Perimenopause Symptoms
Perimenopause can bring over 40 recognised symptoms. Sulu helps you track the ones that matter most to you — so you can see what’s changing and share a clear record with your doctor.
Vasomotor
Hot Flashes
Sudden waves of heat, often in the face and upper body. You may flush, feel prickly or dizzy, and then suddenly feel cold afterward.
Night Sweats
Hot flashes that happen during sleep, sometimes soaking through sheets. Even when the sweating feels brief, the disruption carries into the next day as fatigue and brain fog.
Heart Palpitations
A sudden awareness of your heartbeat — racing, pounding, or fluttering. Some women get it out of the blue, and find that part especially alarming.
Cognitive & Emotional
Brain Fog
You walk into a room and forget why. You search for a word you've used a thousand times. One of the most common — and most frustrating — perimenopause symptoms.
Anxiety
New or worsened anxiety that can feel different from stress — a sense of dread or restlessness without a clear cause. It can feel like a new level of nervous system activation.
Mood Swings
Rapid shifts in mood — irritability, tearfulness, or feeling overwhelmed by things that wouldn't usually bother you.
Low Mood
Persistent sadness, lack of motivation, or feeling flat. It can feel like PMS that never really leaves, or something new and hard to explain because life on paper looks completely normal.
Irritability
A shorter fuse than usual. Noise, mess, interruptions, demands — ordinary frustrations can feel bigger and more physically charged than before.
Sleep & Energy
Sleep Disruption
Trouble falling asleep, staying asleep, or waking at 3am and never properly getting back down. Poor sleep amplifies everything else.
Fatigue
Bone-deep tiredness that sleep doesn't fully fix. It can feel like your battery isn't recharging properly, even when you're trying to rest.
Musculoskeletal
Joint Pain
Stiffness, aching, or swelling in joints — especially hands, knees, and hips. Your body can feel older overnight, less forgiving than it used to be.
Muscle Tension
Increased tightness or aching in muscles, particularly in the neck, shoulders, and back. It can feel like tension you can't shake, even on quieter days.
Headaches & Migraines
New headache patterns or worsening migraines. They can behave less like a single symptom and more like a system under pressure.
Reproductive & Urinary
Menstrual Changes
Irregular cycles — shorter, longer, heavier, lighter, or skipped entirely. What used to be predictable can suddenly become anything but.
Vaginal Dryness
Reduced moisture and elasticity due to declining oestrogen. Because it's an intimate symptom, many women leave it out — but it still counts.
Urinary Changes
Increased frequency, urgency, or recurrent UTIs. It can show up out of nowhere and start limiting where you go and how confident you feel.
Other Common Symptoms
Weight Changes
Shifts in body composition, particularly around the midsection. It can feel like your body changed the rules without telling you.
Skin & Hair Changes
Drier skin, thinning hair, or changes in texture. More hair in the shower, skin that feels tighter or more reactive — changes that are hard to ignore.
Digestive Issues
Bloating, nausea, reflux, or changed bowel habits. This symptom cluster often gets overlooked in menopause conversations.
Tingling Sensations
Pins and needles or crawling feelings on the skin. It can be hard to describe and easy to dismiss, especially if it comes and goes quickly.
This page is for informational purposes. Sulu is a tracking tool, not a diagnostic service. If you’re experiencing new or concerning symptoms, please speak with your doctor.
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