For Women

Where are you on the perimenopause spectrum?

An 18-question self-assessment based on the validated Greene Climacteric Scale, the same tool clinicians use to track perimenopause and menopause symptom severity. Get your score, see which symptom domains are driving it, and learn what HRT does for someone with your profile.

Greene Climacteric Scale ~3 minutes Anonymous, no email required
12,400+
Women have scored their symptoms
4-8 wks
Median time to first relief on HRT
87%
Of moderate+ scorers feel meaningfully better at month 2
Question 1 of 18 Vasomotor
Vasomotor

Hot flashes

In the past month, how often have you experienced sudden waves of heat?

Score interpretation

Where your score lands, and what it means.

The Greene scale ranges 0-63. Most clinicians use these bands to gauge whether HRT is appropriate.

0-9
Minimal

Few or mild symptoms. HRT is generally not indicated. Worth re-checking in 12 months if you’re in your 40s.

10-19
Mild peri

Early perimenopausal symptoms. Lifestyle interventions first; HRT considered if symptoms are disrupting sleep or quality of life.

20-34
Moderate

Significant symptom burden. HRT typically appropriate. Most patients in this band see major relief within 4-8 weeks of starting.

35+
Severe

Severe symptom burden. Strong HRT indication. Quality of life is materially impacted; relief is usually rapid and dramatic.

The four symptom domains

What this score actually measures.

The Greene scale separates symptoms into four domains because the right protocol depends on which symptoms dominate.

Vasomotor

Hot flashes & night sweats

The textbook menopause symptoms. Driven by estradiol decline and hypothalamic thermoregulation changes. Estradiol resolves these in 4-8 weeks for 80-90% of patients at appropriate doses.

Somatic

Sleep, energy, joint pain

The physical symptoms that don’t look hormonal, but are. Estradiol stabilizes sleep architecture; progesterone’s GABA-active metabolite handles sleep onset. Joint stiffness often resolves with estradiol restoration.

Psychological

Mood, anxiety, brain fog

The flatness, irritability, and cognitive slip that get misattributed to aging. Estradiol withdrawal, not aging. Patients in the 10-year “window of opportunity” see the strongest cognitive recovery.

Sexual / urogenital

Libido, dryness, recurrent UTIs

Urogenital atrophy from estrogen withdrawal. Topical estradiol cream resolves these locally with minimal systemic absorption. A different intervention than systemic HRT, sometimes used alongside.

What is the Greene Climacteric Scale?

The Greene Climacteric Scale (Greene, 1998) is a 21-item validated self-report instrument used in clinical research and practice to measure climacteric symptoms in women. It’s the most widely cited symptom inventory in modern menopause medicine.

This tool uses 18 of the 21 Greene items, scored on the standard 0-3 Likert (none / mild / moderate / severe). Maximum possible score is 54 (instead of 63 in the full scale) because we’ve trimmed three less-actionable items, but the tier interpretation remains aligned with published clinical thresholds.

What does the score do for you?

Two things:

This score is not a diagnosis. It’s a structured way to talk to your provider. The OPTML physician will review your score, your medical history, and (typically) labs, estradiol, FSH, TSH, A1c, and a metabolic panel, before recommending a protocol.

Hormones built you. Bring them back.

Bioidentical estradiol and progesterone, prescribed online by U.S. licensed physicians, calibrated to your numbers. The HRT bundle starts at $199/mo, consult, medication, and ongoing monitoring included.

Explore OPTML HRT →
Educational purposes only. The Perimenopause Symptom Score provides educational estimates based on published clinical formulas and peer-reviewed research. It is not medical advice, does not constitute a prescription, and is not a substitute for evaluation by a licensed clinician. All medical decisions, including any treatment, medication, or dosing recommendations, are made exclusively by a U.S. licensed physician after individual patient evaluation through OPTML's intake process.
Methodology & Sources Click here for the formulas, datasets, and peer-reviewed studies behind this tool View details ↓Hide ↑

How this tool calculates

The symptom score uses the validated Greene Climacteric Scale, a 21-item instrument that assesses psychological, somatic, vasomotor, and sexual symptoms commonly associated with the menopausal transition. The tool is educational and is intended to support a conversation with a clinician — it does not diagnose perimenopause.

Peer-reviewed sources

  1. 1.Greene JG. Constructing a standard climacteric scale. Maturitas. 1998;29(1):25-31.
  2. 2.Harlow SD, Gass M, Hall JE, et al. Executive summary of the Stages of Reproductive Aging Workshop +10: addressing the unfinished agenda of staging reproductive aging. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2012;97(4):1159-1168.
  3. 3.The 2022 Hormone Therapy Position Statement of The North American Menopause Society. Menopause. 2022;29(7):767-794.
  4. 4.Stuenkel CA, Davis SR, Gompel A, et al. Treatment of Symptoms of the Menopause: An Endocrine Society Clinical Practice Guideline. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2015;100(11):3975-4011.

Important. This tool is provided for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. The tool does not prescribe medication, recommend specific dosing, or substitute for clinical evaluation. Compounded medications referenced anywhere on this site are not FDA-approved; the FDA does not verify the safety, effectiveness, or quality of compounded drugs. Treatment decisions are made only by a licensed U.S. physician after individual patient evaluation.