The Overlap of Perimenopause and Celiac Disease: A Look at the Shared Symptoms Ep. 168

Could your lingering symptoms be perimenopause or the symptoms of accidental gluten exposure? Today, I reveal the often-missed signs and delve into the overlap between these two conditions, based on my own journey through the bewildering maze of perimenopause. From sudden dry skin to unexplained fatigue, we unpack the confusing array of symptoms that could either point to the onset of perimenopause or the aftermath of accidental gluten ingestion. 

This episode promises to empower you with the knowledge to better understand your body and recognize when you're entering this significant life phase.

Join me as we demystify perimenopause, a term that’s been gaining attention but still remains shrouded in misconceptions. I break down what perimenopause really means, how it differs from menopause and post-menopause, and why those in their 30s, 40s, and even 50s need to be aware of it.

I'll share practical tips on maintaining a balanced diet, ensuring adequate sleep, and the critical role of strength training. Whether you’ve been brushed off by doctors or are just starting to notice changes, this episode offers essential insights and support to help you navigate this transformative period with confidence.

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Music Credit bensound.com 

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:24

Now, a little while back, I shared an episode with some info about multiple topics and sent you off to learn more about it over on some other podcasts.

Speaker 1: 0:34

Now one of those topics that I got a great response about was on perimenopause and menopause, and I shared some information on my Instagram and was kind of shocked with the response that I had to that post. I had women messaging me in my inbox over on Instagram asking questions, talking about it. So I thought, right, I need to do a full episode on this topic and talk about it a little bit more, because it's obviously something that you need to know more about and it's something that is becoming more and more passionate for me because I am in the thick of perimenopause. So I feel like it's a great topic to share with you today, so let's jump on into it. So the reason I wanted to talk about this topic is because the symptoms of perimenopause have a huge crossover with celiac disease. So if you've accidentally been glutened, you might discover that you get some of these symptoms. But you might be getting these symptoms and you're in perimenopause and you're just confused and you don't know what's going on because they are so similar. So we're going to talk about some of the symptoms that are crossing over and then some of the other symptoms that are generally only related to being in perimenopause.

Speaker 1: 1:54

So first of all, let's break down what perimenopause is. It's a very newish term that's being thrown around. It's always, always. In my whole life I've never heard perimenopause. I've only ever heard it being called menopause. I'm going through menopause, I'm suffering from menopause, and there's been a bit of confusion around this, because the thing with menopause is it's actually one day. It's not this period of time that women suffer for this. You know 10 years, five years, whatever the amount of time, menopause is one day and that one day is defined by you haven't had a menstrual period for 12 months, okay, so if you are a menstruating woman, you are now no longer getting a period and that has happened for 12 months. That particular day is classed as menopause, so that one day and then after that is classed as post-menopause. So women still do suffer from problems and symptoms after they've gone through that one day of menopause.

Speaker 1: 3:01

But what I wanted to talk about mostly today is perimenopause. So perimenopause is that lead up to that one day of menopause. So it can be for some people, 10 years. It can be longer and we've been told this is not something that we struggle with in our 40s or our 30s, but it actually can be for many, many women. I am in my almost mid-40s and I know that I've been dealing with symptoms for a couple of years now. I have been gaslit by a doctor who told me I was too young, and I am going back to my preferred doctor this week, who's almost impossible to get into, just to have a chat with her about some options for me. So you can be in your 30s, you can be in your 40s, you can be in your 50s.

