Legendary Philanthropist Melinda French Gates, 61, Says Even With ‘The Best Healthcare,’ She Struggled To Get Answers During Perimenopause

Gates also shared that conversations with older friends helped her recognize and prepare for perimenopause symptoms by giving her insight into what to expect before experiencing the transition herself.

She continued, “It was kind of unbelievable to me that even in this, you know, unbelievably privileged situation I’m in, where I feel like I can get some of the best healthcare, it took me three doctors to really diagnose what I was going through and to get the right treatments for where I was.

“It wasn’t because anybody was doing the wrong thing. It’s because what I now know, which is only a third, one third of OB-GYNs in this country are trained in menopause.”

Gates recently announced a $10 million investment through Pivotal, an organization she founded, to support The Menopause Society‘s efforts to train providers and increase access to menopause care nationwide.

RELATED: Balancing Menopause, Caregiving and Career Pressures — Women Need More Support During This Transition

“For too long, perimenopause and menopause have been treated as invisible–something women are expected to manage quietly, without clear answers or support. That must change,” Gates said in a statement.

“By getting healthcare practitioners better training and investing in research, we can help ensure women have the care they need to live full and healthy lives.”

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In an earlier interview with TIME magazine, Gates said, “A woman can’t step into her power if we neglect her health. If you think about that on the converse side, if the woman gets the right care at the right time, she can live a full healthy life and do what she wants to do, whether that’s having children and raising them and working, whether that’s caring for her elderly parents, whether she wants to be an athlete or she wants to be a star in her own life or if she wants to be the CEO of a company or start a business.

“But if you neglect her health, and she can’t get the information or the tools or medicines that she needs, you put her on her back foot, and she’s often leaving work, not able to care for her children in the way that she would like, not able to start the company that she would like because she’s dealing with her own health conditions. That just shouldn’t be, not in this day and time.”

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Understanding Menopause & Perimenopause

Dr. Stephanie McNally, Medical Director for Katz Institute of Health at Northwell Health, previously clarified to SurvivorNet that menopause is the point at which a woman has gone 12 months without a period, while perimenopause is the transition leading up to it.

“For a woman going through a natural hormonal transition, menopause, and I say natural meaning there’s no chemicals, there’s no surgery, there’s no chemotherapy, which obviously affects your patients differently,” said the leading OB/GYN to SurvivorNet.

“The average age in the United States is about 51 to 52, where your periods will stop,” Dr. McNally explained. “So it’s the full year without a period equals menopause. Menopausal is anything happening after, and perimenopause is the time leading up to that last period.”

Menopause affects every women different and Dr. McNally told SurvivorNet, “Hormones are not just from your ovaries, they’re from your brain. They’re circulating through your body.

“So the way that your body changes from perimenopause to menopause, it’s going to be individualized, it’s going to vary, and it’s going to affect every single aspect of your body.”

Perimenopause: The Signs

Early and common perimenopause symptoms, according to Dr. McNally may include:

• Breast tenderness
• Headaches
• Menstrual cycle changes
• Mood changes

Other physical, metabolic, and weight-related changes women may experience:

• Skin changes and itchiness (including itchy ears)
• Hair changes
• Changes in breast density
• Slower metabolism
• Belly weight gain despite healthy habits (diet, supplements, hydration, fiber, protein)

As for pelvic and urinary changes, as well as broader body effects, these may include:

• Urinary leakage
• Incontinence
• Vaginal dryness
• General pelvic health changes
• Joint discomfort

“All of the things from head to toe, front to back joints included, can be affected,” Dr. McNally emphasized. “Any body part can be affected because based on our biology, there’s an estrogen receptor everywhere in a female body. So as these hormones are changing, it can affect us all differently. And no body part is off limits.”

Dr. McNally noted that it’s hard to accurately forecast what someone will experience during perimenopause or menopause, since symptoms and changes vary widely based on individual factors like biology, ethnicity, and medications.

She concluded, “The menopausal state is really a depletion of our sex hormones, the estrogen, progesterone, and a portion of our testosterone, because testosterone is made not only in the ovaries, but in the adrenal glands.”

“So there are other sources of testosterone in our body, but essentially we’re talking about those main sex steroid hormones that are gone at any significant levels in that menopausal transition. That’s the difference, erratic and then absent in the menopausal state.”

Menopause: A ‘Puzzle-Piece’ Process

Navigating these changes of what is aging and what is menopause “can be really hard,” Dr. Sarah Richina, Director of UPMC Magee-Womens Midlife Health Center in Pittsburgh, recently told SurvivorNet, adding that it is highly “rewarding” to help women with this “puzzle-piece” process.

“I think for patients just having somebody to talk [these changes] through with. And so I think that’s what’s most rewarding about doing menopausal care. I have the time, the space, and more wherewithal to kind of put it all together.”

“We’ve moved more towards a consultative, different model of care where we can expand our reach and see more patients and really kind of embrace those around us.”

Constant connectivity, news consumption and social media can leave people feeling chronically overstimulated and exhausted. Menopause or not, in this increasingly more digital world, women are feeling burnout faster. Humans were not designed to process information at the current pace.

Throw menopause into the mix, and it’s no wonder why women may be struggling more with the day-to-day.

