Peri menopause moans

[DellaC]

Got my transvaginal scan today.

Just said to my VERY Irish husband 'I feel anxious and nervous about what they might find'
And without missing a beat the barsteward said 'I've lost my car keys...they're not gonna find them up there are they?'

Jeeeeeeez it's going to be a long day

 

[HotesTilaire]

It’s definitely very popular now and you can also stay on it the rest of your life. They didn’t used to allow it over a certain age. Trouble with Mariella and Davina is they went down the private route and testosterone is given as part of that whereas it’s hard to get it prescribed on the NHS.

I used to read a lot on a well known menopause forum and there were quite a few on there that HRT didn’t suit or made them worse.

I have decided for now to not take it.

Oh I had a great chat with a physio who tried to dismiss my symptoms as peri, and told me there was a simple solution - testosterone. Just an issue that you can’t get it prescribed in the UK
Anyway luckily the qualified doctor intervened and confirmed my actual diagnosis of ME CFS but you can’t let your guard down with healthcare professionals for a second,

 

[Unknown5]

I can’t stop sweating today. I feel vile, overweight and generally minging. Also got a permanent impending sense of doom.

 

[Nurseali]

Hope nobody minds I made a new thread. First time so fingers crossed I did it right. Will blame brain fog if I haven't

Perimenopause moans #2

A place to discuss perimenopause and all the issues that come with our Second Spring!

tattle.life

 

[AlwaysSummer]

I know what you mean. I'm 46, not really experiencing any obvious symptoms. Like you, slightly worse sleep and can get very low mood during PMS - but I'm also concerned that if I don't go on HRT then I'll be missing out on the benefits you describe.

I don't feel I warrant a GP visit yet concerning peri - so, I'm not sure what the answer is really.

It’s really frustrating due to lack of sufficient scientific research. I really feel women are all having to experiment on themselves to find out what works. I’m your age and looking back am convinced I entered peri somewhere around 39 when my periods suddenly became significantly heavier. Over the years I got tested and given different meds for making them less heavy which made no difference. Then 2-3 years ago period pain became something else to the point I’d throw up from the pain and dreading it every month. All scans/tests came back as normal. Add to this sleep issues, random joint pains, tinnitus, anxiety- I really had had enough.

As soon as I turned 45 I asked my GP to be put on HRT. However after a year on it and trying different types and strengths it made next to no difference to most symptoms with added bonus of random side effects. Worst of all I started putting on weight like never before having been the same weight for over 20 years.

One day in March this year I ripped off the HRT patch and never looked back. Instead I’ve been intermittent fasting consistently ever since. Since April my periods normalised to the point I hardly notice them now. I’ve lost the weight and feel more myself than I have in years. I take vit D and evening primrose oil as well as use a magnesium spray before bed. It’s taken time but sleep is much much better, anxiety is almost gone, aches and pains gone.

HRT works for loads of women for sure, but may not be suitable for everyone. The link between hormone imbalance and insulin, as well as conditions such as oestrogen dominance are really fascinating.

 

[Woolmercardington]

Wouldn't it be brilliant if we all had an assigned personal expert who could tell us exactly what we need? Things we're not doing/taking that would benefit us. Things we are doing/taking that are a waste of time. Things that could be making the process worse... or better.

Like, I've mentioned my constipation issue. I can't comfortably go without needing to take some stimulant, and even then it's hit and miss.

I never 'bother' my GP surgery with anything, but had a recent telephone appt with one of them regarding it because it's making me miserable.

Honestly, the GP made me feel like I was wasting her time. Like it was some trivial issue that I should just get on with. As soon as I mentioned I'd had IBS in the past and could have a tendency for a lazy bowel, she just leapt on that and wouldn't let go.

At one point, I felt like I was being questioned by a barrister rather than a GP, trying to trip me up regarding what I was saying. She kept saying I've had this problem all my life, which I never said ("Yes you did!!!") I've never even had an IBS diagnosis by a doctor.

Absolutely no care or regard for my concern about it, and she basically just encoraged me to become dependent on laxatives

 

[Notworthy]

I had really dry legs, since HRT patches it has all gone now also I did moisture ever night too

Honestly, I don't think there is a single part of our biology that hormones don't play a part in. The sooner Scientists actually do some hard research, the better.

 

[LadyLockdown]

I've been suffering with absolute rage (never had before). incredibly low mood, excruciating joint pain (mainly hip and neck but also other random aches across my body which obviously trigger instant health anxiety), insomnia, zero sex drive and random misuse / mixing up of words all of which has gotten progressively worse over the last 3 years or so. It was all so gradual that I only really realised what it could be in the last few months after (thankfully) exhausting all other terminal health conditions.

My husband has been largely incredibly supportive and has attended doctors appointments with me and just listened and hugged me in those really low moments.

However, what has really changed things for me is CBD oil and red light therapy.
I'm taking 3 drops 3x per day of 20% CBD oil (I worked up to this and it seems to be my sweet spot) and a bottle lasts me a month and costs about £20. We also bought a red light panel for multiple reasons but I swear my quality of life has increased 100 fold 95% of the time since using this and the CBD oil.
I still have occasional hormonal "surges" which tend to result in low mood but the effects are much shorter and as I can keep a journal now, I'm much more equipped to predict and manage it.

