Did you experience puberty and menopause in about the same way?

I do remember having bad period pains at times, experiencing a horrible and painful dragging feeling, my mum would give me a hot water bottle to put on my stomach when they first started I think I was aged around 12, I know I'd started senior school. I don't remember them being bad every month. A friend of mine used periods as an almost permanent excuse to get out of gym and hockey when we were at school together, we still laugh about that today. I do recall going home from work on one occasion with period pain.

I had a late menopause, periods up till 57, I felt a bit of a freak, I seemed to be the only person among friends I knew still having them at that age. Menopause hasn't been great, not as bad as what some women experience from what I read, nevertheless, plenty of hot flushes which I still get occasionally, I'm hot at night, not in a good way!, not actual sweats, but very broken sleep. I'd give my right arm to sleep till 7 am uninterrupted! Those were the days

Hideous puberty with dreadful pains and flooding, which never really eased. However, sailed through menopause with hardly a hot flush, for which I am devoutly grateful.

Puberty just came on and i got on with it but the menopause has been a damn nightmare.