It's become a boogeyman for women in their 30s and early 40s. It shouldn't be.

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Labubus, Dubai chocolate, Sydney Sweeney —these are just a few, let’s say, concepts that everyone on the internet collectively learned recently, and, as is our wont, proceeded to drive into the ground . It’s a familiar pattern, a topic quickly going from unknown to ubiquitous to exhausting, and it usually plays out with cultural trends and ephemera—which is why it’s so odd that I’m currently wondering if it might also apply to a phase of reproductive health.

“Perimenopause” is the term for the years leading up to menopause, a time when women may experience symptoms like changes in their menstrual cycles, moods, sleep, and more, symptoms that, traditionally