In retrospect, I think a lot was going on from my early 40's to 49, when I had my last period. I was having a LOT of migraines, periods (which for all my life were quite regular) got shorter, longer, all over the place. I had some minor night sweats....I remember I started using the progesterone creams (only certain ones, though) and I THINK that may have helped, but not sure since I also started paying attention to my health more....lots more exercise, drinking more water, careful eating, losing some extra pounds....I think it all helped. At 49-1/2 I got a 2-week period that was unbelievably heavy....I was changing pads every hour or so, then huge clots, and I lost so much blood I turned WHITE as a ghost and had no energy and almost needed a blood transfusion it was so bad. I went in and had a D&C type procedure (under anesthesia), which the doctor said "might" stop the situation or might not, in which case he was recommending a hysterectomy, which I was dead set against. Anyhow, the procedure stopped the bleeding and I recovered the proper blood levels and my normal energy within several weeks, and never had another period. I felt great from that moment on, no menopause hot flashes, no headaches, none of that stuff at all. A real non-event, I'd say. Maybe I'm just fortunate, but I sort of think it had to do with my good health habits, also the exercise and partly my attitude, too. We have always been so conditioned in this country to think of menupause as a horrible thing, almost like an illness, yet in other parts of the world it is a big nothing, some cultures don't even have a word for menopause! So I had steeped my thoughts in that direction, that I would not go down that road, that I could put myself in a state of health where I would have no problems with this. I really cut out the sugar at that time, too, which I always felt was a positive factor. So anyhow, it was age 49 for me, and frankly, I've loved having no more periods to deal with! I'm 58 now.