Speaker 1: 3:51

There are no hard and fast rules, so it's down to the individual. It's down to the person. From what I understand, the healthier you are, the easier you will deal with perimenopause and it goes without saying. It's like anything. Really, the healthier you are, the easier it is to, the easier it is to deal with most health conditions. So it's a great timely reminder to be looking after your health through eating well, eating a good, balanced, healthy, gluten-free diet, getting adequate, adequate sleep. You know exercise, adding movement into your life, making sure that you're doing. You know, not only cardio, but also doing weight strength, which is really, really important for women going through perimenopause and into your postmenopause years. So that is something that I'm very passionate about and it's something that I highly recommend that you look into more, because you know, in my lifetime it's always been about, you know, weight loss and being skinny and you know, eating less and doing all these silly little things, whereas there's a big shift and it's changing to being healthier, being stronger shift and it's changing to being healthier, being stronger, not trying to be skinny, but being healthy and being fit and feeling full of life. So that is something that I'm loving seeing this shift in our health world. It's going towards that way and away from being skinny and putting that on a pedestal. So that, I think, is wonderful.

Speaker 1: 5:36

But let's talk about some of the symptoms that are crossing over between celiac disease and perimenopause. So one of them is anxiety. So anxiety is something that many people report that if they've accidentally had gluten, they have a heightened sense of anxiety. Well, this is the same for women with perimenopause. Many women report that their anxiety levels are through the roof. Now I have had anxiety on and off since I had my third child and I have noticed that it's been a little bit heightened lately, and I am starting to put that down to perimenopause, because nothing really else in my life has changed. Things are a little bit easier with having kids at school, so I'm feeling like that's one of my symptoms that I just kind of need to keep a check on and look at.

Speaker 1: 6:24

The next one is joint pain and body aches. So again, this is another one of my symptoms. I get the achy pains and all the you know the feels in the joints. I know that that is something that I get from consuming gluten, but many women get this. So you might've heard of women complaining of sore hips. There's a thing called frozen shoulder, where your shoulder is excruciatingly painful and you can't lift your arm above your head. That is definitely a very well-known perimenopause symptom. So if you are noticing that you're getting these aches you know joints and pains and body aches it may just be that you're going through perimenopause. It may not be that you've got, you know, side effects from accidentally consuming gluten. So something to kind of be aware of and focus on in case you're freaking out that somehow gluten is sneaking into your diet.

Speaker 1: 7:22

The next one is heart palpitations. So some people report that they get heart palpitations from gluten, and then many people report that they get heart palpitations during perimenopause. The next one is a really tricky one and it's headaches, migraines and brain fog. These are such huge problems to be dealing with because they affect our day-to-day life. When we are struggling with anything to do with the brain and the mind, it is hard to function and for many that is again another celiac symptom when you've accidentally been gluten, but again, huge, huge part of going through perimenopause. So something to think about.

Speaker 1: 8:04

The next one, very dear to my heart, and that is depression. So this is something that I keep tabs on. I'm making sure that I'm looking after my mental health. We did share, quite some time ago, my story on postnatal depression and, reflecting on that, there were lots of things that attributed to that low point in my life. But if you are feeling down, you're feeling depressed, you're feeling like you know, in a way that you've never felt before. Please, please, speak to someone about that, because you may just need some support and don't don't feel like if you go to a doctor, they're going to put you on an antidepressant. Sometimes that doesn't need to be the answer when it is perimenopause. So there's other options that I'm not going to talk about on this show because that's out of my expertise. That's for you to talk with your doctor. You would be doing yourself a massive service by buying the new book by Mary Claire Haver, and that's the new menopause. So grab yourself that book that goes through all the different options, but that's, yeah, like I say, that's out of my expertise, but that's worth reading that book before you make some decisions moving forward.

Speaker 1: 9:17

All right, the next one's a tricky one bloating and digestive issues. Oh, we know that that is a huge one for those of us with celiac disease, but the problem with perimenopause is your hormones are all over the place and your gut is affected dramatically by hormone imbalances. So something to think about there again as well, and just know that it does get better and it does get easier over time when you're putting these supports into place. So again, read the book, check out what your options are and learn more about how you can support yourself through perimenopause. The next one's nausea, and then the one after that is dizziness. So two things that can be correlated with either of those topics mood changes huge one. I have noticed my mood has been very, very different over the last couple of years, my patience wears a lot thinner than it used to, and sometimes I feel like I am a crazy rager, and I've never been this type of person. So I'm feeling that it's time for me to get some support in this area, and whether that be through hormones or whatever, I'm not too sure yet, but I'm going to talk to my doctor and get to the bottom of what she thinks is going to be a good option for me. So something to think about there.

