Peri Menopause Menstruation

Peri-menopause is the time leading up to menopause. This time, or transition, may be brief or it can last for years. During this phase, you may notice a change in your menstrual period.

Hormonal Upset

• You may have heavier or lighter periods, begin to skip periods, experience spotting and you have more extreme premenstrual symptoms, such as cramping and sore breasts, prior to the onset of your period. These changes occur because your hormones are entering into helter-skelter realm and are no longer working in tandem with each other. You may have too much estrogen or not enough or too much progesterone or vice versa.
  According to Womentowomen.com, the first sign of hormonal imbalance shows up in our menstrual periods that may have been as predictable as clockwork in the past. Hormones begin to shift and wax and wane when you are in peri-menopause.

Estrogen and Progesterone

• If a woman doesn't ovulate during her monthly cycle, which may be the case during peri-menopause, then she is not going to produce progesterone, according to Power-surge.com. The role of progesterone is to alter the configuration of the uterine lining in preparation of a pregnancy. It also prevents additional build up of the lining by estrogen. When a peri-menopausal woman does not ovulate, she does not produce progesterone, which can result in a hormonal imbalance, and she may not have any period at all or it may be extremely light.

No Period

• Menopause actually occurs when a woman's estrogen levels decrease so dramatically that the uterine lining no longer builds up, during the first half of the menstrual cycle, and, as a result, menstruation does not occur.

Unpredictability

• It's a pretty safe bet, although not every woman has this experience, that your menstrual cycle is going to change during the menopausal years and become very unpredictable so be prepared for that or as much so as you can be. Carry a pad or tampon around with you just in case.

When All is Said and Done

• In an article for More.com, Alice Lesch Kelly writes that peri-menopause, and all of its potential attendant woes, can last from six to 10 years and that menopause, itself, is actually just one day in the life of a woman, that day being the 365th day (or one year) after her last menstrual period. When you have gone that long without a period, you are considered to be officially in menopause.

When to See a Doc

• Menstrual irregularities are part and parcel of peri-menopause; however, More.com recommends that you consult with your physician if you experience spotting or bleeding in between periods and/or after sex; if you are having a period more than every three weeks; if the bleeding lasts far longer than it normally did and if you are flooding.