Review: The New Perimenopause: An Evidence-Based Guide to Surviving the Zone of Chaos and Feeling Like Yourself Again by Dr. Mary Claire Haver

The New Perimenopause: An Evidence-Based Guide to Surviving the Zone of Chaos and Feeling Like Yourself Again by Mary Claire Haver
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I was provided an ARC of this book via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.  

Thank you Dr. Haver for writing this book.  I've been living in the zone of chaos for atleast 2 years and I wish this book had been available then so I knew what questions to ask and what was available as treatment.  I knew something was wrong and sought help over the last 2 years, but I kept getting the brush off, I was too young, needed to exercise more, lose some weight, had anxiety, was stressed, relax more, etc. As Dr. Haver explains these are the common answers women get when they try to seek help in middle age when they don't feel well and can't pinpoint why.   She goes on to explain that many women are gaslit at this stage of life either because of lack of training, lack of time, lack of research, and more.  My doctors certainly didn't look at all of my symptoms or me as a whole person or even try to understand why my labs suddenly changed after no change in routine and years of them being stable.  Dr. Haver explains this is a broad problem that women experience, when treatment is available and can prevent other more debilitating ailments as we age.

After finishing this book I feel so seen and validated.  I feel better prepared to have a real conversation with my providers and not back down with regards to my own care.  I am only 45 and have alot of life left and alot of things I still want to do.  You put the medical terms and science into examples that I could understand.  You reference real studies and give recommendations of things to try and discussions to have with your personal provider.  There are diagrams and charts for the visual learner to understand what is going on.  There are lists of blood tests and why and what they are looking for that you can take to your doctor and discuss.  This process doesn't need to be so hard and while there is more research and training needed there are things we can do now.  This phase of life can make us feel out of control and it isn't something we can control, however there are things we can do to make it easier.  I appreciate Dr. Haver laying out the options and discussions we can have with our providers 

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