I’ll Be Ordering off the Early Bird Menu Soon

Because menopause makes feel so exhausted I want to go to bed right after work

AI Image created with Midjourney by the author

I went to bed at 10 pm last night. That may not sound unusual, but I’m a night owl. Normally I am only in bed at 10 pm when I’m very ill. And I’m talking high fever near death ill here.

But sitting in meetings for 9 hours while battling menopausal fatigue seems to have the same effect on me as an illness.

Menopausal women should not have to work. If men went through a similar physical change, the retirement age would be around 50. There, I said it.

And I stand by it. Many of them can’t even cope with a common cold. Can you imagine what would happen if they suffered from hot flashes, night sweats, migraines, dizziness or itchy body parts?

But no, it’s us again, the “weaker sex” dealing with an onslaught of physical malfunctions that would bring an elephant to its knees. All while trying to work a full-time job. And attempting to hide that your head is ready to hit the desk after a few hours because fatigue has you in a stranglehold. All the damn time.

Sure, women always have a lot on their plates. When you’re trying to do your job, look after the children and the home and maybe an elderly relative, you can get exhausted. Many of us are tired, even if we are not in (peri-)menopause.

However, a 2018 study showed that fatigue increases with the change. While 19.7% of women who weren’t yet in perimenopause suffered from fatigue, this figure rose to 46.5% in perimenopause and 85.3% postmenopause.

85% of women who have gone through menopause are tired. No exhausted. But we still have to function as if nothing was wrong!

The ramifications of this constant exertion aren’t just being tired. You lack the energy to take care of yourself properly. To cook healthy food or exercise.

When I got home yesterday after nine hours of intense meetings, I collapsed on the couch and watched Psych on Netflix. That was it for the day. I ordered food because I couldn’t be arsed to cook anything.

I had planned to write a bit, read a book, and prepare for a talk I will give soon. But no. Netflix and bed at 10 pm it was.

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I’m lucky; I no longer suffer from night sweats and insomnia thanks to HRT. So last night, I slept like a rock. My Fitbit recorded an excellent sleep score of 90. A very elusive score, I assure you. You’d assume that I’d be rested and full of energy today. But no.

I’m just as tired as I was yesterday. Maybe I’ll be back in bed again at 10 pm tonight. And if this continues, I’ll have to resort to eating early bird dinners at 4 pm. Because if I eat right before bed, I won’t be able to sleep because of the GERD I’ve developed.

Yes, gastroesophageal reflux disease is another highlight among menopause symptoms.

A 2008 study by Mary Infantino found strong evidence of a hormonal link between menopause and increasing GERD symptoms.

And according to Harvard Health:

Women who used estrogen alone had a 41% higher odds of GERD, while progesterone-only hormone therapy was linked to a 39% higher risk.

Looks like I get to choose between not sleeping because of hot flashes or because of reflux if I don’t pay attention.

Even if one night of good sleep hasn’t fixed my fatigue, I’m planning to try a couple of things to get my energy level back up.

• I’ll try to be in bed around the same time (before midnight) tonight.

• Go for a walk while listening to my podcast after the sun goes down.

• No food after 7 pm to avoid waking up from reflux

If you’re suffering from fatigue, too, there are other things you can try. There’s an entire list of how to battle menopausal fatigue here.

But I know myself. Changing three things at once is all I can handle.

What do you do to battle fatigue? Please let me know in the comments and subscribe now so you won’t miss any of my posts.

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