Five women reveal the trauma of being unable to have kids after going through the menopause as early as in their teens
While most women don't face it until later in life, these five have had their chances of starting a family reduced or eliminated by an early menopause
THE menopause is not a topic young women talk about on Snapchat.
But while most females don’t face The Change until later in life, for those who go through early menopause it can have a devastating impact on their lives.
The average age for the menopause is 51, but shocking new statistics show that one in 20 women in the UK goes through it before the age of 40 – with doctors often struggling to find a reason why.
Not only can early menopause reduce or eliminate the chances of being able to start a family, it can also lead to an increased risk of cancer, stroke, arthritis and brittle bone disease osteoporosis. Here five Sun readers tell CLARE O’REILLY about their experiences.
I didn't want anybody to know the truth
FASHION graduate Lauren Board, 24, has been in early menopause since last year.
Her mum, Rachel, went through menopause at 32 and doctors are looking for a genetic link.
Lauren, from Nantwich, Cheshire, says: "I’d been on the injection as a form of birth control, but when I came off it I didn’t have a period for six months. I just assumed it was my body regulating itself.
"But in May last year, blood tests showed I was in early menopause.
"I’m one of five children, I grew up in a big family and always wanted that for myself.
"Being told I was in menopause was the hardest sentence I’ve ever had to hear.
"Now I’ve just come home early from a holiday in New Zealand to freeze my eggs.
"I told friends I was coming back to get a job because I didn’t want anyone to know the truth – that’s the stigma that’s around early menopause.
"I hope I can produce enough eggs to freeze – I have an appointment to have this done this month.
"I try not to think about what it means for my future but it’s incredibly hard."
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I felt ashamed, like my body had betrayed me
SINCE her twenties, Caroline Adkins, 32, has been in early menopause.
When pregnant with daughter Bethany, 12, the marketer was diagnosed with Fragile X syndrome, a genetic condition that can affect fertility.
Caroline, from Inverness, says: "I was diagnosed with a Fragile X permutation and after Bethany was born I didn’t have periods for two years.
"When I was just 22 my GP finally sent me for tests, which showed my hormone levels were that of a 60-year-old. I was diagnosed with primary ovarian failure and put on HRT medication.
"I felt like my body had betrayed me. I felt like a failure, like less of a woman somehow.
"Periods suck but having them taken away from me was awful. I felt so ashamed of it.
"My husband still squeezes my hand if we’re watching a film and someone’s pregnant in it. Not a day goes by that I don’t think about it.
"For anyone who’s not had a period for a while, or has irregular periods, I’d say go and get checked by your GP and don’t take “come back another time” for an answer."
'IF YOU SUFFER FROM ANY OF THESE SYMPTOMS, GET HORMONES TESTED'
MENOPAUSE expert and GP Dr Louise Newson says:
“Symptoms of early menopause include hot flushes – which occur in three out of four women – night sweats, mood swings, tiredness and poor sleep, lack of libido, poor concentration, joint pains, acne, thinner hair, depression, anxiety, panic attacks, irritability, poor memory, migraines, and vaginal dryness and itching.
“Treatment is usually in the form of HRT or the Pill, both of which increase the oestrogen levels in the body. If you still have a uterus, it’s important that a progestogen is combined with the oestrogen.
“When you take oestrogen the lining of your womb can build up. However, taking progestogen completely reverses this risk. If you are still having semi-regular periods, then you will be given a type of HRT that gives you a monthly period for around a year.
After that, this can be changed to a type of HRT that does not lead to periods occurring.
‘Testosterone helps’
“Some women also need to have testosterone too which can help with libido, mood, energy and concentration.
“It’s important if you’re suffering any of these symptoms to get to your doctor and ask for your follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) levels to be tested.
“Guidelines from Nice advise that two FSH blood tests are done four to six weeks apart so if you’re not offered that, you need to ask why.”
It's hard knowing at 17 you'll never have kids
A-LEVEL student Kayleigh Nairn Smith has never had a period.
The 17-year-old from Mablethorpe, Lincs, had primary ovarian failure when she was 16.
She says: "I stopped developing when I was around 14 and I never got my periods. I just thought it would happen at some point, like all my friends, but it never did.
"Last year I went to my GP and blood tests revealed my hormone levels were that of a woman in menopause.
"The doctor said not to Google it but I did straight away and was so confused. I felt like I was ageing early.
"I was referred for scans, which showed I only had one ovary and an underdeveloped uterus.
"Doctors then put me on a very low dose of HRT because I started experiencing symptoms of menopause, such as hair loss. I was in complete shock.
"It’s incredibly tough to get over the fact I won’t have children.
"When I’m older, if my uterus develops, I could potentially use donor eggs but at the moment my womb isn’t able to carry a child.
"That’s hard to get my head around and the hair loss was so upsetting.
"It’s not talked about enough but I hope that my story helps other young girls going through this."
Counselling has helped but I'm heartbroken
PERSONAL assistant Sam Ransom went into menopause as a result of chemotherapy and radiotherapy to treat cervical cancer when she was 25.
Now 32, Sam, from Chatham in Kent, says: "I was pregnant when I had cancer diagnosed and was advised to have a termination.
"Doctors told me an op should remove my cancer and I could keep my ovaries and future fertility intact.
"But when the cancer spread to my lymph nodes I started chemotherapy and radiotherapy, which irreparably damaged my ovaries and I was told I’d never be able to have biological children.
"I was devastated and also shocked to learn I would go through early menopause as a result.
"I’d been told the treatment would affect my fertility but it was still incredibly traumatic to deal with.
"I had counselling, which was really helpful, but I’m still heartbroken.
"I’ve not let early menopause stop me living the life I want, but it’s so strange suffering with hot flushes and mood swings at my age.
"I’ve been with my partner Blair, who is 28, since 2015 but telling him wasn’t easy. It just feels like I can’t give him what a woman should be able to.
"I stay positive and know I have no choice but to live with it."
I couldn't sleep and lost my libido completely
AFTER being told in 2015 her erratic periods were due to stress, mum-of-one Siobhan Dormer, 38, from St Albans, Herts, learnt she was in early menopause at 36.
She says: "I was 31 when I met my husband, John, and 35 when we had our son Paul, who is three.
"When he was 18 months old we started trying for another baby – and that’s when my periods became erratic.
"My GP initially said it was tiredness or stress but when a specialist looked, he confirmed I was in early menopause and had premature ovarian failure. I was in total shock.
"Psychologically, I felt like I was the problem – like there was something I could have done about it.
"It’s always on my mind that there’s the slimmest chance of being able to have another child, which is difficult to live alongside every day.
"As a woman, you think that when you want to have a child, you can. But menopause has changed that.
"I’m so lucky I have my son but I do wonder if I’d been tested sooner whether I could have frozen the eggs I had to give him a sibling.
"It’s been incredibly tough coming to terms with it.
"Until I started on HRT I wasn’t sleeping, I was irritable and I lost my libido completely.
"I’m also asked all the time if I’m trying for another baby, which is hard."