Today is September 6. It’s a Saturday, and honestly, it’s already been one of those mornings. The kind where your body, hormones, and brain feel like they’re all playing some strange game of chess against you, and you’re just trying to hang on.
I slept in today because I went to bed late last night, and really, for most of the week, I’ve been off. Every night, I stayed up later than I meant to, fully aware it would mess with my energy the next day, but I couldn’t stop myself. Sometimes I was lost in thought, sometimes it was “just one more episode,” and sometimes I got a burst of energy right after dinner that pushed me into editing a blog post instead of winding down like I should have.
I kept telling myself, “Okay, a couple of late nights is fine—but that’s it. Don’t do this again.” Of course, I did it again. And the ripple effect? My mornings were all over the place. I either skipped my walk entirely or started later than I wanted. Normally, I get four or five solid walks in a week, 35–40 minutes each. This week? Barely three, and none at full length. So, yeah—I’m annoyed with myself.
But if I’m being honest, I think Labor Day threw me off more than I realized. Having Monday off gave me that old mentality from years ago—“Oh, I don’t have to work tomorrow, I can stay up later.” Which makes no sense because while I don’t have early morning shifts anymore, I still value my morning routine. Old habits die hard, and it’s funny how quickly your brain slips back into patterns that no longer serve you.
The truth is, disrupted sleep doesn’t just mean feeling groggy. It snowballs into lower energy, irritability, and even hormonal shifts that make the next day harder to handle. I know better, yet sometimes I still sabotage myself with late nights.
The Curveball: An Unexpected Period
As if sleep disruption wasn’t enough, my body decided to add a little drama. Tuesday afternoon, after picking up my son from school, I went straight to my well-woman exam. At this stage of life, apparently, you don’t need a pap smear every year after 50—just a pelvic and breast exam. Quick, routine, and nothing alarming.
I brought up some concerns: spotting, shorter cycles, and the fact that I’ve had to supplement with iron after becoming anemic. The doctor prescribed tranexamic acid to help reduce heavy bleeding. I wasn’t sure I wanted to take it, but I filled the prescription anyway.
She didn’t seem concerned, even acknowledging my old fibroid results, and said more testing wasn’t needed unless I wanted it. Honestly, I didn’t. I wasn’t eager to schedule another transvaginal ultrasound—it’s uncomfortable, and since she didn’t think it was necessary, I let it go.
The next day, I had some bleeding. I figured it was from the pelvic exam and looked it up—spotting can happen. However, what I experienced was a bit more than spotting; this much bleeding after an exam had never happened to me before. It made me wonder if my hormones were fluctuating because, lately, my underarm odor has been stronger than usual. I even had to switch deodorants.
I brushed it off, put on a liner, and went about my day. Later that evening, when I used the restroom, my panty liner was completely soaked. I was shocked. It looked like I was starting my period again. The bleeding continued the next day—thin blood, no odor, no cramping. I wondered if the fibroid had been poked. By nighttime, I doubled up on pads, just in case.
Sure enough, I woke up to a gushing flow. I didn’t even make it to the toilet without a mess. Standing in the shower, I kept asking myself, “Why am I bleeding so much? What is happening?” By the end of the day, it had turned into full flow—clots and all. That’s when I realized this was an actual full-blown period, only eight days after my last one.
I’ve never had cycles this short before, but my research confirmed it—perimenopause can bring not just shorter cycles, but extremely short ones. I never thought I’d be googling “period every 12 days,” but here we are. The unpredictability is exhausting, frustrating, and honestly just annoying. The next day the flow finally slowed down, thankfully, but the whole ordeal left me drained.
Back to Saturday: A Morning Gone Sideways
So here I am, Saturday morning. I woke up around 9 a.m., when I heard my son come home from a sleepover. I told myself today’s the day I’ll knock out the last few things on my to-do list: declutter my bedroom, finish blog edits, and check on affiliate links. Yesterday, I’d been proud of myself for crossing off most of my list, so today felt like the final push.
At 9:45 I got organized: ate an orange (so I could take my iron), prepped for a NAD skin patch, and even snapped a photo of my tumbler for a blog product feature. The plan was simple: take my iron and apply the patch at 10:00, then get moving.
But somehow, two whole hours vanished. Not on social media—I don’t have those apps on my phone right now, except YouTube, which I didn’t even open. Instead, I fell into the black hole of cleaning out old emails, clicking attachments, and watching old videos. When I finally looked up, it was noon, and I still hadn’t taken my iron or applied the patch.
Here we are at this very moment. I am hungry and irritated. I suppose I should continue with my plans to have eggs and toast. Except, guess what? If you want the best absorption from an iron supplement, you shouldn’t take iron with eggs. If I had just stayed on track, I would have already taken my supplements hours ago and enjoyed my breakfast without any issues.
It’s moments like this—losing track of time, getting distracted—that make me wonder if I really do have ADHD. And the frustrating part is, perimenopause only seems to amplify the symptoms: brain fog, poor focus, irritability, and that constant feeling of being two steps behind yourself.
ADHD Brain Meets Perimenopause
I’ve suspected ADHD for over 20 years. Several family members have an official diagnosis, and while I’ve never been formally diagnosed, I’ve always felt like my brain runs in the same patterns. My therapist has said adult ADHD can be tricky to pin down, but we can work on identifying whether it’s really what’s happening.
Either way, I’ve learned to manage—timers, lists, routines, sticky notes. These tricks helped me keep life somewhat organized. But now, with perimenopause in the mix, it feels like all my hacks aren’t enough. The hormone shifts seem to crank up the volume on distraction, brain fog, and fatigue.
It’s not about laziness. It’s not about not caring. It’s about juggling too many invisible weights—hormones, cycles, sleep disruption, and the mental load of everyday life. And when your brain is already wired to scatter, it just adds another layer of chaos.
And here’s the part I don’t say enough: if you’re going through something similar, you’re not alone. There’s nothing wrong with you for losing time or feeling distracted—it’s part of living with a brain that works differently while navigating a body that’s constantly changing.
Wrapping It Up: Chaos with Compassion
So here’s the real deal: perimenopause isn’t just a medical condition. It’s a wild ride where your body does what it wants, your focus drifts like a balloon in the wind, and mornings don’t always go as planned. Some days, you’re just hanging on.
But I’ve decided that hanging on is enough. Because despite the chaos, the unexpected menstrual cycles, the distractions, and the late nights, I’m still here, writing it out, and moving forward one small task at a time.
If you’ve been through mornings like this—or weeks where everything feels off—I see you. We’re doing amazing, even when it doesn’t feel like it.
And maybe tomorrow, I’ll take my iron before the eggs.