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Recently I have seen a lot of companies are jumping on the bandwagon of menopause... The hype is unreal. I must say it had fired me up and here is why...
I have a personal connection to this matter and not just because I am a woman. My mum suffered with her symptoms and so did we as her family.
I was about 12 years old when my mum hit the peak of her perimenopausal symptoms. To be honest, I am not really sure how old she was when she had entered menopause, as she never spoke about it. She was 42 when we, her family noticed that she had gone nuts... Because that is exactly what we thought happened to her.
Overnight, I lost my mum, and I now faced a woman I no longer connected with. She was moody, she never remembered anything and was always upset. She kept on saying, she is going to die... she used to lock herself away in her room with a blanket up to her nose and shiver in fear. She often struggled to breathe, and the sweat was rolling on her forehead whilst her skin was red hot.
We thought she was nuts... We didn't know these symptoms were her hormones playing up. She did not know that these were her hormones playing up. She believed she was going nuts too. Her doctor gave her sleeping tablets and anti-depressants, to help with her symptoms.
My mum had a really hard life from a young age, and things only got harder for her. When I was born, I am the youngest of three, I almost died at birth, and I was in ICU for the first 3 months of my life. My mum struggled, yet there was no support for her. She was judged, so she carried on. She worked, whilst raising 3 children and living in a stressful environment. My dad became an alcoholic, which only added stress to my mum's life. She just carried on, without checking in on herself.
You can see, how her stresses and traumas could have played a huge part in her early menopause journey. It had an impact on all of our lives, not just mum's.
I personally started perimenopause and I am only 36. No surprise really, but it is almost not allowed for me to talk about this because the reaction I get is "You are way too young!" These were doctors that have said it, offering me an opportunity to take anti-depressants and to see a psychotherapist. Now I am not against medications, because people do need it sometimes and, I also see my therapist for my mental health.
The truth is that we are very unique, and we all have different background stories. So, I don't like to stereotype people.
What I am fired up about is the marketing shambles that I see lately, when it comes to menopause.
You can buy menopausal skincare, menopausal night wear...
It is really upsetting to see that these big companies had taken something that effects so many people and are selling some crappy products that claims to help you.
Menopause is a stage in a women's life, it is NOT a skin condition. If the serum would work as they claim that it does, you would actually drink it... There is no magic lotion that will make your symptoms go away I'm afraid.
Your skin goes through a lot during the time of peri and menopause. There is help with that, but you must talk to someone that has an understanding of skin. Just because a well -known cosmetic company sticks the word menopause in front of another word and charges an extra £5-10 it doesn't mean, it is any different from what they have done before. Check their ingredients, I can tell you it will be the same.
My mission is to raise awareness about skin health and help you with your skin journey. Please do your research before you buy into the hype of the marketing world. Let's talk, let's normalise the conversation about menopause and perimenopause. Let's come together and raise our knowledge about our bodies.
If you need someone to help you, reach out and start a skin journey that helps you embrace the change. Pro-age is my new power word.
Nikki.
The Skin Therapist
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