What women in peri/menopause can learn from Gen Z and their mothers

This blog post was written from the viewpoint of Charlotte (our amazing intern) who has taught us how gracefully her generation has been maneuvering not only “coming of age” but also growing up in a United States that has changed fundamentally where women’s health and reproductive rights are concerned.

We know that hormonal fluctuations are very common across both reproductive life events which is why both puberty and perimenopause are extremely sensitive periods for a woman’s development, but can also cause anxiety, stress, depression, and metabolic changes. A major difference between puberty for young girls and hitting the stage of menopause is that we know approximately what changes to expect physically, like breast growth and pubic hair. When reaching perimenopause and then menopause, we are often caught off guard and certainly less well taken care of, than the generation of young women that has been led by the women in menopause, guiding them through the bodily but also emotional and societal changes, that await them.

There is a “generation gap” between parents and adolescents that refers to the degree in which individuals grow up and develop, that is different historically, in time and culture. Values, icons, events define and influence how mothers and mother figures have chosen to go about educating and informing young women about menstruation in their lives when they begin the process of bodily change. Particularly over the past 100 years, traditions and customs have changed with different generations.

Growing up I constantly remember my mom telling me the vast differences in the open relationship I have had with her versus what it was like when she was growing up. She was the youngest of five with two older sisters so when she got to the age to have “the talk” about puberty and periods it was just a step of life that her mom felt she didn’t have to go into much detail about due to that she had watched her older sisters and learned through them. 

Within our generation today, for the most part, schools do a great job incorporating health education into the school year where they teach young girls about puberty and their periods. Most girls start their periods around the age of twelve, but they can start as early as age eight, so that is why it is important to talk to girls from an early age to make sure they’re prepared. In most education systems, the girls get the period talk starting in fourth and fifth grade.

I still remember that first health class in fourth grade sitting in the auditorium being outrageously confused when the lady in the white lab coat on stage kept talking about this concept of a period. I sat in the back row the entire time convinced she was referring to the punctuation mark. Later that night I went home and asked my mom what she was talking about. Growing up I was always told that I was very far behind in developing and was a “late bloomer”, so my mom didn’t think it was necessary to have that conversation yet, but fortunately we were learning about it in school she explained. I was very rare in that I did not get my first period until sophomore year of high school, and happened to get my drivers license and period on the same day.

When talking to my mom about any type of healthcare related topics, she will typically explain how generations are so different now where people are able to be more open about their periods, perimenopause or any type of health related problems their bodies are facing. When she was younger, she explains how people did not share what they were going through within their personal lives and experiences. Because of societal changes and norms, we live in a generation where people are just starting to feel more comfortable expressing themselves and being more comfortable within their own bodies. In addition to being more open to having these discussions, it is much more common now for people to take medications and contraceptives. Since I was very delayed, it was not until recently and discovering that the majority of my close friends and peers were on some form of birth control, that I had that talk with my mother. She mainly spoke to me about her own experiences and what she had heard about the pill. Every woman's body is different and reacts differently to certain medications so it is important to have that discussion for what is right for you and your body. 

My mom and I recorded some of our conversation and we will share that with you to go deeper into the topic, soon.