The Rage, the Sweat and the Patches (Paperback or Softback)

Perimenopause can arrive like a wrecking ball, leaving you wondering what has happened to your body, your brain and the woman you thought you knew.

In The Rage, the Sweat and the Patches, Marie McLaughlin brings honesty, humour and lived experience to one of the most confusing stages of a woman's life. From rage, sleepless nights, hot sweats and brain fog to anxiety, changing relationships, work pressures and the search for the right support, she explores the symptoms women are often expected to manage quietly.

This is not a polished account of sailing serenely through hormonal change. It is a frank, funny and deeply relatable guide to the mayhem, the misinformation and the moments that make you question whether you are losing your mind. Alongside her own story, Marie shares evidence informed guidance on hormones, HRT, health, treatment options and the practical steps that can help women understand what is happening and speak up for the care they need.

Written for women who feel overwhelmed, dismissed or simply unprepared, this book offers reassurance without pretending there is one perfect answer. It is also a valuable read for partners, family members, friends, colleagues and managers who want to better understand what perimenopause can really feel like. The book opens up the wider conversation about families, workplaces and why menopause should never be treated as something women must endure in silence.

If perimenopause has left you feeling unlike yourself, The Rage, the Sweat and the Patches will remind you that you are not alone, you are not imagining it and there is a way through the chaos.

Marie McLaughlin is an Irish author, learning and development consultant and speaker from Donegal, with more than twenty years' experience working across Ireland and the UK in corporate learning, leadership and regulated industries.After experiencing the chaos of perimenopause first-hand, she began speaking openly about women's health, menopause awareness and the realities many women navigate at work and at home. She is the founder of Peri Mayhem, a platform dedicated to normalising the menopause conversation through evidence-informed education, storytelling and straight-talking honesty.The Rage, the Sweat and the Patches is her first book. Marie grew up on her family's farm in Donegal, where she now lives with her husband and their two daughters. Visit perimayhem.com.