Morphus Perimenopause and Menopause Signs & Symptoms Survey Results

First of all, I would like to acknowledge that your symptoms are real! If anybody is dismissing how you feel, please show them this page. Although when I first started this research for Morphus, I was led to believe there were 34 signs and symptoms of perimenopause and menopause. Our research has shown there are over 100+.

We are excited to share the results of our ongoing menopause research. We would love you to share the survey results with your doctors and healthcare providers, family, friends, colleagues, and anyone else you feel would be interested in learning more about women going through perimenopause and menopause.

Many women in perimenopause and menopause experience menopausal symptoms, and that can negatively affect their quality of life. Unfortunately, until recently menopause wasn’t something we talked openly about. Times are changing and Morphus is an integral part of this change.

We reached out to our community in our newsletter and on social media and asked them to further menopause research by completing our surveys. We’ve had an amazing response and the results on this page are an analysis of 3,082 women who participated (Note: We currently have 3,100+ responses. Our next goal is 5,000).

Who are these women?

Out of 3,082 responses, nearly half (48%) were in perimenopause, 32% were in menopause, and 20% were unsure.

As you can see from the breakdown of survey participants, 20% of the women didn’t know what stage they are in. This shows us we still have a lot of work to do to help educate women about perimenopause and menopause so they can empower themselves with knowledge and education to manage their symptoms and overall health during this phase of life.

What were the key findings?

Overall, the top reported symptoms included fatigue, brain fog, sleep issues, and memory lapse. However, signs and symptoms varied across stage groups:

• A higher percentage of women in perimenopause reported fatigue, anxiety, lack of patience, headaches/migraines, and emotional/weepy state, while a higher percentage of those in menopause reported symptoms such as sleep issues, hot flashes, night sweats, slower metabolism, changes in body shape, and dryness (e.g., vaginal, eye, hair).

• Overall, doctors were the most common source of help sought (over a third of respondents), but a quarter haven't looked for anyone’s help.

• Women in menopause were more prone than the other groups to look for doctors’ help, while women in perimenopause were more likely than those in menopause to mention seeking help from social media or friends/family members.

• Those in the perimenopause stage were more successful than the others in finding at least some of the answers they were looking for.

What are women experiencing?

As a Nutritionist, Menopause Educator, and Menopause Researcher, I spent several years personally tracking the signs and symptoms of perimenopause and menopause, and I discovered there are 85+ so I coined the term “85+ signs and symptoms of menopause”. However, since analyzing these survey results, we can now confirm there are 103+ signs and symptoms of menopause and counting! We share all the menopausal symptoms below broken down into subgroups.

From our research, we found more than 50% of the respondents are dealing with the following menopause symptoms:

The Top 10 Symptoms experienced by women in perimenopause and menopause:

The top 10 most common perimenopause and menopausal symptoms are:

#1 Perimenopause and Menopause and Fatigue / Lack of energy 72% 

#2 Perimenopause and Menopause and Brain Fog 66%

#3 Perimenopause and Menopause and Sleep Issues 65% 

#4 Perimenopause and Menopause and Memory loss & Forgetfulness 63% (similar experience to brain fog)

#5 Perimenopause and Menopause and Anxiety 60%

#6 Perimenopause and Menopause and Joint Pain 58%

#7 Perimenopause and Menopause and Lack of concentration 57%

#8 Perimenopause and Menopause and Lack of focus 57%

#9 Perimenopause and Menopause and Hot flashes 57%

#10 Perimenopause and Menopause and Loss or low libido 57%

What’s interesting to note, is that out of the top 10 symptoms, menopausal women are experiencing, five of them are related to cognitive health. This is fascinating since many of the physical symptoms are well known and discussed, but the mental and emotional ones need more attention.

Top 11 to 26 Menopausal Symptoms, where 41% to 55% of the respondents mentioned they were experiencing:

The top 11 to 26 most common perimenopause and menopause symptoms are:

