Celebrities Share Their Menopause Stories and Struggles

“At age 43, I went into perimenopause,” the actress told us. “But I still did not know what that term ‘perimenopause’ actually meant at the time. There’s no one test, because if you do a blood panel and read your hormones, they could read one way on one day and completely different the next day. It’s really not a perfect indicator. All the things were happening, but I only knew of maybe one or two symptoms.”

“I was really out there on my own. Yes, I tested the waters with friends: I made jokes about menopause and hormone-estrogen dips and things like that, and they were always met with nervous laughter, which worked out in my brain as, ‘Well, no one must be experiencing the same things as I am, yet.’ I knew about the classic symptoms, like hot flashes and night sweats, but I was having multiple night sweats and no one seemed to want to talk about it—you can actually have night sweats while breastfeeding.

Of course, when I say you have, I don’t mean everyone. It doesn’t manifest for everyone in the same way. I also started having chronic migraines. I had itchy skin and a multitude of symptoms. I quickly dealt with it because I was very in touch with my body, so I made sure I got the right kind of treatment.”

Watts also shared the inspiration for her menopause-centric skin-care brand Stripes. “I didn’t want to have to walk through that feeling again, of being completely alone and shrouded in secrecy and shame, nor should anyone feel like that. It just a terrible feeling, and wherever there’s stigma, it should be broken down because you need a supportive network. You need a team, whether it’s your family or hopefully doctors, to provide you with that care that you need, or you’re going to think that you’re losing yourself.

You’re definitely thinking you’re losing your mind as you go through those ups and downs. It was chaos. As soon as you understand it better and have the knowledge on the table, you can be your best advocate. You are always your best advocate.”