If you know Penélope Cruz, you’ll know that she’s long been outspoken about women’s health — particularly when it comes to menopause and perimenopause.Emma Mcintyre / Getty ImagesAs board-certified OB-GYN Dr. Mary Claire Haver explained to BuzzFeed, “Perimenopause is when you begin to notice some of the symptoms when your body is starting to register that something's changing in your hormonal life. It can take 7 to 10 years until your period stops.” In other words, it refers to the time that the body naturally transitions into menopause.Back in 2019, for example, Cruz — now 52 — said in an interview with Tatler magazine: “Hormones rule the world ... I bet you weren't expecting to talk about hormones. OK. Hormones. There are times in the life of a woman that have to be acknowledged, and understood and called by their name. There are too many taboos surrounding women's bodies and I think it equals a big lack of respect. You might be thinking, 'What is the relationship between hormones and respect?' It's completely related. Words like 'period', 'post-partum depression', 'menopause'. Even today, those words, you bring them up at a dinner table, everybody gets nervous. Even if it's a group of women, if men are also at the table, the energy gets very nervous.”This week, Cruz and her "The Invite" co-star Olivia Wilde, who also directed the film, candidly discussed perimenopause in a chat with Allure.Valerie Macon / Getty ImagesWhen Wilde asked Cruz to share the part of perimenopause that she thinks is least discussed publicly, the "Vanilla Sky" actor said, “It can last 10, 12 years. It can start as early as 40. The ups and downs can be crazy.”“I remember when I was 41, and my doctor told me, ‘Your hormones are going to be doing this crazy dance for the next 10 or 12 years,'” she recalled. “I thought it was a really bad joke…I thought it was not possible to handle that.”Cruz explained that because she frequently developed cysts in her ovaries, she did indeed experience extreme spikes in her hormones — and still does to this day. “People have to know, because you have to prepare yourself,” she said.Wilde then asked Cruz to share one specific symptom that people “don’t often recognize is perimenopause.” “A lot of people have this idea that it’s going to be about hot flashes. That has never happened to me before,” Cruz said.Wilde then interjected, “You taught me about the frozen shoulder thing,” referring to what is scientifically known as adhesive capsulitis. According to Midi Health, “frozen shoulder may occur during menopause when hormonal changes lead to shoulder stiffness and limited movement, often causing pain.”After Wilde revealed that she learned about the frozen shoulder symptom from an unscripted scene in "The Invite," where Cruz's character Pína talks about perimenopause, Wilde credited the aforementioned Dr. Haver with giving her the knowledge.Reacting to Wilde and Cruz's candid chat, several internet users praised the duo for speaking so openly about what’s still viewed as taboo in many parts of the world. “I’m so glad we are finally having these conversations publicly, and my heart aches for my mom and grandma, and other generations of women before me who didn’t have access to knowing anything about perimenopause,” one Reddit user said.Jb Lacroix / Getty Images“I’m really, really grateful to notable women like these two and Halle Berry for talking about menopause. It's an issue that will affect a huge swatch of the population, and yet there's still so little understanding or information, or preparation that is done to help us understand what is happening to us and our bodies. Having women like Penélope and Olivia and Halle talk about their experiences, their symptoms, and do it so frankly and honestly will only help us have the conversation as a society,” another person agreed.Brianna Bryson / Getty ImagesMeanwhile, several people admitted that they were “petrified” after learning about the frozen shoulder symptom. “TIL that my frozen shoulder (that I’ve had for eight months) is likely due to perimenopause. Not Penélope Cruz being better educated in the menopause than the myriad of male doctors I’ve seen over the past five years,” one person said.Jb Lacroix / Getty ImagesCheck out the conversation for yourself here.RelatedOlivia Wilde perimenopausepenelope cruz