For someone who has always been active, it’s challenging when menopause suddenly limits your ability to do what you love: moving. Claudia, aged 52, is a gym teacher and has been active her entire life. Outside of work, she enjoys cycling and hiking, often taking long walks in nature with her husband. That is, until she began experiencing joint pain. Claudia shares: “I was always active and moved a lot. I couldn’t understand why I, of all people, was suddenly dealing with aches in my body.”
I couldn’t believe my symptoms just appeared out of nowhere. It was attributed to overuse.
The first signs were subtle. A slight pain in her joints here and there, especially after a long walk. But the symptoms gradually worsened. “My knees felt stiff, my hands hurt when holding the bike, and my shoulders didn’t move as smoothly as they normally did.”
Because she was so active, Claudia couldn’t believe that the joint pain had appeared without any clear reason. She visited her GP, who referred her to an orthopaedic specialist. “The orthopaedic specialist then referred me to a physiotherapist,” Claudia laughs. “He mentioned overuse and suggested that I might be using my joints incorrectly.” However, as a gym teacher with a background in physical movement, Claudia found that explanation puzzling.
Nonetheless, she made an appointment with a physiotherapist and diligently started doing exercises. “I tried everything to relieve my pain, including massages. I loved them, and they seemed to help briefly, but within a few days, the pain would just come back.”
Meanwhile, the symptoms made her job increasingly difficult. “I always participated in gym class, but the pain kept getting worse, and I could no longer rely on my body. Naturally, I became incredibly frustrated. Not to mention how grumpy I’d get when I went hiking with my husband and needed several days to recover afterwards.”
The result? A battle with her own body. “Despite the physiotherapist’s advice, I was in constant pain. Specialists kept talking about ageing or overuse, saying it was just part of getting older. To some extent, I agree—I am getting older, and my body isn’t as resilient—but I knew this was something different.”
There had to be a solution, Claudia thought, so she decided to dig deeper. “I started researching and came across stories from women who experienced joint pain during menopause. I had no idea and was so surprised to learn that it’s such a common symptom! I didn’t have any other issues, so I had never considered menopause.”
The more she researched menopause, the more she learned about the effects of hormonal changes on the body. “I had no idea that declining oestrogen levels could affect joint health,” Claudia explains. “When oestrogen decreases, you can develop stiff and painful joints. Once I learned that, so many pieces of the puzzle fell into place.”
Are you also experiencing joint pain? Find out what you can do about it.
“Once I went back to the GP, they confirmed that joint pain is more common in women going through menopause,” she continues. “We decided to try a hormone therapy treatment, and it made a world of difference. After a few months, I felt like a new person.”
That changed everything for Claudia in the best way possible: “I could teach again without spending the evening in pain on the sofa, and that felt amazing. At home, I was energetic and cheerful again, and it felt so good to go hiking with my husband once more.”
Hormone therapy was a relief for Claudia. “I had considered working less, but that idea is completely off the table now. I love my job so much, and that realisation has only grown stronger.”
What she still thinks about sometimes is how much time she lost because no one made the connection to menopause. “That’s something I still find frustrating. There’s not enough discussion about the impact of menopause, in my opinion. That’s also why I’m eager to share my experience. I sincerely hope another woman reads this and thinks: hey, this sounds familiar, maybe I should ask my GP about it.”
I hope there will be more awareness about menopause; it can prevent so much discomfort for women.
