Understanding your body
Menopause, explained
The stages, the symptoms and the options — in plain language, without the scare tactics.
See if you’re eligibleFree clinician review. If treatment is not right for you, you pay nothing.
What menopause actually is
Menopause is a single day: the twelve-month anniversary of your last period. Everything leading up to it is perimenopause, and everything after it is postmenopause. Most women reach it between 45 and 55.
What changes is your ovaries' production of estrogen and progesterone. Those hormones do far more than regulate periods — they act on your brain, bones, skin, bladder, blood vessels and sleep. That is why the symptom list is so long and so varied.
- 51is the average age of menopause in the United States.
- 12 monthswithout a period is the definition — it is diagnosed looking backwards.
- 4–8 yearsis how long the transition into it commonly lasts.
The stages, plainly
- Perimenopause. Cycles become irregular and hormones swing. Symptoms often start here, while periods are still happening. Read more about perimenopause.
- Menopause. The twelve-month mark. One day, in hindsight.
- Postmenopause. Everything after. Hot flashes usually ease over time; vaginal and urinary symptoms tend not to, and bone loss accelerates in the early years.
Symptoms, explained one by one
Each page covers what is happening in your body and what a licensed clinician can do about it.
What treatment can look like
Hormone therapy is the most studied option for menopause symptoms. Whether it is right for you depends on your symptoms, your health history and your own preference — a licensed clinician makes that call after reviewing your intake. How hormone therapy works.
Questions women ask
How do I know if I am in menopause?
Menopause is confirmed after twelve consecutive months without a period. Before that point you are in perimenopause, which is diagnosed from your symptom pattern and cycle changes rather than from a single blood test.
Do I need blood work first?
Not always. Hormone levels swing day to day during the transition, so they often tell a clinician less than your symptoms and history do. Your clinician will say whether testing is useful in your case.
Is it too late to start treatment?
That is a clinical judgement that depends on your age, how long it has been since your last period and your health history. A licensed clinician reviews all of it before deciding whether treatment is appropriate.
Find out what is right for you
Answer a few questions about your health. A licensed clinician reviews your history and tells you whether treatment is appropriate — at no cost.
See if you’re eligibleSources & important information
This page is general education, not medical advice, and it does not replace an evaluation by a licensed clinician. Individual experiences vary. Prescription treatment is only provided when a licensed clinician determines it is appropriate for you; a prescription is not guaranteed. Compounded medications are not FDA-approved. The FDA does not review compounded medications for safety, effectiveness or quality before they are made available.
General background from ACOG, The Menopause Society, the National Institute on Aging and the SWAN cohort.