The Real Milestone Age Is 40
Dear clients & friends,
Welcome to my second issue of "The Good Fruit" newsletter by Natural Fruit FertilityCare Services.
This week I celebrated my birthday, so it made me think about getting one year older. Although I did not hit 40 this year, I am getting close! From my teaching, I realize that the age of 40 is the real milestone. Read on to let me explain why.
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In the Introductory Session presentation, I mention (from Book I) that the normal range for menopause is between 37 to 56 years old, with the average being age 49. For this reason, a client is categorized as Premenopause if she is 40 years old and older.
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We can see a variety of patterns in a woman's chart during the premenopause time (see the example chart below). Cycle patterns may be irregular and/or anovulatory, but cycles may look regular as in A. Ovulation may come early in the cycle (shorter pre-Peak phase) as in B. Mucus patterns may be irregular with mucus patches, or "dry cycles" (no cervical mucus) might be observed if estrogen is low as in C. And unusual bleeding might be more frequently observed as in D. The post-Peak phase may be irregular from cycle to cycle as well. Women in premenopause might also experience "hot flashes" and PMS.
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This topic is important to learn about and to keep in mind as women can be in premenopause for many years before reaching menopause. In fact, women can still get pregnant in their 40's (and 50's) if they are having cycles, so charting is necessary for natural family planning reasons (to either achieve or avoid pregnancy). At the same time, charting can be used to assess the woman's health -- such as observing miscarriage risk, and the detection of unusual bleeding, which may be fibroids or cancer. NaProTechnology may be beneficial for bioidentical hormone therapy (estrogen and progesterone) during this time.
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Also, 40 is the age that we recommend women to start getting mammograms, or earlier if there is a family history of breast cancer. Of course, however, a woman should not get a mammogram if she is currently pregnant. And there may be a special kind of mammogram available for a breastfeeding woman.
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So, as you can see in the Creighton Model System, 40 seems to be the real milestone age -- it is a new beginning of premenopause and mammograms!
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Have a fruitful day!
Patricia Deshane, FCP
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