Book Review: 'Just Getting Started' by Lisa Snowdon
Perimenopause in her early forties led Lisa Snowdon to write this book.
I must admit I was swung by the title of this book because I feel this way about my own life. In September 2012, approaching the age of 41, I started writing my debut novel, Elegy For Detroit and nearly six books, two Masters Degrees and a fifth A level down the line I feel like my forties and fifties (I am now 53) have been my most productive decades yet. I know so many women - friends and work contacts - in their forties, fifties, sixties and beyond - who are so wise and full of potential. Life doesn’t have to end at 40 or 50 - its just beginning for many of us, achieving things physically and mentally and doing things we love.
The crux of this book is that Snowdon had a tough Perimenopause and again I concur with this. Starting in her early 40s, her hormone levels dropped and she experienced symptoms such as low mood, heavy periods, anger, weight gain, hot flushes, brain fog and very disrupted sleep. She compares Perimenopause to ‘your worst ever PMT’ and this was absolutely the case for me too. It was not easy. I experienced UTIs/cystitis occurring almost monthly from 2014 for about 10 years, low mood, periods so heavy I would be wearing 2 or 3 thick pads at a time and changing them hourly, out of character feelings of anger before my period - the worst PMT ever - and some sleeplessness (I’ve had to give up caffeine, even decaf, for the most part).
Even though the writing is chatty, confessional, occasionally sweary and accessible (which is good because the more women it can reach the better) she writes profoundly about the complex topic of approaching Menopause when you haven’t had children and it hasn’t happened for you. Which I also related to and which I feel is a largely unexplored topic on which there is a lot to say. However, luckily for Snowdon she’s had a very supportive partner called George who has filled her life with adventures and made her feel she’s having the time of her life. She’s learned to be grateful despite what she feels is missing. She’s also very good on domestic abuse and this book should resonate with any woman who’s been in a controlling, unhealthy relationship and/ or been on the receiving end of mental and/ or physical cruelty.
She offers plenty of hacks and tips for surviving Peri and Menopause - 51 at the time of writing the book - she is now Post Menopausal. It’s not, like Davina’s book, just orientated around HRT. Diet and exercise - from intermittent fasting, cutting out caffeine and sugar and gut health to weight bearing exercise, there’s plenty to learn here. Plus some nice recipes from this Celebrity Masterchef winner. She’s also good on mindfulness, breathwork and meditation and she’s tried a lot of alternative therapies so really knows which ones work. Skincare hacks feature too - Snowdon was a model and a beauty journalist in previous lives.
A good book to read if you’re experiencing a rough Perimenopause or just want to know why things are going wrong for you forty and fifty plus. And it offers plenty of solutions too, other than HRT.