The red light therapy panel wasn't cheap (approx £1k) and I know there is a cost of living crisis but I would honestly recommend it if you can afford it and it can be beneficial to the whole family too.

 

[Hold my beans]

I've started taking a photo of my car with a shop or whatever in the background so I can find where I've parked

 

[petitspois]

Linked to poor @Kittylover2019 's night, isn't it amazing what our uteruses are capable of? I guess many of you googled it and saw how small it is yet it can grow to accommodate babies. Just wish our hormones wouldn't let us down at the end of it all.

 

[50sGirl]

Please just let me have one decent night’s sleep once in a while.
I’m sick of being wide awake at stupid o’clock.

 

[Hold my beans]

True saying that youth is wasted on the young

 

[kachoochoo]

well, since my last post in this thread, my body decided to rebel and I've been bleeding non stop for two weeks and omg am I exhausted

I hate this

 

[veronica71]

I do wonder if GP's are on some kind of commission with the coil as they really push it hard

 

[sistersofpercy]

I'm 49 now and 12 months in on evoril patches. GP initially told me I was fine because my bloods came back normal... er I was on the pill, of course ill have a hormone level.
After another refusal and the mother of all rows in which frankly I think I terrified him by presenting him with a 6 inch pile of paper work covering NICE guidelines and my symptoms, he prescribed evoril sequi. Within a few months I was back to feeling me again. I'd stopped wanting to leave the house and that subsided, my figure changed and I seemed to be less 'dumpy' and back to curvy, my hair was thicker and I'd got a sex drive again.
I honestly feel great. I'm having semi regular periods which is annoying as they had stopped completely with the pill, but it's worth it to not have symptoms.

If you are struggling to get prescribed HRT refer your GP to NICE, especially the bit that reads:
"Diagnose the following without laboratory tests in otherwise healthy women aged over 45 years with menopausal symptoms"
Find it in yourself to get angry.

 

[Notworthy]

I had a chat with my GP this morning because I've been very conscious of the peri thing and he actually told me that he's worried too many women are chalking things up to that at the moment, that you do need some clear signs like proper hot flushes and a year of no periods before it's worth looking at blood tests and whatnot.

Can't recommend tracking everything via an app like Clue enough; you can tag your own monthly weirdness like specific moods and pain as well as all the fairly standard issues, it really helps with keeping an eye on cycles and what's "normal" for you.

Your GP is talking absolute tosh. I have a mirena so haven't had a period since I was about 35 and I've never had a hot flush. I only realised I was in Peri when I mentioned to a friend that I was becoming scatty and forgetting things/losing things and she suggested menopause. When I went and checked the symptoms I had 4 or 5 of them.
Tracking is an absolute must, even things like bowel movements and peeing change during the month. I'd recommend any woman track from puberty onwards to learn their specific signals. It really can be life changing.
ETA This isn't a Male GP issue, it's a GP issue overall. I've had Female GPs just as bad. It comes from ignorance, 1 even admitted to me that all she knew about Peri was what her patients had told her.

 

[Baby Giraffe]

I am so forgetful, and I don't realise I've made a mistake until days later. Its awful and so embarassing.

Also, why are we given HRT instead of things to help us adjust to lowering hormone levels, surely HRT just delays things?

It's not just a nice smooth lowering though, during peri our progesterone tanks and oestrogen goes up and down all over the place before eventually tanking too. HRT helps level out the fluctuations so making life much better if you are in the right one for you, menopause still happens but should be more in the background, its not delayed. There are things that can help your body adjust, good diet and exercise for example and I find cold water dipping useful but that doesn't actually replace the hormones we're missing so doesn't protect our bodies and there is increasing evidence that long term hormone depletion increases the risk of alzhiemers, heart disease and osteoporosis so the more I investigate the more I support the early and long term use of modern types of HRT for most women.

 

[zetta buttons]

My rage is off the scale. Period ended last week. Another brewing now. Bloating so I resemble a puffer fish.

Ffs.

 

[ThisIsMyGuiltyPleasure]

It's just so hard accepting you are changing. I just don't even look like myself anymore. I feel like iv lost a part of myself. I don't know how to explain. I just look tired, old and saggy. That's how i feel. And my emotions are everywhere too at the moment, I'm finding peri very hard I can't lie. I feel like I'm saying goodbye to myself xx

It is very hard, and I suppose technically we are saying goodbye to one phase of our lives before we move onto another. I am finding it hard myself because I sort of feel like an invisible woman now. I've brought up my kids and they're moving on with their lives but I chose to be a stay at home parent and now am one of the so called economically inactive despite my best efforts. I think us women seem to get it from all sides.

 

[MrsM79]

My hormones are just all over the place at the moment. Ive not bled this month and I’m about 11 days late and know I probably won’t bleed but last time I didn’t bleed the next month bled for 6 weeks. I woke up yesterday morning really really horny which I’ve not really felt for months.
Then I’ve been awake most of the night with the worst anxiety ever. Feeling sick, dizzy needing the toilet and just had that feeling of impending doom. Literally all night. I’ve never felt that way before. I had a really good day yesterday. But come the evening felt like I was going to die.

I’m going to try and contact my doctor today to arrange some blood tests just for my peace of mind more than anything.