does the menopause ever end?

EdInvestor

Hi there

WishI'dReadSooner wrote: »

No HRT but 8 years of horrendous hot flushes/sweats. Thankfully this year they appear to be getting less frequent.

Mood swings were really bad initially but seem a bit better now....

Giving up smoking ....

...I'm starting to see a small chink of light at the end of this very long tunnel, I hope, with the numbers of hot flushes going down.

Just pointing up the positive aspects of your post:)

It might be worth going to the Doc and getting a hormone test done to check your oestrogren levels, just to confirm what you are feeling: also if you can, an update on the fibroid situation, are they showing signs of shrinking yet, sounds like they should be.

vivmagb

Just a quick PS to my last message, I have been told that St Johns Wort could be of some help. It claims to help depression, so I ask myself does the tiredness help cause the depression or is the depression causing the tiredness?

seven-day-weekend

But I think your Doctor is right, it IS a female thing and it WILL stop. (I am a woman by the away!).

I think taking HRT for long periods only delays the symptoms and you will have them again whenever you stop taking it.

Do you work? If not, do what they do here in Spain and have a siesta in the middle of the day. I do it frequently after several bad nights and it really helps. An hour or two's sleep works wonders!

I'm well aware though that I have been very lucky and not had any hot flushes, so maybe it is easy for me to talk. Please believe I am only trying to be positive.

Rossy28_2

I have found that sleeping in a bedroom with no heating on and keeping as cool as you can at night lets you sleep well.

Errata

WishI'dReadSooner wrote: »

No HRT but 8 years of horrendous hot flushes/sweats. Thankfully this year they appear to be getting less frequent.

By horrendous I mean going bright, bright red & the sweat dripping off my face. I HATE going shopping as I always get them at the checkout & I'm sure some people must think I'm trying to shoplift or something like that!
Haven't worn make-up for 8 years as it would just melt off me.

Blood pressure up, thyroid down. Mood swings were really bad initially but seem a bit better now. It's the loss of mental faculties that gets me as since I started the menopause I just can't concentrate for long & things that would have taken minutes in the past now seem to take hours. The loss of vowels is upsetting too. Weight gain of 5 stone & I just can't get it off. Giving up smoking added to the weight gain recently.

Insomnia, irritability, joint pain, crushing tiredness, low libido, anxiety, itching, hair loss - you name the symptom & I've have/had it. I also have humungous multiple fibroids - the largest being 10cm - I have been assured that eventually these will shrink. I was offered a hysterectomy this year but I really don't want one as I've suffered for 8 years with them - it can't go on that much longer - can it?

Have tried everything - dong quai, sage, black cohosh, wild Yam, ginseng, soya, DHEA etc. etc. I've even tried hypnosis & accupuncture. EFT sometimes works on some of the symptoms - but not always. www.emofree.com

We've worked in the alternative health field so I've probably tried just about everything on the market & some things none of you would have heard of too. I WISH I had the solution.

Getting old has never been a worry for me. I was actually looking forward to going through the menopause as had dreadful flooding during the curse years.

I wish there was a magic cure - I've searched hard for it but haven't found one. I also wish someone could tell me definately how mush longer this is going to last. I'm starting to see a small chink of light at the end of this very long tunnel, I hope, with the numbers of hot flushes going down.

Men are SOOoooooooo lucky not to have this!

TED - are you female?????

Do you have your thyroid function tested regularly? Many of the symptoms you describe can also be due to hypothyroidism. Perhaps you're borderline, but need a teeny dose of Thyroxine? I would guess that your multiple and large fibroids could be undermining your general health also.
Sorry this may not be much help, and I hope I haven't assumed anything I shouldn't have. If men got it something to releive the symptoms would have been discovered about 2000 years ago. Just in case Ted can't reply, yes - he's a bloke and very gungho about supplements. Wouldn't care to try the diet he linked to ............ looks a bit unbalanced in the fruit and veg dept to me, but each to his own. HTH

Ted_Hutchinson

Errata wrote: »

Do you have your thyroid function tested regularly?

Vitamin D deficiency and thyroid diseases

Just in case Ted can't reply, yes - he's a bloke

Agreed but that doesn't mean I cannot read or provide links to research on woman's matters does it?

very gungho about supplements.

Gungho implies an excessive zeal which I do not accept is a reasonable comment. I only ever provide links to supplements that have a good evidence base that provides sound reasons to support their usage for that particular symptom. The health benefits of Linseed for example if you look at the side panel here Flax Seed And Menopause will do more than just improve the hot flashes.

looks a bit unbalanced in the fruit and veg dept to me, but each to his own. HTH

Come be fair.
I'm still getting my 5 a day. Today I've eaten Blackberries and apple for breakfast, an orange, a pear.

I've still a freezer full of raspberries, strawberries and blackcurrants that need eating up before the new season so I'm certainly not going to miss out on them.

It's only grapes and bananas that I'm missing out on in the fruit department at the moment and dried fruits.

As for veggies if you can pull it out of the ground or pick them their fine also. So it's just potatoes, sweet potatoes & rice that I've eliminated.
So today I've had carrots, tomatoes, onions, garlic, broccoli, lentils, herbs.

Don't forget that adding ground linseed to meal will tend to slow the metabolic process and reduce insulin loading.

