How To Track Menopause Symptoms
Whether you are wondering what stage of menopause you are in, trying to figure out what to do about symptoms interfering with your life, or gathering information to share with your doctor, learning how to track your menopause symptoms is key.
Symptoms are your body’s way of telling you, “Hellooooo! Something is off here!” Logging your ailments, their triggers, and patterns is a great way to take charge of your health. For example, let’s say that you jotted down that you were excessively sweating night and day, were about to experience a menopause rage divorce, and were playing hide and seek with your libido … and losing. Then, let’s say, you had a chance to familiarize yourself with ailments people experience during the menopausal journey. You’d see that hot flashes, night sweats, anger, and low sex drive are common. Not only would you feel less alone, but you might also feel relieved to know that there are treatments or solutions available for each of those symptoms. Imagine me saying the following like Mulder from The X Files: “Relief … is out there!”
But that isn’t all. There are many benefits of tracking your signs of perimenopause and beyond! So, let’s explore those benefits, learn how to track menopause symptoms, spell out how to track the trends, and how to use that data to make self-informed healthcare decisions and make the most of meetings with your professional healthcare team.
What Are the Benefits of Tracking My Menopausal Signs and Symptoms?
Is tracking your menopausal maladies just another way to figure out which stage of menopause you’re in? Yes and no! Yes, because symptoms are your body’s way of saying something’s up. When you check out various ailments, you can compare them against lists of commonly experienced signs of the perimenopause-to-postmenopause journey to know where you’re at. And no, because tracking does much more for you than just telling you which stop you’re at on the Big M Express. Regular daily tracking also helps you do the following:
1. Create a baseline.
Capturing a starting point—the point at which you begin tracking, including the signs and symptoms you’re experiencing—gives you a clear picture of what your menopausal “normal” is. That way, as your symptoms change, you’ll be better able to tell when something is amiss. When you find yourself up at 4 am asking, “Wait, did I always feel THIS hot?” you’ll be able to answer, “No, there was a time I felt like less of a volcano and more of a moderately-sized bonfire.”
2. Notice patterns.
What do comedy and tracking perimenopause have in common? They’re both all about patterns! In comedy, jokes become funnier when they appear in three’s. In three’s. In three’s! But seriously, as you track your signs of perimenopause and beyond, pay close attention to and jot down any patterns that stand out. Noticing patterns helps you:
- Know which stage of menopause you are in based on how your symptoms progress. For example, let’s say that you shift from having irregular periods to having no menstrual cycles for 12 months. This will immediately tell you that you’ve moved from perimenopause to menopause.
- Be able to predict, prepare for, and manage specific symptoms. Let’s say that you notice your sleep is getting interrupted and you pinpoint the cause of it on night sweats. That knowledge could help you make purchasing decisions to create the perfect sleep environment. I mean, haven’t you always wanted to try out an AirJet, sweat wicking pjs, linen sheets, and a cooling gel pillow?
- Identify triggers that cause specific symptoms. For example, if you were to notice that you get hot flashes right after eating spicy food, tracking could not only help you notice that but also give you the choice to avoid eating spicy food.
3. Detect new symptoms.
The most important step involved in learning how to track menopause symptoms is to regularly record answers to key questions. As you do this, you’ll not only see similar ailments and patterns popping up, but you will be able to identify brand new indicators that The Change is, well, changing you. This is key because you can’t fix what you don’t know is broken.
4. Understand root causes.
The old adage that “it’s best to diagnose before prescribing” is critical as you move through menopause. As you get a clear picture of what your body is trying to tell you, you can start looking into what might be at the root of your symptoms. Knowing the root cause of your issues helps you map out a course of action.
5. Get educated about your signs of perimenopause.
As cartoons from Schoolhouse Rock all the way to Teen Titans have taught us, “Knowledge is power.” And, nothing makes us feel more powerful than when we are in charge of our own health. Read up on recent research about the menopausal maladies you may be experiencing. Don’t know where to start? Try our article, How To Prepare for Menopause.
6. Use tracking trends to make self-informed healthcare decisions.
The famous quote from Erasmus says: “Prevention is better than cure.” So, how do you make your tracking work in your favor as the first line of defense before seeing the docs?
First things first: tracking is essential. So track daily! Next, don’t just track your symptoms. Track the trends. Look for patterns and note them. Have a regular period 3 months in a row followed by 2 months of irregular periods? You’d want to track everything from your menstrual cycles and flow to start and end dates and any other symptoms surrounding them. This holds true for all menopausal signs you struggle with. Track, track, and track the trends.
