rheanna

Juby,

You are right to look into the reasons for early memnopause, of course. But I would like to propose something else to think about.

The average age for women to have completed menopause (one year without periods) is supposed to be around 50. This does not mean that women normally go into menopause at age 50. I means that half of all women have reached menopause by that age.

I started obvious peri-menopause symptoms (irregular periods, dry skin and vagina as well as night sweats during the "off" hormonal times, followed by normal periods and moisture during the "on" times) at the age of 39. I suspect that it took another 10 years for me to be considered "officially" menopausal, as it took that long for the low dosage to become insufficient to combat the symptoms.

I figured at the time that I had just "used up" my allotment of hormones early because I had regular periods of 23-25 days for my entire reproductive period (with 15 periods per year instead of the "normal" of 12-13), and I didn't have any children. This may be entirely bogus speculation on my part, but it helped me accept that I was just in the "early" half (before 50) rather than the "late" half (after 50) to reach menopause.

Cysts can, I understand, affect the hormones. It is appropriate to research further and see if there are any underlying causes that can be treated. I wish you luck in finding out waht is happening with your daughter. And please report back on what your daughter finds out from her doctor -- we can all learn from each other!

--Rheanna