Halle Berry's Spicy Perimenopause Story With Boyfriend Van Hunt Even Shocked Jill Biden
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Halle Berry was convinced she would miss perimenopause. “My ego told me that I was gonna skip it,” she said in a panel conversation on menopause and women’s health with First Lady Dr. Jill Biden at A Day of Unreasonable Conversation. “I’m in great shape,” Berry continued, explaining her rationale. “I’m healthy. I managed to get myself off of insulin and manage my diabetes since I’m 20 years old. So that makes one think, ‘Oh, I can handle menopause. I’m gonna eat right, exercise, and I’m gonna skip that whole thing.'”
Of course, menopause doesn’t quite work like that (if only… although diet and exercise should definitely be a part of your post-menopause lifestyle!). And for Berry, who admitted she was “uneducated” about how perimenopause would affect her, the symptoms ended up coming at a rather inopportune time.
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Berry was 54 when she met her current boyfriend, Van Hunt, aka “the man of my dreams,” as she described him. Perimenopause was the furthest thing from her mind as she was busy falling in love and enjoying all the perks that come with it, and she let listeners in on the intimate details — to an extent that surprised even the First Lady!
“One day, we’re having sex like normal,” Berry began, as Dr. Biden interjected, “I didn’t know she was gonna tell this!”
“I have no shame!” Berry said. She went on to explain that, post-sex, she woke up in the morning and went to the bathroom. Immediately, Berry said, “I feel like I have razor blades in my vagina.”
She continued, “I run to my gynecologist and I said, ‘oh my God, what’s happening? I’ve never had something like this before.’ It was terrible.”
After an initial examination, Berry’s doctor told her she had “the worst case of herpes I have ever seen,” leaving Berry in shock. But when she and Hunt both got tested for the STI, the results came back negative — so what exactly was going on?
“I realized after the fact, that is a symptom of perimenopause,” Berry revealed. “Because when we get to this stage we have dry eyes, dry mouth, dry vagina.” It’s true that dryness is a major sign of perimenopause — and a painful one. Per the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, vaginal dryness can lead to irritation, burning, and pain with intercourse — that “razors in my vagina” feeling Berry was talking about.
What really bothered Berry, though, was the lack of education on what she could expect from perimenopause. “As I approached [perimenopause], even in my forties, somebody should have told me this is what’s going to happen,” she said, noting that she could’ve begun looking into preventative measures. “There are things you can do to arrive at this time of life in a more elegant way.”
In fact, the experience was what inspired Berry to start speaking out about menopause and sharing her story. “My doctor had no knowledge and didn’t prepare me,” she explained. “That’s when I knew, ‘Oh my gosh, I’ve got to use my platform. I have to use all of who I am and I have to start making a change and a difference for other women.'” Berry has since launched re-spin, a wellness platform and shop for women in and entering menopause.
Dr. Biden wasn’t so forthcoming with her own experience (which, TBH, we totally understand!), saying only, “I’m not making any comments!” And while the story might have given the First Lady a bit of a (good-natured) shock, Berry stood by her decision to open up about the scary-at-the-time, funny-in-retrospect situation. “This is what we have to start talking about. This is how I want to change culture,” Berry said. “This should be OK [to talk about].”
Before you go, check out our favorite beauty products for menopause:
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