Finally, consider your trend’s data to be breadcrumbs, leading you in the right direction. Follow the clues until you figure out your specific ailments and their root causes, identify possible treatment options, determine steps you can take on your own, or choose to seek expert advice.
7. Share information with your healthcare professional team.
Sharing your tracking results with your healthcare providers helps you paint a complete picture of which stage of midlife you’re in—perimenopause, menopause, or postmenopause. It also gives them information about exactly what and how many symptoms you’re experiencing. To help them best understand where you’re at, consider doing the following:
- Capture the information in digital or print format and take it with you to your healthcare professional’s appointment.
- Provide a copy (digitally or physically) to your professional service provider.
- Go over each item that relates to their area of expertise. Ask questions. Jot down information, including recommended treatment or other solutions.
- For information outside of their area of expertise, ask for service provider recommendations.
- Request appropriate tests, including blood or saliva tests, to gather more definitive information on symptoms that concern you or treatments that require them (for example, blood pressure, hormone levels, bone density tests, etc.).
8. Create an action plan.
With regular tracking, knowing your symptoms’ root causes, being educated about possible treatments and solutions, and identifying things you can do on your own or in conjunction with a healthcare profession, you are ready to (insert inspiring theme music) take action! Ask yourself: “What are the immediate next steps I need to take to take charge of my health?”
Important Note: Feeling overwhelmed is common during the stages of menopause. Don’t feel the need to create a fancy spreadsheet with a project plan, listing every step you could possibly take. Start small. Identify what will improve your health today and just do that. When you’re feeling better, determine the next best step, and so on and so forth. Following up with your healthcare professionals is a great action step to include on your list, if applicable.
9. Be in tune with your body’s needs.
If you do nothing else, pay attention to your body by listening when it tells you something is out of sorts. Honoring what your body is telling you in each moment will help you best manage your menopausal symptoms.
How Do I Track Menopause Symptoms?
What’s the key to logging the signs of menopause? It’s simple! When you first start recording your symptoms, decide whether you’re going paper or paperless and get a dedicated notebook or download a tracking app. Set a time each day to do a quick self-assessment. Then, record your answers to the following questions:
- Did I have my period today? Was the flow heavy, medium, or light?
- Did my period come at the normal time this month? Or, did I have an irregular period (earlier or later than every 30 days and longer than 7 days)?
- Did I feel bloated?
- Did I experience out-of-the-norm anxiety or feel panicked?
- Was I extra irritable?
- Did I feel a burning radiating from the inside out?
- Or, did I feel overheated and couldn’t seem to cool off, even if just on the outside?
- Was I forgetful or did I experience even minor memory loss?
- Did I sweat at night?
- How was my sleep? Did I get a full 7-8 hours or was it interrupted?
- How was my energy? Did I feel fatigued?
- How is my sex drive/libido? Am I feeling “in the mood?”
- Did I have more or less control over my bladder than normal? Or, did I experience urinary incontinence?
- Did I experience vaginal dryness?
- Is my hair thinning?
- Are my nails brittle?
- Is my complexion clear or going through noticeable changes (drier than normal, extra unwanted facial hair, acne)?
- Did I experience any joint aches or pains?
It’s a Wrap!
I’m not going to beat around the menopausal bush (there’s comfy underwear that can do that); the easiest way to discover whether or not you are approaching or going through the menopausal journey is to track your symptoms. If you are starting to notice some changes, then maybe you’re going through *the* Big Change. But how will you know if you can’t pinpoint the symptoms and make sense of them?
Buy a journal and a cool pen, download and use an app, or jot down your notes on scrap paper. Do whatever you need to do to make it easy to jot down your symptoms on the daily. By tracking your symptoms, you’ll be able to connect the menopausal dots, as well as talk to your healthcare provider about your symptoms and the severity of the menopause symptoms. Basically, it’s important to know how to track menopause symptoms so that you can stay on the up and up and become a full-fledged Menopausal Maven.
Sources
- https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/adult-health/in-depth/gynecological-care-for-trans-men/art-20473719
- https://academic.oup.com/edrv/article/40/1/97/5123979
- https://transcare.ucsf.edu/guidelines/feminizing-hormone-therapy
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5182227/
- https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/15223-menopause-non-hormonal-treatment–relief-for-hot-flashes
- https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/menopause/in-depth/hormone-therapy/art-20046372
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