Up until now, it’s been difficult for women to know what stage of menopause they’re in. Figuring out whether you’re in premenopause, early perimenopause, late perimenopause, or postmenopause has been a guessing game of matching your symptoms to information found online. While some doctors offer menopause tests, they aren’t always available.
“The menopausal transition can be a ‘black box’ for many women, associated with vague emotional, physical and mental changes that could be overlooked during our busy lives,” explains reproductive endocrinologist on the Clearblue Advisory Board Suruchi Thakore, M.D., OB/GYN.
While hot flashes and night sweats may be the two most common symptoms of menopause, they’re only a small part of the picture. In fact, there are over 30 symptoms that stem from these hormonal shifts, including things like brain fog, libido shifts, anxiety, joint pain, bloating, insomnia, and many more—hence, why misdiagnoses happen often.
Doctors may see these experiences, especially those pertaining to mental health like anxiety and depression, as diagnoses rather than symptoms, which may lead to putting a bandaid over the concern but never truly addressing the root cause.
However, Clearblue’s test aims to tell women whether their symptoms are attributable to hormonal shifts or other factors, giving them a head start on effective treatment.
