When I was 42, a menopause doctor told me that my testosterone levels were low enough to warrant trying treatment, I was skeptical. I had spent five years chasing a diagnosis for what I thought was perimenopause, but which turned out to be premenstrual dysphoric disorder, which causes extreme PMS and debilitating mental health symptoms for the last 10-14 days of a woman’s menstrual cycle. I was desperate to be prescribed something to counteract my low mood, overwhelming anxiety, joint pain and sleeplessness. Being told to rub testosterone gel into my thighs was unexpected but by then I would have tried anything to feel better.
I joined a small but growing tribe of midlife women who take a daily dose of the hormone, including Kate Winslet, 50, Halle Berry, 59, and most recently Prue Leith, 86, who said in an interview with Saga magazine that she uses it to improve her libido and “feel better and younger”. Women’s testosterone levels peak in our twenties and then decline slowly until menopause, when they plateau. Our levels are far lower than men’s, but testosterone is critical for sex drive and sexual satisfaction, and it’s a key part of our reproductive hormones too. Recent studies suggest that it has a role in cognition, memory, brain health, maintaining bone density and recovering from fractures. Researchers are investigating whether dropping levels are related to muscle loss in women.
