Today, as mother of Daisy, Betty, Frankie and Alfie, she lives in Somerset and designs childrenswear as well as vintage style wedding dresses. It’s been a ride for Pearl Lowe, but she believes the toughest part was managing her hormones - and falling into perimenopause entirely unprepared.
Pearl, can you tell us about your hormone-related, MOODY journey?
I was trying for my fifth baby (the fourth with her current partner, Supergrass drummer, Danny Goffey) and I kept having miscarriages. I had three in a row. Then I went to see the doctor and he said: ‘Oh, you’re perimenopausal, that’s why’.
*MOODY: Perimenopause begins several years before menopause. It's the time when the ovaries gradually begin to make less oestrogen
Was it a surprise?
I was horrified. I was 42. I had been feeling incredibly tired and depressed, I’d had terrible insomnia, but I had no idea about the perimenopause. A lot of my friends are five to ten years older than me, and when I mentioned it to them they started telling me what they’d been through themselves. Why didn’t anyone tell me? It is such a taboo subject.
And you want to help break the taboo?
Yes! My friend Mariella Frostrup calls it the M-word: everyone says menopause is so unsexy, you should brush it under the carpet, but it is so relevant to our society and who we become: everyone needs to know about it. Another friend Meg Matthews is also campaigning about awareness, and also about getting more information to people.
How now do you manage your hormonal health?
I went to see this wonderful specialist who said if I want to keep the collagen in my skin, look good, feel good, sleep well, have healthy bones and lower my risk of stroke or heart disease, then I should go on HRT. I take a pill every night and cream every morning.
And it is working?
Yes! I feel the happiest I have felt since I was 13 when I first got my period. My periods were always so heavy and awful, and I became miserable and anaemic. My doctor said if I realised when I was younger I had a hormone imbalance my health (emotional and physical) could have been different. I think now it’s why I used to take drugs: to self-medicate to feel good. If only I’d realised my hormones were in such a mess. These days I wake up with a smile on my face. Balancing my hormones is the best thing I’ve ever done in my life.
Is there anything else you’d like to share?
There are so many stigmas around HRT, but the medication has evolved and the risks are far less.
Lastly, other than HRT, what are your tips for staying sane?
My sons live with me, and my daughter Betty and also my nephew Billy; Daisy comes down most weekends. So there’s rarely much peace. But finally it’s all about gratitude. We are really blessed, and it is about being thankful.
Petite Pearl Lowe and Pearl Lowe’s womenswear can be found at www.pearllowe.co.uk @pearllowe
Daily wellness for women, tailored to your cycle.
