What Age Do Women Start to Get Menopause Symptoms?

While there are a select few who have no menopause symptoms and do not notice any change before their periods stop, many experience symptoms for months or years before and after their last period. How each woman experiences menopause will be entirely unique to her.

Find out when do you get menopause symptoms below as well as what you can do for treatment and optimal health and well-being.

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When Do Symptoms Begin?

Menopause is defined as a point in time when a woman has gone twelve consecutive months without a menstrual period. The average age of menopause is 51 years old.¹

The phase of life leading up to menopause is known as perimenopause, although it is commonly referred to as “menopause.” Several studies have identified factors that may predict or influence women's age at menopause, including their lifestyle habits or reproductive histories.

During perimenopause, it is common for women to experience a myriad of symptoms, most common being irregular periods, hot flashes, night sweats, mood swings, loss of libido, and more. They are colloquially referred to as menopause symptoms.

Perimenopause lasts an average of four years, but it can also last just a few months or as long as 10 years.^2,3 Doing the math, this means that perimenopause symptoms can begin in a woman's early 40s and last well into her 50s and beyond

Then, after the last period, when menopause has been officially declared, a woman is considered to be in postmenopause. This menopause stage lasts for the rest of her life.

What About Menopause Symptoms in Their 30s?

Although not common, it is possible for women to experience what is known as premature menopause or early menopause.

Premature menopause is menopause that happens before the age of 40, meaning the perimenopause transition occurs in a woman's 30s. Likewise, early menopause is menopause that happens between the ages of 40 and 45, also signifying that symptoms can occur up to a decade before then. It occurs in 5 percent of women.⁴

Both can be caused by family history; cancer treatments - like chemotherapy; surgical removal of the ovaries (often alongside a hysterectomy); and various health conditions, such as autoimmune diseases, thyroid disorders, chronic fatigue syndrome, and more.

What About Menopause Symptoms in Their 60s?

At this age, any symptoms of hormonal imbalance are most likely postmenopause symptoms, although it is still possible for women to enter menopause in their 60s.

Postmenopause symptoms may include those experienced during perimenopause, like hot flashes and night sweats, but this stage also presents its own list of health complications due to consistently low hormone levels, including osteoporosis, incontinence, dyspareunia, and more.

What Can Be Done for Relief?

Women should not fret as treatments are just as numerous as the symptoms experienced. Natural and effective methods focus on lifestyle changes alongside the use of alternative medicine before pursuing pharmacological options of drugs or surgeries.

No matter a woman's menopause status, she should rest assured that help is always within reach. To learn more, click on the following links to find out about menopause symptoms treatments.