What are Menopause and Perimenopause?

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Making It Through Menopause With Information and Support

Using the Web is a good way to learn about menopause. You can read about everything from the common issues to the rarer experiences, as well as things you can do to help yourself.

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What are Menopause and Perimenopause?

While menopause is a natural life stage, some women enter the phase earlier than expected, either naturally or as the result of medical or surgical treatments. In this section of the guide, you will find Web sites that explain the physical basis for menopause and why it happens.

Dulcinea's Insight

The term “menopause” is often used incorrectly when referring to “perimenopause.” Menopause is actually just the one day that occurs 12 months after a woman’s last menstruation, while perimenopause is the period of time before and after that day. When looking for information, trying both words as a search term should help provide the results you are looking for.

Try The Cleveland Clinic’s glossary of menopause terms to help you understand some of the more technical sites or research you come across.

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For an overview of perimenopause ...

The National Women’s Health Information Center Web site describes what perimenopause is, when it begins, indicators, treatments, and the possibility of pregnancy during this period. This information is also available in Spanish.

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For an overview of menopause ...

Mayo Clinic's Women's Health

portal provides this 10-question quiz to test your knowledge about menopause. The correct answers are explained at the end of the quiz.

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The North American Menopause Society

has put together this comprehensive guidebook on menopause. Divided into several chapters, you can click on the topic that interests you, such as “Menopause Basics,” “The Changing Body,” and others.

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MedlinePlus

has an interactive tutorial section includes this slideshow with audio, diagrams, and helpful animations to demonstrate what menopause is, what hormones are changing, and how to treat the effects of this process. The tutorial is also available in text-only format.

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For reasons menopause may occur early …

The Cleveland Clinic provides this information sheet on the various health reasons or medical procedures that can cause menopause to come earlier than it would naturally. This page reviews how chemotherapy can trigger the onset of menopause, what happens after chemotherapy finishes, the importance of birth control during the chemotherapy period, as well as the different signs and symptoms of menopause.

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