“It’s back to basics, right? Like, are you getting restorative sleep? Oftentimes, that is a ‘No.’ What can we do to optimize that? So, how are you resting your body? How are you moving your body? Physical activity is super important,” Dr. Richina says.

“And how are you fueling your body? Food is medicine. Nutrition plays a really important role. I tell them what we did through our 20s and 30s — like rushing out the door with a granola bar on no sleep — we can’t really continue to get by through our 40s and 50s.”

Taking charge of your health is important. If you’re struggling with symptoms, don’t hesitate to reach out for support. A healthcare provider you trust can help you understand the changes you’re experiencing and work with you to create a personalized plan that fits your needs and lifestyle, whether that includes treatment or not.

Tips For Navigating Menopause

If you’re experiencing symptoms related to menopause and aren’t sure where to turn for trustworthy information, you’re not alone. Hot flashes, weight changes, sleep disturbances, mood changes, and brain fog are all common during this transition. Understanding what’s happening in your body—and knowing the treatment and management options available—can make the journey easier.

Dr. Susan Reed, a board-certified obstetrician-gynecologist and Professor Emeritus at UW Medicine, previously spoke with SurvivorNet, offering advice for women to check out The Menopause Society for patient-friendly guides on symptoms and hormone therapy, the Women’s Health Initiative for research on menopause and healthy aging, MyMenoplan to compare hormonal and non-hormonal treatment options, and the SWAN (Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation) website for science-backed fact sheets on topics like sleep, mood, memory, weight changes, heart health, and bone health.

RELATED: Managing Menopause: Proper Nutrition Is Essential For Easing Symptoms

The Menopause Society

The Menopause Society—accessible at www.menopause.org—features expert-reviewed resources on the symptoms, treatments, and health concerns associated with perimenopause and menopause.

Dr. Reed suggested women check out the website and look under the “Patient Education” section of the website, where they can access “MenoNotes”—simple, informative guides that address common questions and concerns about menopause.

Popular topics include:

• Weight changes during menopause
• Hot flashes and night sweats
• Hormone therapy
• Sexual health
• Bone health
• Choosing a healthcare provider

Women can use these resources to learn more about menopause symptoms, treatment options, and ways to manage day-to-day challenges.

Women’s Health Initiative

Meanwhile, the Women’s Health Initiative—which can be reached on their official website www.whi.org—is among the most extensive and impactful research initiatives dedicated to women’s health, and another resource recommended by Dr. Reed.

By visiting the website’s “About WHI” section, women can learn from important research that explains menopause, hormone therapy, heart health, bone health, and aging, and how daily habits and treatments can impact long-term health after menopause.

MyMenoplan (MsFLASH)

Dr. Reed also suggested women check out MyMenoplan—accessed at https://mymenoplan.org—an interactive tool designed to help guide decision-making, rated by the Menopause Strategies: Finding Lasting Answers for Symptoms and Health (MsFLASH) research network.

The platform is designed to assist women:

• Find out about typical menopause symptoms, including hot flashes and night sweats.
• Review different treatment options, both hormonal and non-hormonal
• Weigh the potential benefits and risks of each approach
• Consider which choices may align best with your individual needs and lifestyle

This tool offers women clearer information, allowing them to ask better questions and take a more active role in their care.

SWAN (Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation)

Lastly, Dr. Reed recommended women check out the Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation (SWAN)’s official website—accessed at www.swanstudy.org.

SWAN is a long-term study that follows women as they go through menopause and aging to help understand how it affects the body, emotions, and everyday life.

It began in 1994 and includes thousands of women from different backgrounds across the U.S., all helping researchers learn how to improve care during midlife and beyond.

One of the most useful areas of the site is the “Fact Sheets” section, says Dr. Reed, which breaks down important menopause topics in clear, science-based language, including:

• Problems with sleep or disrupted sleep patterns
• Shifts in mood, such as irritability or anxiety
• Changes in body weight and how fat is distributed
• Changes in memory and thinking ability
• Heart and cardiovascular health
• Bone strength and risk of osteoporosis
• How menopause symptoms can vary among women from different racial and ethnic backgrounds

‘My Health Questions’ Helps You With Sudden Questions In Between Doctor Appointments

If you have some questions ahead of your next doctor appointment. Make use of SurvivorNet’s proprietary AI resource “My Health Questions” to prepare you with strong questions for your care team.

“My Health Questions” was built specifically for the realities of cancer care experienced by patients and caregivers, and not as a general‑purpose chatbot.

SurvivorNet’s ‘My Health Questions’

It handles both complex clinical issues and everyday logistical concerns with accuracy, clarity, and personalization.

Users can create a tailored health profile by entering details such as age, gender, and location, allowing the platform to refine responses over time. This reflects SurvivorNet’s mission: pairing cutting‑edge technology with physician‑driven expertise to make complex medical information accessible and actionable.

Crucially, the tool is doctor‑supported. Leading oncology experts review the information to ensure it is accurate, safe, and easy to understand.

The goal is not to replace clinicians, but to help patients arrive at appointments better prepared with informed questions and a clearer understanding of their care journey.

WATCH: How One Cancer Survivor and Her Sister Used “My Health Questions” to Navigate Care

Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff

Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.