Speaker 1: 10:43

And then the last one is skin problems. So you may have heard me talk previously about different skin conditions that are related to celiac disease. There's quite a few of them, but the main ones that are related to perimenopause and celiac disease are skin dryness and also acne. So you know, it's the worst to be, you know, in your 40s, 50s and dealing with acne and skin dryness. But acne it's just one of those things that is to do with hormone changes and again it can be to do with accidental gluten consumption. So, keeping an eye on things, trying to figure out how you're going with your diet, what could be happening, do you feel like there's a number of these things happening in your life that maybe weren't happening previously, and then looking at some symptoms that are specific to perimenopause. So let's talk about a couple of them. There are a whole heap of different reported symptoms, but let's talk about some of the main ones.

Speaker 1: 11:46

So over the years you've probably heard women talking about going through menopause and the problems that they've faced. It's been on TV shows and movies. I remember watching Sex and the City movie years ago and Kim Cattrall's character on there was complaining of all the hot flushes and she was dying because she was going through the change. So hot flushes is a huge one. That is one of the most obvious signs of being in the thick of perimenopause. So if you've noticed that you're beginning hot flashes and you think, oh well, no, no, I'm too young to be in this stage of life, just keep an eye on it. It might even be worth tracking when this happens, just to sort of see how often it's happening for you and sweating. So if you're just sweating out of nowhere and there's no reason for it, it's very likely perimenopause.

Speaker 1: 12:42

I wake up quite a few times and I'm covered in sweat and we are in the thick of winter here in South Australia. It's winter, I should not be sweating, I should be freezing, but instead I'm waking up and I'm just covered in sweat. So I know that that is a big symptom for me and waking through the night. So, whether the waking is due to joint pain or whether it is due to the sweating or maybe needs further toilet, waking up through the night is another one that's related very closely to perimenopause.

Speaker 1: 13:12

The next one is loss of libido. So if you've noticed a difference in your sex drive, you know you're not interested, you don't want to deal with it. That's a big one, and many women report that they feel different towards their partners, they feel different towards their husbands and they just don't want to near them and they just feel frustrated. So that's a big one as well. So be aware of that, because that's not something that we want to have, to have our husbands and our partners be facing because of this. So, again, making sure that you're on top of it and seeking out help where you need it. The next one is dry mouth and dry vagina. So again, it's to do with hormone changes and shifts that are happening within your body. So that is the main ones that are very, very closely related just to perimenopause, often nothing to do with celiac disease.

Speaker 1: 14:08

So I hope you can see the balance of these different symptoms and kind of start to think about what's happening for you in your life. I highly recommend writing down your symptoms, how you're feeling, what you're eating, what your sleep patterns are things like that is a really great way of tracking how you're going and when you do go to your doctor and you seek support. You've got this evidence of what's going on for you. So if you haven't already grabbed one of my daily health trackers, they are an excellent option for tracking everything, so you can grab them over on Amazon. Otherwise, just write it in a diary or keep it in your notes section on your phone. There's multiple ways of doing it, but, you know, have a look at how things are going for you because, like I said, we can improve our health, we can improve our lives, by not putting up with these things and doing what we need to support ourselves.

Speaker 1: 15:00

So I hope that's a bit of an insight for you today on what you could be facing either now or into the future. So you might have a friend that's also got celiac disease and has been complaining of some of these problems. Well, you might be able to help her out and let her know that, hey, you might actually be going through perimenopause. So share this episode with those people in your life that need to listen to it, and thank you so much for being here. I appreciate you tuning into the episode and I'll talk with you again next week on the show. Have a great week, take care. Bye.