I Thought It Was Just Stress… But It Was Perimenopause I sat down with Dr. Lauren Fitzgerald, MD (@drlaurenfitz) and asked her when she first noticed perimenopause symptoms. Her answer? “Looking back, I think it started when I was 40.” But four years ago, life was insane. - She opened a business. - Bought a house with her ex. - Renovated two properties. - Launched her medical practice. She was juggling everything. So when her sleep fell apart and anxiety hit her for the first time, she chalked it up to stress. “Of course I can’t sleep—I’m under pressure. Of course I feel off—it’s just life.” But it wasn’t just stress. •Crushing insomnia • Anxiety she’d never had before • Night sweats • Muscle loss (confirmed by DEXA scans) At 43, she finally realized—this isn’t just stress, this is perimenopause. “I wish I had started BHRT at 40. I didn’t realize my hormones were shifting that early.” Too many women dismiss their symptoms or get told “that’s just aging.” It’s not. So let’s talk about it. Did you have perimenopause symptoms before you even knew what was happening? When did it start for you? Drop your experience in the comments. #Perimenopause #BHRT #MidlifeHealth #HormoneBalance #WomenOver40 #MenopauseAwareness #LetsTalkAboutIt