#11 Perimenopause and Menopause and Lack of patience 55%

#12 Perimenopause and Menopause and Night sweats 53%

#13 Perimenopause and Menopause and Slower metabolism 53%

#14 Perimenopause and Menopause and Digestive problems 51%

#15 Perimenopause and Menopause and Changes in body shape 49%

#16 Perimenopause and Menopause and Dry itchy skin 48%

#17 Perimenopause and Menopause and Emotional/Weepy 44%

#18 Perimenopause and Menopause and Itchy ears 44%

#19 Perimenopause and Menopause and Hair loss 44%

#20 Perimenopause and Menopause and Depression 44%

#21 Perimenopause and Menopause and Headaches or migraines 43%

#22 Perimenopause and Menopause and Lack of/low self-esteem 43%

#23 Perimenopause and Menopause and Social anxiety (anti-social) 43%

#24 Perimenopause and Menopause and Pain (body) 43%

#25 Perimenopause and Menopause and Inflammation 43%

#26 Perimenopause and Menopause and Insomnia 41%

Top 27 to 47 Menopausal Symptoms, where 30% to 39% of the Respondents mentioned they were experiencing:

The top 27 to 47 most common symptoms of perimenopause and menopause are:

#27 Perimenopause and Menopause and Tingling extremities 39%

#28 Perimenopause and Menopause and Dry hair 38%

#29 Perimenopause and Menopause and Weight fluctuations 38%

#30 Perimenopause and Menopause and Dry eyes 38%

#31 Perimenopause and Menopause and Vaginal dryness 37%

#32 Perimenopause and Menopause and Flatulence/gas 37%

#33 Perimenopause and Menopause and Early waking 37%

#34 Perimenopause and Menopause and Wrinkles 37%

#35 Perimenopause and Menopause and Frequent urination 37%

#36 Perimenopause and Menopause and Shoulder pain 35%

#37 Perimenopause and Menopause and Dizziness 35%

#38 Perimenopause and Menopause and Food cravings 35%

#39 Perimenopause and Menopause and Acid reflux/indigestion 34%

#40 Perimenopause and Menopause and Clumsiness 34%

#41 Perimenopause and Menopause and Brittle nails 34%

#42 Perimenopause and Menopause and Adrenal fatigue/exhaustion 33%

#43 Perimenopause and Menopause and Unwanted hair growth 33%

#44 Perimenopause and Menopause and Health anxiety 32%

#45 Perimenopause and Menopause and Increased hunger 32% 

#46 Perimenopause and Menopause and Breast pain/tenderness 30% 

#47 Perimenopause and Menopause and Hard bloated stomach 30% 

Top 48 to 72 Menopausal Symptoms, where 20% to 29% of the respondents mentioned they were experiencing:

The top 48 to 72 most common symptoms of perimenopause and menopause are:

#48 Perimenopause and Menopause and Heartburn 29%

#49 Perimenopause and Menopause and Urinary incontinence 29%

#50 Perimenopause and Menopause and Dull skin 29%

#51 Perimenopause and Menopause and Water retention 28%

#52 Perimenopause and Menopause and Restless leg syndrome 28%

#53 Perimenopause and Menopause and Irregular periods 27%

#54 Perimenopause and Menopause and Dry mouth and tongue 27%

#55 Perimenopause and Menopause and Panic attacks 27%

#56 Perimenopause and Menopause and Irregular heartbeat 27%

#57 Perimenopause and Menopause and Rage 26%

#58 Perimenopause and Menopause and Runny nose 26%

#59 Perimenopause and Menopause and Shortness of breath 26%

#60 Perimenopause and Menopause and Blood pressure (high and low) 26%

#61 Perimenopause and Menopause and Irritable bowel 25%

#62 Perimenopause and Menopause and  B.O. (body odor) 25%

#63 Perimenopause and Menopause and Tinnitus 24%

#64 Perimenopause and Menopause and Skin issues 23%

#65 Perimenopause and Menopause and Phantom smells 22%

#66 Perimenopause and Menopause and Vertigo 21%

#67 Perimenopause and Menopause and Nausea 21%

#68 Perimenopause and Menopause and Abdominal pain 21%

#69 Perimenopause and Menopause and Doom 21%

#70 Perimenopause and Menopause and High cholesterol 21%

#71 Perimenopause and Menopause and PMS (worsening) 20%

#72 Perimenopause and Menopause and Chills 20%

Top 70 to 94 Menopausal Symptoms, where 10% to 19% of the respondents mentioned they were experiencing:

The top 73 to 94 most common symptoms of perimenopause and menopause are:

