Why Perimenopause is Like Fall

From an Ayurveda perspective, perimenopause is the transition season in a woman’s life from pitta time of life (doing, going, managing, pushing, fiery) to vata time of life (creativity, wisdom, new level of spirituality, self-care, letting go of what others think, airy and full of space). This is analogous in nature to the movement of summer into winter: perimenopause corresponds to the season of fall, where, in many places, it’s uncertain of what temperature it’s going to be outside: will it be hot today? Cold? Wind blowing or not? Sunny or cloudy? Green leaves or yellow or red or on the ground?

Do you see how this back and forth, this air and movement, correspond to how perimenopause moves? Will I get my period on time this month? Will I be hot (flashy) or cold today? Will I sleep well tonight? How’s my mood? Will I feel like having sex? And the list goes on…it’s a season of transition, and we won’t know how it turns out until we’re on the other side of it. In the meantime, can we stay with what is happening?

I also want to acknowledge that some of you didn’t get to experience the transition for various reasons (such as surgical or early menopause) and say I see you, and you can still honor the middle age time of your life as a reinvention and a resettling.