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Disclaimer: I have chronic migraine but do NOT have aura. I had a really frustrating appointment with an obgyn about my perimenopause symptoms and my migraines. She have me such outdated information and was incredibly dismissive, especially about my hormonal migraines. My neurologist was supportive of hrt when I discussed it with him before I made the obgyn appointment. After some research I decided to try an menopause specialist through an online service called MIDI. I live in the us and it was covered by my insurance. My experience was really positive, the provider spent a lot of time discussing my migraines with me in detail, more than I expected. (I feel like this sounds like an ad but it’s not 😂). They offer more than hrt treatment but we discussed it in detail and I felt like it would be helpful for me. Birth control and hrt are VERY different, and birth control made things worse for me. She started me on an estrogen patch and oral progesterone. I just started my first cycle since going on hrt and it had been so much lighter and less than painful. I can’t speak to the hormonal migraines yet because the barometric pressure has been so all over the place in Michigan. I’ve seen other positive effects from the hormones so far, im REALLY happy I decided to start to get a second opinion. I’m really confident when we increase my dosage my hormonal migraines will get so much better. https://www.joinmidi.com/ It’s extremely difficult to find a provider who is capable of actually caring for perimenopause. Most physicians are VERY far behind the research, which is such a shame. It’s really up to us to educate ourselves and advocate for ourselves. r/perimenopause and r/menopause are great places to start. The menopause wiki is INCREDIBLY helpful and has tons of resources and links to studies. Dr. Jen Gunter is also a great resource. https://www.amazon.com/Menopause-Manifesto-Health-Facts-Feminism/dp/0806540664 Wishing you so muck luck navigating all of this. You deserve good care, hoping for better days ahead for you ♥️
I’m not at that phase of life yet, but from having spoken to the older people in my life, I feel confident in saying that menopause isn’t miserable for everyone. My grandma actually speaks positively about it: she had minimal menopause symptoms for a short time and completely stopped having the symptoms associated with the period, so it felt like a net gain for her. My mom had mild hot flashes for a short while and is very unbothered now that she’s on the other side of it. You won’t know what it will be like for you specifically until you get there. If you do have symptoms when the time comes, there are already effective treatments available, and even better ones may be discovered in the next 30 years. Find a good doctor who will thoroughly discuss the risks and benefits of treatments with you if the need arises . Some menopausal people really need estrogen HRT (or testosterone, but cis women typically prefer estrogen) due to the risk of osteoporosis, and others due to individual factors are at lower risk of that and higher risk of other things which tips the balance the other way, so a good doctor will take your specific needs into account in working with you on a treatment plan. You can practice for it now by finding a good doctor, getting regular checkups, and advocating for yourself when circumstances call for it. Build the skills to manage your health now, and you will be very well prepared to take on the menopause when you get to middle age. If you’re the kind of person who finds that more information tends to reduce anxiety, I’ve heard good things about *The Menopause Manifesto.* But at 21, you statistically have a few decades before menopause. My mom always says not to borrow troubles from the future, so maybe try to put it out of mind with the plan to cross that bridge when you come to it. Personally, I was AFAB and have been on T for several years, so I can answer questions about that from experience if it helps!