Aging Gracefully
- Actress Halle Berry, in honor of turning 58 years old on Wednesday, posted a flawless, bare-faced photo of herself to her Instagram feed, which has increasingly shown a more empowered woman who is comfortable in her own skin as she uses her voice to fight the stigma of women’s menopause.
- According to the North American Menopause Society (NAMS), “the gradual transition between the reproductive years and menopause (the cessation of menstrual periods) is called perimenopause (literally meaning around menopause”). “It is generally a transition that is many years long and can be associated with shorter menstrual intervals, irregular menses, night sweats, and other symptoms. In some women, these symptoms are troublesome enough to need medical intervention.”
- The topic of menopause may be less taboo, but there is still more work to be done — like raising awareness about perimenopause, the transitional time before menopause, and that there are some women who may unknowingly be experiencing symptoms of the early menopausal transition.
- It’s important to seek a second opinion after a diagnosis; one doctor may see something that a different doctor misses. Always push for answers when it comes to your health, and speak up.
The health advocate, who has been using her voice to fight the stigma of menopause in women and said she would even spend her big day doing so, captioned her close-up outdoor shot with a simple line sealed with a red lips emoji.
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A handful of her famous friends — and dozens of fans — took time to send the Gothika film star some love.
“Happiest of birthdays! Your talent, generosity,strength of character is awe inspiring! Love you sis,” powerhouse EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony award-winner) Viola Davis commented.
“Happy birthday sis!!!!” chimed in Empire star Taraji P. Henson.
May December actress Julianne Moore also stopped by for some well wishes. “Happy birthday beautiful.”
On the eve of her birthday last night, Berry was looking exceptionally ravishing in a body-con, sheer lace dress while out at the premiere of her new Netflix film Union Bay with co-star Mark Wahlberg.
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“About last night ? can’t wait for the world to experience,” she captioned another post of her Hollywood glam. “‘The Union’ out this Friday on @netflix. Thank you to everyone who was a part of this thrilling film and thank you @markwahlberg for being the best partner in espionage.”
During an interview with Extra while on the carpet, Berry shared how she would spend her special day — advocating for a new bill to raise public awareness about menopause and provide training and resources to health care teams.
“I”m going to be in West Virginia with Senator [Shelley] Capito doing some advocacy work for my menopause bill,” she said of the Advancing Menopause Care and Mid-Life Women’s Health Act that was introduced to the public in May.
“I can’t think of a better way to spend my birthday than fighting for all women,” she added to the outlet. “Can’t wait to get there.”
Halle’s Berry’s Health Advocacy for Women
Berry began discussing menopause and perimenopause, the transition period before menopause, earlier this year, admitting that she thought was going to be the one that would skip perimenopause.
“I’m in great shape. I’m healthy. I managed to get myself off of insulin and manage my diabetes since I’m 20 years old. So that makes one think, oh, I can handle menopause. I’m going to skip that whole thing. I was so uneducated about it at that time,” she told First Lady Jill Biden, per PEOPLE.
It wasn’t until she began dating singer-songwriter Van Hunt, that she one day experienced unbearable pain after intercourse and decided to seek medical advice.
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She candidly explained, “I feel like I have razor blades in my vagina. I run to my gynecologist and I say, ‘Oh my God, what’s happening?’ It was terrible. He said, ‘You have the worst case of herpes I’ve ever seen.’ I’m like, ‘Herpes? I don’t have herpes!’”
“I realize after the fact, that is a symptom [referring to her experiencing vaginal dryness] of perimenopause. My doctor had no knowledge and didn’t prepare me. That’s when I knew, ‘Oh my gosh, I’ve got to use my platform. I have to use all of who I am, and I have to start making a change and a difference for other women.’”
“I don’t take this work lightly,” Berry, who was featured in Time for her advocacy work, wrote alongside her featured photo for the esteemed outlet. “I do it for all the women who feel uninformed or were made to feel lesser than because of the stage of life they’re in.”
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“By talking about my experiences, I hope other women feel inspired to tell their stories and combat the stigmas that have held us down for far too long.”
Understanding Perimenopause
According to the North American Menopause Society (NAMS), “the gradual transition between the reproductive years and menopause (the cessation of menstrual periods) is called perimenopause (literally meaning around menopause”).
“It is generally a transition that is many years long and can be associated with shorter menstrual intervals, irregular menses, night sweats, and other symptoms. In some women, these symptoms are troublesome enough to need medical intervention.”
Meanwhile, when menopause (whether natural or induced) occurs when a woman is 40 years old or younger, it’s dubbed as premature menopause.
“This occurs in about 1% of women in the United States,” the NAMS explains. “Premature menopause that is not induced can be genetic, metabolic, autoimmune, or the result of other poorly understood conditions. Premature menopause should be evaluated thoroughly.”
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The Difference Between Menopause and Early Menopause
Menopause is described by the National Institute on Aging, as “a point in time 12 months after a woman’s last period.” Additionally, “The years leading up to that point, when women may have changes in their monthly cycles, hot flashes, or other symptoms, are called the menopausal transition or perimenopause.”
The average age women go through the menopausal transition, which usually lasts approximately seven to 14 years, ranges between ages 45 and 55.
“The duration can depend on lifestyle factors such as smoking, age it begins, and race and ethnicity,” the institute explains. “The menopausal transition affects each woman uniquely and in various ways. The body begins to use energy differently, fat cells change, and women may gain weight more easily. You may experience changes in your bone or heart health, your body shape and composition, or your physical function.”
As for early menopause, the National Cancer Institute says it’s a condition which causes the ovaries to stop working and menstrual periods to stop before a woman turns 40. It’s a transition that can lead to fertility issues and symptoms of menopause.
Additionally, early menopause is split up into two types, primary and secondary. According to the National Cancer Institute, “There are two types of early menopause, primary and secondary. Primary early menopause means that the ovaries do not function normally. This may be because they have been removed by surgery, or it may be caused by some cancer treatments and certain diseases or genetic conditions.
“In secondary early menopause, the ovaries are normal but there is a problem getting hormone signals to them from the brain. This is usually caused by diseases of the pituitary gland or hypothalamus. Some women with early menopause sometimes have menstrual periods and may be able to have children. Also called ovarian failure, ovarian insufficiency, and premature menopause.”
Contributing by SurvivorNet staff.
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