Not menopause, but perimenopause.. which can take years to go through..
the clots.. could be a sign of fibroids.. they are nonmalignant.. but will cause you to have a super heavy period which often is referred to as "flooding" because the way it seems to gush...... when you have fibroids.. they act as a block and when enough blood builds up.. it gushes past the fibroids... I know... that the nicest picture, but oh so true..
you should get checked for them... there is much literature on the net..
oh and 37 isn't too early to show signs of perimenopause... as mentioned, it can take years leading up to actual menopause..
and no, you aren't stupid... as women, I have found that we know less about how our body truly works than we think. we go through life, having a period and it's not until the period is upset in some way that we begin to really assess the inner workings of our body (men are the same)
it wasn't until I wanted a second child that I began to really understand what was going on in my body and then when I started having other issues (fibroids) is when I began to research even more so what was going on. the medical profession doesn't help much.. all they use are terms like your last period, midcycle... they knew really talk about what every stage of a period means... once I learned all about my hormones and at each stage................. WOW..... that is when I really began to understand that having a monthly cycle is so much more than bleeding...Once I started to understand hormones, fibroids and all that goes with it.. my life got a whole lot easier.... knowledge is power...
but it takes some reading and in my case, I chart my monthly cycle..
let me know if you have other questions. I've read up a lot on the cycle and fibroids..
good luck