In February 2023, I recorded a video for my boss explaining why I couldn't come in that day.
I sent it. I waited. She didn't reply. And eventually I went back into the chat and deleted it — because I had exposed myself completely, and the silence on the other end felt worse than if I'd said nothing at all.
Perimenopause does not arrive as one thing. It arrives as many things at once — anxiety that seems to come from nowhere, unexplained weight changes, sleep disruptions, a sudden intolerance for stimulation that you used to absorb without blinking. And for women who have built their lives around high output and high capacity, it can feel like the ground has shifted.