#73 Perimenopause and Menopause and Heavier periods 19%

#74 Perimenopause and Menopause and Cold flashes 19%

#75 Perimenopause and Menopause and Electric shocks 18%

#76 Perimenopause and Menopause and Bad breath 17%

#77 Perimenopause and Menopause and Ocular migraine 17% 

#78 Perimenopause and Menopause and Pelvic and rectal pain 17%

#79 Perimenopause and Menopause and Acne 16%

#80 Perimenopause and Menopause and Food allergies/sensitivities 16%

#81 Perimenopause and Menopause and Foot heat 15%

#82 Perimenopause and Menopause and Breast size change 15%

#83 Perimenopause and Menopause and Bleeding gums 15%

#84 Perimenopause and Menopause and Internal tremors/vibrations 15%

#85 Perimenopause and Menopause and Frozen shoulder 15%

#86 Perimenopause and Menopause and Metallic taste in mouth 14%

#87 Perimenopause and Menopause and Shorter periods 14%

#88 Perimenopause and Menopause and Loss of appetite 14%

#89 Perimenopause and Menopause and Blood sugar dysregulation 14%

#90 Perimenopause and Menopause and Nightmares 13%

#91 Perimenopause and Menopause and Longer periods 12%

#92 Perimenopause and Menopause and Environmental allergies 12%

#93 Perimenopause and Menopause and Lighter periods 11%

#94 Perimenopause and Menopause and Urinary tract infections (UTIs) 11%

Top 95 to 104 Menopausal Symptoms, where less than 10% of the respondents mentioned they were experiencing:

The top 95 to 104 most common symptoms of perimenopause and menopause are:

#95 Perimenopause and Menopause and Food aversions 9%

#96 Perimenopause and Menopause and Blind spots 9%

#97 Perimenopause and Menopause and Bacterial vaginosis (BV) 8%

#98 Perimenopause and Menopause and Hives 7%

#99 Perimenopause and Menopause and Burning mouth and tongue 7%

#100 Perimenopause and Menopause and Prolapse 7%

#101Perimenopause and Menopause and Burning scalp 6%

#102 Perimenopause and Menopause and Osteoporosis 5%

#103 Perimenopause and Menopause and Acidosis 1%

#104 Perimenopause and Menopause and Other 3%

Less-Known Menopause Symptoms 

There are many lesser-known symptoms of menopause that our survey respondents reported that are not as commonly discussed such as shoulder pain and frozen shoulder, dry eyes, itchy ears, body odor (B.O.), phantom smells, electric shocks, impending doom, loss of appetite, digestive problems, social anxiety, frequent urination, dizziness, tinnitus, vertigo, health anxiety, runny nose, burning feet, cold flashes, and burning scalp, mouth, tongue.

 So Who Are We Turning to For Help?

1 in 3 women in perimenopause and menopause turned to their doctors for help.

1 in 4 women in perimenopause and menopause looked for outside help from family, friends, social media, or the internet.

Women in menopause are most likely to reach out to their doctor. 

Respondents who sought help via social media, healthcare providers (other than doctors), or Google/internet had generally higher success rates in finding, at least partially, their answers, while those who have looked for doctors’ help or who have not looked for outside help had lower success.

Women in perimenopause or menopause who are unsure will either reach out to their doctor or not speak to anyone about what they are experiencing.

Overall less than half of the survey participants didn’t find the answers they were looking for.

These findings reinforce that we are on the right path in our efforts to help empower women as they enter into their perimenopause and menopause years. Morphus is a great resource to add to your places to go for help, answers, and solutions. 

We have the FULL LIST of menopause signs and symptoms above, and on our website under "Signs and Symptoms." As a company, our mission is to empower you, a perimenopausal or menopausal woman, to take charge of your symptoms and your health, so you can live a happy, symptom-free life. You don't have to suffer. There are solutions!

Key Takeaways

Women make up nearly half of the world's population and we are all unique individuals who will experience menopause differently. Some of us start(ed) perimenopause as early as our mid-30s (and some of us even earlier), and some of us don't go into menopause (having gone 365 days without a period) until our late-50s. The average age of menopause is 51 ½.

No one should have to suffer alone. There is hope! We have many more resources today than we did many years ago including nutrition, lifestyle, supplements, and/or hormones if that’s something you choose to do. Menopause is a natural, biological process and we will all go through if we are blessed to live long enough.

Have questions? Email us at customerservice@wearemorphus.com. We would love to hear from you.

NOTE: We would love you for share our research results. Please credit our research and the images by mentioning Morphus’ Signs & Symptoms Survey Results, June 2023 and linking directly to this page. Feel free to copy and paste the URL below:

https://wearemorphus.com/pages/morphus-perimenopause-menopause-signs-symptoms-survey-results

Here is an image summarizing all the research results mentioned on this page:

Copyright Morphus Inc, 2023