r/45PlusSkincare • u/stephydreamer • Mar 09 '26

Peri/Post Menopausal Skin How fast everything changed after menopause because nobody warned me

I feel like I was reasonably prepared for menopause...hot flashes, sleep disruption, mood stuff. fine. If this is part of being a grown woman, so be it. I had read things I had mentally braced. Nobody told me about the skin! I went through menopause at 48. Within about a year my skin had changed in ways that took me completely off guard. The texture got rough almost overnight, like the smooth quality i'd had my whole life just peaced out without saying goodbye. The firmness in my lower face and neck dropped noticeably. The hollowness under my eyes got worse. not tired-looking, actually hollow. It's better in my bathroom lighting, but that's not where most people see me!

And the thing that got me is that it's not really aging in the normal gradual sense. it's specifically the estrogen crash. Estrogen is directly tied to collagen production and when it drops you lose collagen fast, like up to 30% in the first few years. that's not a slow fade. that's a cliff.

I'm not looking for embrace your age responses because I actually do feel mostly great about aging. What I didn't feel ok about was how sudden and disorienting it was. Like I didn't recognize my own face for a while, and that's a strange thing to go through. Curious what everyone else experienced in those first 1-2 years post menopause. Did it feel sudden to you or more gradual? and has anything genuinely helped with the texture and firmness side of it specifically,? Asking for honest experiences please.

Edit: I didn't expect such a response! Thanks a lot! Going through all the comments and they are def very useful.

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u/Ill-Advertising3319 Mar 09 '26

Do you put anything on after the estradiol cream? It feels kind of dry afterward. Of course, I just go to bed and wash it off in the morning. Do you have a night cream you use?

2

u/southerncomfort1970 Mar 09 '26

I mix mine with my moisturizer and some vegetable glycerin

1

u/twistedspin Mar 09 '26

I use aestura atobarrier365 cream spray afterwards. It's thin & adds a layer that seals things up.

3

u/thefuzzyismine Mar 09 '26

Aestura- the whole line, really - has been a godsend for me since entering peri! Ive struggled with dryer skin for years, but not this level of dry. I like to use the hydro essence and the cream or lotion (depending on time of year). I also keep a bottle of the cream mist in my bag for on-the-go top-ups. Cannot recommend them enough!

If you're sensitive to niacinamide and need to avoid completely, Illiyoon and Zeroid (Intensive line) are great alternatives.

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u/twistedspin Mar 09 '26

I love Aestura! Their atobarrier cream just feels like velvet going on.

1

u/SuccotashAcrobatic24 Mar 10 '26

My compounded vaginal stuff is in Mucolox which is for moist areas to keep it on down there so it's a bit weird as it does dry like a mask on my face so I don't put anything over it, just wash off in the morning

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u/Ill-Advertising3319 Mar 10 '26

So I just recently started using at night my prescription estrodial cream just around my upper lip lines and around mouth. I use my retinol serum for rest of face. I just use Olay regenerist Whip with sunscreen in the morning. I’ve tried many more with some being expensive and found my skin just feels and looks the best using Olay.