the #2 feeling? In the spirit of feeling like my best self today and always, I want to be educated on what my body is doing, and an advocate for her so that she receives the care she needs. So I’ve been doing a little perimenopause research. Here are the eye-opening things I’ve learned so far.