I'm 48 but I pretend every day that I'm 90. I want to be grateful for the body that I still have.

Courtesy of Ameenah Thobani

• Ameenah Thobani is a 48-year-old clinical hypnotherapist in Vancouver.
• She started having perimenopausal symptoms in her early 40s.
• She wakes at 4 a.m. every morning and repeats positive affirmations about herself.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Ameenah Thobani. It has been edited for length and clarity.

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