If you have asked yourself this question lately, please stop for a moment and take a breath.

You are not going crazy. ❤️

You may be going through perimenopause — a stage of life that can affect your body, your emotions, your sleep, your confidence and even the way you experience the world around you.

And sometimes, it can feel incredibly lonely.

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You can wake up feeling completely like yourself, only to find yourself overwhelmed by anxiety, irritated over something tiny, exploding in rage fits, suddenly exhausted, struggling to concentrate or standing in the kitchen wondering why you walked in there in the first place. Then comes the hot flushes that can feel like your are going to pass out one moment and within a few seconds your body is so hot you can boil an egg on your chest only to feel freezing cold and exhausted, and all of this happens in a few minutes. You suddenly become aware of your heartbeat at night while you are all tucked in and ready to sleep after what felt like an absolute exhausting day. There you ly, and then suddenly think, "is my heart Beating fast"?" "Why am i hearing my heart beat all of a sudden?' 'Am i busy dying or is there something wrong with my heart?' 

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You struggle falling asleep, its like you can't put off the tv, the day just keeps playing on and on in your head and there is no way to stop it, when you finally do fall asleep at 01:00, you wake up at 03:00 am with Night terrors fearing that you are in serious danger or something is very wrong, your heart racing and your body shaking, your nervous system is scanning the whole room for danger, only to realise that there is no danger around you and this feeling in your body makes no sense. 

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Your ears suddenly start itching profusely, and no matter how much you scratch or what you do, you just can't seem to satisfy the itch. Your skin becomes unusually dry, sensitive and itchy, and products you've been using for years suddenly seem to irritate you.

You start wondering, “Why am I suddenly reacting to things that have never bothered me before?”

And then there's the tinnitus — that constant ringing, buzzing or humming in your ears.

Sometimes it's just a faint background noise that you can ignore.

Other times, it can become so loud that it feels like it's taking over everything around you. You're trying to listen to someone speak, but the ringing is so intense that you can barely hear them.

 

And then there is the driving anxiety — and for many women, this can be one of the most frightening changes of all.

In today's world, we have so much on our plates. We have children to get somewhere, work to do, shopping to get done, appointments to get to, families to look after and a hundred other things that simply cannot wait.

So when driving suddenly becomes something that scares you, it can feel incredibly frustrating.

It often starts so innocently.

You're driving along a road you've driven a hundred times before, and suddenly you feel a little dizzy or experience a strange sensation of vertigo. The car suddenly feels like it's moving differently, almost as if it's slightly off balance.

You start thinking: “Is something wrong with the wheels?” “Is there something wrong with the road?”

“Why does my car suddenly feel so strange?” You start looking for a logical explanation for a sensation that seems to have come completely out of nowhere. And then your brain notices the sensation. And once your brain notices it, the fear can quickly follow. “What if it happens again?” Suddenly, you're hyper-aware of every movement of the car, every sensation in your body and everything happening around you.

A simple drive that you never thought twice about can suddenly feel like something you have to mentally prepare yourself for.

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And that can be incredibly scary — especially when you know you have to keep going.

But what makes it even more confusing is that you know you can drive.

You've driven for years. You've driven in traffic, at night, in the rain, on busy roads and probably while doing a hundred things in your head. Yet suddenly, something that was once completely normal feels unfamiliar.

And you start wondering: “Why am I suddenly afraid of driving?” This is one of those moments when understanding your body and recognising the connection between physical sensations and anxiety can be so important. You may feel the sensation first. Your brain interprets it as danger. Your nervous system responds.

And suddenly the fear becomes much bigger than the original sensation.

The more you fear it happening again, the more you watch for it — and the more you notice every little sensation.

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​Your thought patterns start to change. You find yourself worrying about things that never used to bother you. Things you would normally brush off suddenly occupy your mind. You become more suspicious, more sensitive, and some days you can feel completely neurotic almost out of nowhere.

And then the anxiety gets even worse.

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Your brain starts playing out scenarios and telling you stories that feel so real, even though deep down you know they aren't true. You are consciously aware that these aren't your thoughts. “These can't be my thoughts. This isn't me.”

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And this is where you really start to feel like you're going crazy.

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You begin struggling with places you never had a problem with before. Shopping malls become overwhelming. Being around lots of people suddenly makes you uncomfortable, irritated or anxious. You start wanting to avoid crowds and stay away from situations that once felt completely normal.

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And slowly, you start to shrink yourself.

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You make yourself smaller, quieter, hoping maybe no one will notice that something has changed. You become better at hiding how you really feel, smiling when you're struggling inside and pretending that everything is okay.

Because you're terrified that someone will see what you feel you're desperately trying to hide — that you're not yourself anymore and you're somehow going crazy.

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GOOD NEWS, MAMA! ❤️

You are NOT going crazy.

You're transitioning.

Your body has spent decades preparing, carrying, nurturing and making babies. Your reproductive system has been working behind the scenes for most of your adult life — and now, it's beginning to realise:

“Okay… no more babies are coming. We can start winding things down.” 

It's not an overnight shutdown.

It's more like a factory slowly changing shifts.

The hormones that have been running the show for years begin to fluctuate. Oestrogen and progesterone can become unpredictable, your cycles can change, and suddenly your body starts doing things you've never experienced before. And honestly? It can be a little chaotic. One day you feel completely normal.

The next day you're sweating, irritated, anxious, exhausted, emotional and wondering why your brain has decided that every little thing is suddenly a major emergency.

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Your body is basically saying:

“We're changing the operating system!”

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And you're standing there thinking:

“Could someone please explain what is happening?!” 

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But there is something incredibly reassuring about understanding that your body isn't necessarily betraying you.

It's transitioning.

This is a new season.

And while it can come with some very uncomfortable and sometimes frightening symptoms, understanding what is happening can take away some of the fear.

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So, Mama…

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Take a breath.

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Learn what's happening inside your body.

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Pay attention to your patterns.

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Look after yourself.

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Ask for help when you need it.

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And remember:

You are not going crazy.

Your body is changing.

And you're learning how to navigate a whole new chapter. ❤️

 

Welcome to the next season, Mamma.

The baby-making factory may be winding down… but YOU are absolutely not! 

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​​There is a question that comes up more and more:

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Are women today experiencing worse perimenopause symptoms than previous generations — or are we simply more aware of what is happening inside our bodies?

The truth is, we don't have a simple answer.

What we do know is that women are talking about perimenopause more openly than ever before. We are recognising symptoms that may once have been dismissed as “just getting older,” “stress,” “being emotional,” or simply something we had to put up with.

Today, we are learning to listen to our bodies.

We're paying attention to the changes in our cycles, our moods, our sleep, our anxiety, our energy, our thoughts and even the strange physical sensations we never experienced before.

And perhaps that awareness is one of the most powerful things we can give ourselves.

Because when you don't understand what is happening, every symptom can feel frightening.

A racing heart can feel like something is terribly wrong.

A hot flush can feel terrifying.

A sudden wave of anxiety can make you question yourself.

A strange thought can make you wonder where it came from.

A dizzy spell can make you afraid to drive.

But when you begin to understand your body, you can start to recognise the patterns.

You can begin to say: “I know what this is.” “I've experienced this before.” “I don't have to panic.” “I can pause and breathe.”

That doesn't mean we should blame every symptom on perimenopause or ignore something that needs medical attention. It means becoming more informed and more connected to our bodies and how everything around us can affect us. 

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