Sex isn't always as easy as it was once upon a time when that wet, wet was indeed wet, wet. Recently, Halle Berry revealed that entering menopause showed her the hard way just how true that statement is.
During an event hosted by her wellness platform rē•spin early last month, Halle candidly let it be known that though she knew menopause would be a thing later on in life, she didn't know menopause would menopause until it actually hit her.
At the event, in conversation with Fahti Khosrowshahi, CEO of Ceek Women’s Health, the mom of three recalled living her best life with her partner Van Hunt, and having "the best time." "I’ve been through three divorces and finally found the right one," she shared of her love. Not too soon after though, menopause entered the picture and unfortunately, it impacted their sex life in ways she never imagined.
In what she dubbed a "TMI" moment of honesty, Halle shared with Khosrowshahi how she realized something in her body was off.
"...I’m trying to have sex and [it’s as if] I’ve got razor blades in my vagina. He comes at me with [what feels like] scissors at night, and I’m like, ‘Get away!’ But he’s the love of my life, and I realize there’s something wrong.”
Halle Berry wants to remove the shame around aging and menopause.
Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for Michael Kors
Menopause is a naturally occurring decline in the reproductive hormones, typically taking place in women in their 40s and 50s. Thanks to a drop in estrogen production, many women can experience vaginal atrophy as a common symptom of menopause (as well as perimenopause). Some postmenopausal women may even encounter painful sex or discomfort due to soreness, burning, itching, or a "tightening of the vaginal opening."
The decrease in estrogen results in the tissues of the vaginal walls becoming less elastic, thinner, more fragile, and yes, drier. Though less common, younger women can experience vaginal atrophy as a decrease in estrogen can lead to a decrease in vaginal lubrication.
In addition to experiencing painful sex affiliated with waning hormones, Halle had others that wreaked havoc over her days before she knew exactly what was happening to her. "I can’t remember why I walked into a room. I’m confused all the goddamn time…I don’t sleep at night," she recalled telling her doctor. "I wake up tired, and I’m like, ‘What’s happening to me?’"
Minus arguably the most common symptom of menopause, hot flashes, sleeplessness, irritability, brain fog, and pain during sex were all signs of Halle entering her post-reproductive era, her doctor confirmed. Still, the 57-year-old actress isn't allowing this new chapter to be "the end of anything" for her and instead wants to "reimagine" aging.
"I’m not ready to go out to pasture. I’ve got all this new stuff to do. It’s not the end of anything. It’s actually the start of a new chapter of your life. As women…we have to reimagine what that is.”
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Featured image by Daniele Venturelli/Getty Images for The Red Sea International Film Festival
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