hot flushes from menopause

MarilynMonroe_2

My mam used to have those hand held fans and also a big fan in the kitchen. Wear breatheable material and live in sandles.
She used to say you think your problems end with menopause but they are just actually starting!!
It might help also if you don't let dics help you (I know it was a typo but it tickled me!!) x

marmitepotato

summerof0763 wrote: »

lol ah got all these except the dry wirey hair and weight gain, been really realky down, weepy.

I was getting very occasional hot flushes for about the last year or so but, this last month has been horrendous, I literally dread the thought of years of this!! x

Oh the hot flushes! I was at my very worst and having at least five an hour when working with an office full of men and I was the only woman. I was also being made redundant as well, my sister was dying from breast cancer...... It was very very stressful, and it made me very emotional but I had to keep the emotions together at work.


Months and months followed by years and years of hot sleepless sweaty nights. My doc wasn't much help to start with because of my sisters cancer and how HRT could bring it on in me. It's been five years, I still get hot flushes but not as many. The feelings of despair ( especially at night) come and go, the weight gain, wiry hair, and other things go on and on.......sigh.... My mum is 76 and still gets hot flushes, so what hope is there for me? Sigh...........:(

On the good side....You can go on holiday and not have to take tampons etc!

MarilynMonroe_2

This might sound weird but one way too cool down is if you lick your finger and rub across the top of your ears, eyebrows and nose tip!

zaksmum

Horrendous. I also used the chillow but it left huge crease marks down my face by morning.

I would suddenly absolutely drip with sweat and the heat that washed over me was beyond belief.

I found HRT alleviated all the symptoms but my GP decided I should stop it when I hit 60. So they came back with a vengeance.

I just rode out the storm and I'm through it now, thank God.

But I'd have stayed on HRT forever if I could have.

pmlindyloo

Another one who was saved by HRT.

This was 25 years ago before all the hype about HRT.

I was going through a horrendous menopause at a relatively early age (40), working full time and really struggling. (all the female members of my family have suffered badly)

I literally 'dripped' everywhere, had horrid dreams, got no sleep and was walking around like a zombie. I was really at the end of my tether.

I had an amazing doctor who talked me through the pros and cons of HRT and said I needed to weigh up my quality of life with the possible downsides of HRT. For me it was no contest. After a couple of weeks I felt amazing.

I stayed on it for nearly 20 years (!!!!!!!!!!)and came off when I retired.

Yes, the symptoms came back (not so bad as before) but because I was not working I could cope.

A user of another forum suggested I visited a medical herbalist. (never heard of such a thing!) I decided to give it a try. She did a full medical history and spent a long time talking to me. The results of the new pills were very good. Not as good as HRT but still good. Also very expensive.

The herbalist insisted that I showed the doctor what I was going to take and he was very supportive.

I tried all manner of over the counter 'cures' and spent a fortune. None of them were effective. Plus having read up about some of them I knew you need to be very careful as they may have side effects/not be suitable for you if you have other medical conditions.

Whatever, you choose to do/take, please run it through with your doctor and do some research.

A medical herbalist may not be your 'cup of tea' but I was impressed with the level of knowledge and exploration before any treatment was prescribed.

If you decide to try this route you need to go through the registered medical herbalists.

See here for your nearest one:

http://www.nimh.org.uk/?page_id=1627

Good luck with finding something that helps.

Gleek

Thanks for the hints. I'm not suffering from the menopause (I'm in my late 20's) but I do think I have hyperhidrosis and I'm absolutely soaked to the skin very easily, even in winter. I don't actually have a winter coat because I get that hot that just a cardigan will do most of the time.

I've bought 2 of the cheapest cooling scarves I could find on eBay last night & one left here if anyone wants one to give it a try for £2 inc postage (Not associated with the seller, just sharing a bargain). Got the other for my mum who has been going through the menopause for a long time and is really suffering with hot flushes, especially at night.

If it works, I'll definitely look into the others. I can't wait to try it, it sounds like it might really help.

I'm a little torn with the chillow though, I've read up about it and lots of places are saying that they don't last long or they spring leaks - whereas others are saying they're really good. Seems like it's the look of the draw.

The doctor did say sage and soya might help. I tried sweetened and unsweetened soya milk but I really don't like the taste and as I batch cook I try and put sage in as much as possible. I didn't realise there was sage tablets though - will definitely look those out on Monday. Thanks very much for the heads up

kitekat

My practise nurse recommended Promensil which i have been taking for a year and the hot flushes have stopped.I used to buy them from iherb as they were affordable but have discovered them on Amazon for around the same price.

Ms_Chocaholic

Although I've not started the menopause yet, I'm reading this thread with interest as I can't imagine it will be too long away.

I'm interested in items that can keep me cool - scarves and such like. I see people recommend the Chillow Pillow, I think I will buy a couple of these http://www.chillerz.com/ instead, they're meant to be for food but they stay frozen for several days at a time.

Just wanted to let others know in case they're interested - I'm not connected in any way.

Torry_Quine

I will have a look for those scarves.

I get my sage from Healthspan as they are much cheaper than Vogel tablets and very few places seem to have them.

aggypanthus

I have been luckier than most, my flushes are very slight so I just use a very cold wet cloth to wipe face and around neck. Also it can abate for months at a time, then resume.
BUT I have zero energy, weight gain around the middle, its awful to spot each new saggy bit of flesh as it sneaks up, on the arms, around the knicker line ,all odd places! And my forearms in close up when I wake is horrible!!DRY ! eek!

IsHRT a waste of time, if the symptoms just come back? I got some patches but the doc knew very little about it, so far I havent used them.