This Is What No One Tells Women About What Happens To Your Body In Your 40s

"When I was pregnant, other women bombarded me with advice, perhaps because that was supposed to be a "joyous" time and people wanted to share in it, but this was different. This was the darker side of womanhood. I started researching phrases like "sex in your 40s," "pissed at my family all the time," and "left boob pain; am I dying?" When that didn't garner satisfactory answers,"

"I began locking my bedroom door, an apparently seismic shift that offended the rest of the family, but in doing so, I created a small space for myself to think and breathe and read for a few precious hours each evening and further adjust to the increasing changes in my body: the longing for complete silence, the new sensitivity to smell, coping with what felt like sensory overload."

"With my first missed period, I denied the possibility, but by the time the estimated date of the second one came and went, I had begun cupping my breasts in the shower to see if they were sore and feeling my belly for the telltale firmness. And afterward, I'd catch my naked profile in the mirror looking for visible differences in my body. Was I glowing? I definitely wasn't glowing."

A middle-aged woman experiences confusing bodily and emotional shifts that blur the lines between pregnancy and perimenopause. She responds by researching symptoms online, consulting a naturopath, and using supplements, essential oils, and specialty teas. At 44, family dynamics and a husband’s midlife crisis contribute to stress, prompting her to seek solitude by locking her bedroom door to read and breathe. Increasing sensory sensitivity and missed periods lead to anxious body checks, mirror inspections, and frustration as internet searches fail to provide clear answers.

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