Friday 11.07 am
Anita’s GP, Dr. Washington, is due to retire next year. And while she has always treated Anita with professional courtesy, there is an aloofness about her coupled with her advanced years that makes Anita not want to divulge the fact that she ingested an illegal party drug last weekend. So she tells her instead that she is just here because she has been unusually tired lately, and also that she is constantly hungry.
“Yes, you have put on a little bit of weight,” says Dr. Washington. “How old are you now?”
Anita feels her skin tightening with shame.
“F-fifty,” she says, and imagines picking up that stethoscope in front of her on the desk and strangling Dr. Washington’s scraggly turkey neck with it.
“When was your last period?” Dr. Washington asks, while she types up some notes. Anita shifts position, wishing she hadn’t removed her coat. She feels cold, and fat, and foolish. “I…I can’t really remember,” says Anita. “Two or three months ago? They’ve been erratic for a while now.” “Weight gain and menstrual irregularity are the first signs of perimenopause,” Dr. Washington says. “What’s perimenopause?” says Anita in alarm. “Perimenopause refers to the time during which your body makes the transition to menopause,” says Dr. Washington. “When you haven’t had a period for 12 months, you have officially reached menopause. The average age of menopause is 51 in this country, so I’m confident that’s what your symptoms indicate. But just to be on the safe side I’ll take some blood from you and send it off for some tests to check your iron levels and so on, and also to make sure you’re not pregnant.” “Pregnant? At fifty?” says Anita. “How could that even be possible?” “It’s certainly rare, but it has been known to happen,” says Dr. Washington. “But as I said, I’m confident your symptoms point to nothing more dramatic than perimenopause. Now, can you flex your right arm a few times for me to get the blood flowing?”
