Annmarie O'Connor: When menopause and Parkinson's overlap, you don't know which to blame

Parkinson’s is unpredictable. Add menopause to the mix and deciphering what’s happening in my body becomes a daily detective exercise, Annmarie O'Connor writes

Annmarie O'Connor on Parkinsons, five years on. Picture: Chani Anderson

I am post-menopausal. My sex hormones liquidated around December 2024, just before Christmas. Business was slow. Although delighted not to have a period and its attendant palaver (see: cramps, tampons, fear of wearing white), the monthly benchmark was crucial to my well-being as a person with Parkinson’s. Here’s why.

Early in my diagnosis, I experienced what I thought was a spike in my symptoms. After a chat with the Parkinson’s Ireland nurse, I discovered that wasn’t exactly the case.