The Midlife Edit Vol.3

Tracy Mitzner, 55

My Menopause Journey

The very first sign of perimenopause for me wasn’t hot flashes or missed periods…it was migraine headaches. I had never experienced migraines before, so when they appeared out of nowhere, I was confused and alarmed.

At first, they seemed tied to alcohol and seasonal allergies. One morning after a party stands out vividly. I had only a few glasses of wine, yet I woke up the next day bedridden with a migraine so severe I could barely move. It felt as though I’d consumed many times more alcohol than I actually had. What made it worse was the unpredictability: sometimes I could tolerate a drink, sometimes even a sip would trigger a migraine. There was no rhyme or reason, and the lack of consistency made it impossible to trust my own body.

Around this time, I had a hormonal IUD placed. Since headaches can be a side effect, I assumed that must be the cause and had it removed. But the migraines didn’t stop.

I asked my primary care doctor, who practiced functional medicine, whether the headaches could be hormonal. She said it was possible, but quickly added that I wasn’t a candidate for HRT because of my grandmother’s history of breast cancer. That conversation ended there.

Next, I saw a neurologist. When I asked if my migraines could be hormone-related, he agreed that they could be. But instead of addressing the hormonal component, he prescribed a migraine medication. It didn’t help-and worse, it caused a full-body rash, forcing me to stop taking it altogether.

Eventually, I gave up alcohol completely. Even without drinking, the headaches continued, though they were somewhat less frequent and less intense. Still, they hadn’t gone away and neither had the sense that something deeper was being missed.

When Pain Became the New Normal

Not long after the migraines began, I started noticing back and joint pain. I had tweaked my back during yoga, something that had happened before, but this time, rest and ice didn’t help. Six months of physical therapy brought only minor improvement, and some pain lingered.

Then the joint pain spread. Standing up from a chair hurt. Moving after sitting for a while hurt. Everyday movements felt stiff and uncomfortable in a way they never had before.

One moment in particular stays with me. I was at the pool with my daughter, and she asked me to play with her and toss her up in the air in the water. I told her I couldn’t. And suddenly, it hit me how limited I had become.

I remember thinking: If this is how I feel in my late 40s, what is the rest of my life going to be like? The thought was devastating. I became deeply depressed, convinced that I was headed toward a life defined by chronic pain.

An orthopedist ordered an MRI, which showed some disc degeneration, but not enough to explain the severity of my symptoms. He mentioned that his wife had experienced similar joint pain at my age and managed it with Meloxicam, so he prescribed it for me. It helped somewhat, but I still knew we weren’t addressing the root cause.

A second orthopedist recommended radiofrequency ablation for my back. I even scheduled the procedure…but something didn’t sit right. The doctor explained there was a 60% chance it wouldn’t help, and even if it did, the pain could return or simply shift elsewhere.

That was the moment I stopped. I realized I was being offered increasingly invasive solutions without anyone fully explaining why my body felt this way.

Finding the Missing Piece

I canceled the procedure and sought out a physician who specialized in menopause and hormone therapy. For the first time, someone looked at my symptoms as a whole.

She explained that fluctuating and declining hormone levels could absolutely be causing my migraines, joint pain, mood changes, and other symptoms. She prescribed estradiol, progesterone, and testosterone.

Within weeks, I began to feel like myself again…not my 50-year-old self, but more like my 40-year-old self.

In addition to the headaches and joint pain, I had been dealing with hot flashes, night sweats, brain fog, and intense PMS-like symptoms-irritability, emotional volatility, and feeling unlike myself. Hormone therapy eliminated those symptoms entirely and significantly reduced my joint pain and migraines.

Most importantly, it transformed my quality of life. It even improved my marriage, which had quietly been affected by the physical and emotional toll of my symptoms.

Lessons From My Journey

Estrogen fluctuations affect histamine
During perimenopause, changing estrogen levels can increase histamine sensitivity, which may cause alcohol intolerance and other unpredictable symptoms.

Joint pain is common and under-recognized
Many women develop new joint pain during perimenopause and menopause, but most doctors do not connect it to hormonal changes (and I certainly did not).

Menopause symptoms can profoundly affect quality of life
They are more than inconveniences-they can impact mobility, mood, and relationships.

Not all doctors are trained in menopause care
Even when symptoms are taken seriously, many clinicians lack the tools to address the root hormonal cause and may rely on medications or procedures that only treat symptoms.

Trust your instincts and seek specialized care
If something does not feel right, get a second opinion or find a provider trained in menopause care (see Menopause.org).

Peer support is invaluable
Sharing experiences and learning from others is critical until the medical community provides more consistent and holistic menopause care.