Recently a very bright, well educated woman was sharing pictures of her recent vacation to Italy. When she got to one picture, she looked confused for a moment and said “this was in Madrid”. Another woman suggested the scene in the picture looked like Milan. Greatly flustered, the first woman whined in despair that lately everything seems to slip out of her brain…she can not seem to remember anything. Her friend mentioned she is experiencing the same frustration. Both of these women are in perimenopause; one in her 40’s, the other in her early 50’s.
Perimenopause brings with it a notable decrease in concentration and memory. Women may forget names of people they have known for many years, where they have placed or stored items and even what they walked into a room to do or to get. This is not early onset of Alzheimer’s or late onset Attention Deficit Disorder! This is a normal part of perimenopause. Remember, the drastic hormonal changes that define perimenopause affect every cell in the body.
Fortunately, once perimenopause is over, concentration and memory improve. In the meantime, keep your notebooks, tablets and…oh what are they called? Oh yes, post-its handy!