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This Is Perimenopause
Menopause isn’t the end, it’s just the beginning. Hosts Michelle and Mikelle are on a mission to help others be better informed than they were when they started their perimenopause journeys. The podcast is a blend of health, education, mindset, and personal growth. Michelle and Mikelle along with their guests are sharing real-life stories and expert advice to help you navigate perimenopause, menopause and beyond.
This Is Perimenopause
Lume Minute: How Do I Start The Conversation with My Doctor?
Today’s question for Dr. Sarah Shaw is:
How do I start the conversation with my doctor about symptoms that I’m not even sure are real symptoms?
In this episode, you'll discover:
- The variety of symptoms
- Tracking and rating symptoms
- MQ6 Tool
- Menopause Foundation of Canada symptom tracker
- Have a goal for your appointment with your medical provider
Lume Women + Health will be opening soon! They understand the unique challenges women face during perimenopause and beyond. Be sure to check out their dedicated menopause program that provides personalized support, medical guidance, and lifestyle optimization education to help you manage symptoms, improve your well-being, and thrive during this life stage.
Every other week, the team at Lume Women + Health will be dropping into our podcast to answer one of your questions. Be sure to follow our podcast so that you never miss these Lume Minutes. Find ‘This Is Perimenopause, the podcast’ wherever you listen to your favorites.
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Welcome to a Loom Minute brought to you by. This is Perimenopause and Loom Women's Health Clinic Bringing a fresh approach to women's health. Loom's state-of-the-art Toronto Clinic offers personalized in-person care for the midlife woman. In these bite-sized episodes, we're teaming up with Loom's medical team to help you make sense of perimenopause, one question at a time. Our goal To give you reliable, bite-sized information that fits your busy life. Today's question for Dr Sarah Shaw is how do I start the conversation with my doctor about symptoms that I'm not even sure are real symptoms?
Sarah:This is such a great question, Thank you. I think what happens in menopause and perimenopause is we can have straightforward symptoms like hot flashes, which are very obvious, and most of us would connect that to the menopause transition. And then there's the more nebulous symptoms, the I just don't feel like myself, which is 63% of women in this menopause transition. So I think the big thing is one to track your symptoms. So write them down. What exactly are the symptoms and flesh that out a little bit more. How often do the symptoms happen? How would you rate them on a severity scale Like is this like 10 out of 10 interfering with my quality of life? Maybe my sleep, my relationships, my ability to concentrate, or is this more mild and you can actually look at the?
Sarah:Mq-6 was developed by a family doctor in Toronto. You can get it online. It is fantastic, it's free and it will go through symptoms. You can also go to the Menopause Foundation of Canada. They have also a fantastic symptom tracker which really helps you identify what are symptoms we typically see in menopause.
Sarah:That said, there's over 30 of these, so it's a very long list and it gives you a way to get a better handle on it and, I would also say to have a little bit. Give yourself a little bit of time to reflect on what is your hope when you go to the physician and talk to them. Is it that you just need an opportunity to vent? Do you just want confirmation that actually this is menopause and it's not the thing I'm really terrified about, like a brain tumor or something like that, which is cancer is a very common fear for a lot of us, or is it that you want treatment? Do you want articles to read? What is your hope out of that one visit and your doctor is going to be a lot more likely to be helpful for you.
Mikelle:Thanks for joining us for today's Loom Minute. For more information, follow this Is Perimenopause and check out Loom Women's Health Clinic. There's a link in the show notes. This information is not intended as medical advice. The intent of this information is to provide listeners with knowledge to support more efficient and effective communication with their medical providers.
