Almost four years ago, I had my second dexa scan and got the news that I have learned is typical: in the five years after menopause, my bone density went from normal to osteopenia. I lost 13% of my bone density in my spine. I got a weirdly chipper note from my OB-GYN’s nurse. ”You have osteopenia. Typical for your age, be sure to keep exercising and getting enough calcium. Basically, keep doing what you’ve been doing. Keep doing what hasn’t worked to prevent bone loss over the prior five years, when I had been exercising and getting my calcium (and had normal vitamin D, PTH, CA level etc).

This was a gut punch. I saw my grandmother lose height, likely from many vertebral compression fractures, and know osteoporosis is in my genes and physique. My timing was unlucky vis-a-vis hormone therapy: the Women’s Health Initiative “hormones cause breast cancer” ideology was in full force when I began menopause. As a result, my bones had taken the estrogen loss osteoclast activation hit.  

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