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Perimenopause is a natural part of aging for women. It’s the time leading up to menopause and acts as a transitional period. Your body releases eggs infrequently and your periods become few and far between. Or they may even stop altogether.
During this time, your hormones fluctuate. As you can imagine, along with the hormonal shifts of perimenopause come symptoms. These can include mood swings, headaches, night sweats, vaginal dryness, and more.
Though nausea isn’t a common symptom of perimenopause, it can happen.
In this article, we’ll explore how perimenopause might lead to nausea, and what you can do to remedy it.
Key Takeaways
- Perimenopause can lead to nausea.
- Hormonal changes, hot flashes, and side effects of medications may cause nausea.
- Treating nausea is possible. You can manage it by making changes to your diet and lifestyle and checking with your healthcare provider about medication.
- Other perimenopausal symptoms include irregular periods, mood swings, hot flashes, and more.
- A common question is whether it’s the nausea points to perimenopause or morning sickness. Some key differentiators include considering additional symptoms and also taking a pregnancy test.
Can perimenopause cause nausea?
TLDR: Yes. Perimenopause can cause nausea.
The exact reasons why aren’t fully understood, though. But they are suspected to be related to:
- Hormonal changes: As your body adjusts to producing less of the hormones progesterone and estrogen, it can affect your digestive system.
- Hot flashes: These sudden waves of heat can sometimes bring nausea along with them.
- Side effects of medication: Hormone replacement therapy or antidepressants are often used as perimenopause treatments. The side effects of these prescription medications may include feeling queasy.
Let’s take a deeper look at each of the above.
Hormonal changes
During perimenopause, your body makes more luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH). While these hormone levels rise, your estrogen and progesterone decline.
But these hormonal changes aren’t one swift process. Instead, they fluctuate quite a bit as you transition into menopause.
These fluctuations can trigger issues with your digestive system and lead to things like an upset stomach.
Hot flashes
Are you having hot flashes during perimenopause? You’re not alone. Studies show that 30-70% of women do, too.
Most women feel hot flashes in the face, neck, chest, and arms.
This common symptom of perimenopause is due to the decline in estrogen levels. And, like we talked about earlier, this can upset your digestive system.
One small study found that 5% of women with hot flashes also reported feelings of nausea.
Side effects of medication
Some women opt to take hormone replacement therapy (HRT) medication and antidepressants. Both can help with the side effects of perimenopause.
While they may aid with some side effects, they also have the potential to bring out a new one: nausea.
Hormone therapy includes a combo of estrogen and progesterone. This is to help balance out the body’s natural decline of these hormones during this time.
But, researchers have found that estrogen and progesterone can lead to nausea and even vomiting. That’s because they slow your stomach down from emptying.
Sometimes, antidepressants (specifically, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) are prescribed to combat the mood changes that women often experience during perimenopause.
But, antidepressants’ effect on the central nervous system can make some uncomfortable symptoms worse, including nausea.
How to deal with perimenopause nausea
If you’re dealing with nausea during perimenopause, here are some things you can try to alleviate your gastrointestinal symptoms.
1. Eat smaller meals.
This can help your stomach from getting overwhelmed and steer clear of stomach cramps.
2. Avoid fatty or spicy foods.
Fatty and spicy foods are known irritators and can make nausea worse. Prevent nausea by avoiding them.
3. Stay hydrated.
Drinking lots of water can help prevent dehydration and nausea. This also helps keep your digestion flowing properly.
4. Drink peppermint or ginger tea.
These natural remedies can help soothe your digestion.
5. Manage hot flashes.
If you’re dealing with hot flashes, try to avoid triggers. These include hot weather and stress. Wear light, breathable clothes and stay cool.
6. Talk to your healthcare provider.
If your medications are making you nauseous, talk to your healthcare provider about changing the dose or the brand. Make sure to consult with them before making any changes to your medication regimen.
7. Consider antiemetics.
Ask your healthcare provider about taking antiemetics to aid with the nausea.
What are the other symptoms of perimenopause?
Here are some of the other symptoms you may experience during this time:
- Irregular periods
- Decreased libido
- Sleep challenges
- Vaginal changes
- Mood changes (including
- anxiety, depression, irritability)
- Trouble conceiving
- Breast tenderness
- Weight gain
- Headaches
- Muscle aches
How to know if it's perimenopause or morning sickness?
It can be easy to mistake your perimenopause for morning sickness and vice versa. The nausea that can be experienced in both makes it tricky.
However, there are some key symptoms to keep in mind.
Pregnancy | Perimenopause | |
Symptoms |
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Some of the symptoms overlap. But, referencing the above should help point more directly to either pregnancy or perimenopause.
And remember, if you think you could be pregnant, it’s best to take a pregnancy test to confirm.
FAQs
Experiencing nausea during this time could be due to hormonal shifts that your body is undergoing. It could also be due to the hot flashes that accompany perimenopause or the side effects of perimenopause medication.
Yes. Rising LH and declining estrogen and progesterone can lead to gastrointestinal symptoms like nausea.
There are some common symptoms of perimenopause that can make you feel less than your best. They include:
- Sleep challenges
- Mood changes (including anxiety,
- depression,
- irritability)
- Breast tenderness
- Headaches
- Muscle aches
This type of nausea can last the length of your perimenopause period. But your body may adjust to the new hormone levels as you reach closer to menopause. This could help alleviate nausea.
If your nausea is negatively affecting your life, talk to your healthcare provider about antiemetics to help.
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- Perimenopause: From Research to Practice | PubMed Central
- Measuring hot flash phenomenonology using ambulatory prospective digital diaries | Menopause, The Journal of The Menopause Society
- Hormone Replacement Therapy | NIH
- Dietary fat intake and functional dyspepsia | PubMed Central
- Antiemetic | ScienceDirect