More to the point it's stopped my craving for food and alcohol so it's dead easy for me. No calorie counting, no support groups, no financial outlay just rapid steady predictable weight loss.

I've just got to go and put another hole in my belt. I've lost so many inches off my waist I need to either buy another belt or make some new holes.

PS If you would like me to list the research Dr Larry (yes he's a man also) McCleary used for his article on Hot Flashes I'm quite happy to but be warned there are 43 listed citations.

seven-day-weekend

Rossy28 wrote: »

I have found that sleeping in a bedroom with no heating on and keeping as cool as you can at night lets you sleep well.

Yes this helps my Restless Legs Syndrome too.

clipboard2

Hi Everyone

It occured to me that younger women reading this thread might be forgiven for dreading the menopause as a result.
May I share therefore that I sailed through the menopause with no symptoms at all. So please, don't expect suffering/symptoms as as inevitable!

I had clockwork regular periods from age 11 until 49 (painful only during early teenage years). 49th year my cycle shortened: every 25 days, then every 3 weeks) then stopped completely at age 50.

For what it's worth, here's my lifestyle: I work 9-10 hours a day, 7 days a week on my feet all day. 2-3 days a week I go to the gym and swim 20 lengths (50 metres), then every 4-6 weeks I head to the South of France where I sleep 10-12 hours a night and lie on beach all day to recover! My weight is unchanged and my diet is nothing special.

So please be encouraged female MSE'rs .....

Oh, I haven't had children ...maybe that's it!!

WishI'dReadSooner

I haven't had children either clipboard2 - although I do have 2 gorgeous stepdaughters & a lovely granddaughter - there goes that theory! Friends of mine have sailed through menopause with NO symptoms whatsoever, just stopped, bye bye periods. I wish!

One thing I have & I'm extremely grateful for is a very understanding & caring husband. A lesser man would have run away from me in much haste as I know at times I've been a total nightmare to live with, my mood swings have been horrendous. I actually can feel the switch turning on. Nice mannered caring me turns immediately into the nightmare crazy wife from Hell that finds fault with everything he says & does. Poor man - bless him!

Vivmagb - St Johns Wort will help BUT it can also interact with some drugs. If your doc says you can take I'd go for it. I came off because one of the drugs I went on it could possibly have interacted with. It was the lack of sleep & energy + the brain fuzziness that got me down but taking St Johns Wort just for a few months did help. I'm not the depressive type (honest! lol - if I had been I think I'd have put myself down by now!)

Margaret - i know what the menopause is supposed to be - it's when everything stops. Unfortunately although I became perimenopausal about 15yrs ago (and had a few times they said i was Post) I didn't get the FULL menopause label until 8 yrs ago. My hormone levels dropped for well over a year & my wonderful female doctor informed me I'd finally reached it - YIPPEE! Everything stopped for over a year & I was more than happy to waer the label BUT

I must be a very contrary person, or my body is - as the switch a few months later decided to turn itself back on again, hormone levels went back up to near normal. A few months later - off again. I've been under a gynaecologist for the last 8 years because of the fibroids & she also took my hormone levels every few months. Switch on, switch off etc. etc. etc. Always when we went on holiday too it decided to turn back on - sunshine??? Flooding horrendously for 1-2 weeks (I never do things by half) then hormone levels down to post menopausal level again????? I have stumpted 2 gynaecologists & my doctor - they say it shouldn't happen! It might, just might, (I personally think) have something to do with the fact that I worked in pharmaceutical labs with 100% eostrogen & progesterone in my 20's - on open lab benches not in fume cupboards???

Fibroids are still large & multiple. The largest has grown 1cm in last year but now they are all on the outside walls - my uterus is now clear inside. I can put up with them IF they will shrink - all the reading (& I've done lots & lots)I've done on the subject indicates that hysterectomy is NOT the only solution. I must admit to taking Nattokinase & I do feel that that helped along with some concentrated Reiki from both Hubby & myself (we are both Reiki masters) - we use it on others, but, as many people in the same field, we don't tend to ourselves as much as we really should! THAT'LL TEACH ME! The concentrated part only happened because the Gynae said I'd HAVE to have a hysterectomy before she went in with the camera again - what a prat I am! Now she has left the decision in my hands - I'm NOT going there!

Errata - I am on 150mcg of Levothyroxine & do get my levels checked regularly. I'm also on BP medication & check my BP regularly. I do feel that I need more Thyroxine but the docs like giving you as little as possible, which is understandable. I'm still hopeful that eventually when all these symptoms calm down & I do finally manage to lose weight (when we move to Turkey where we have loads of huge pools in the vicinity, it's flat so we can ride our bikes & we can actually afford to eat loads of wonderfully fresh tasty organic fruit & veg) that possibly I can reduce this & the BP medication. Having also worked for a large pharmaceutical company in the past & being privee to customer complaints/worries I really don't want to keep taking manufactured synthetic drugs if I can help it.

Ted - I really don't like the look of that diet. looks too much like the Atkins diet & that certainly didn't do a lot for him! It also didn't do a lot for the health of those that followed it if i remember correctly. I'll pass on that one.

EdInvestor - I'd like to think that I am positive BUT sometimes it does get you down a bit when it never seems to stop BUT I AM seeing the light & I am grateful at last to be seeing that it isn't as bad as it was.

Vivmagb - I've just realised one thing that REALLY helped me (not with the insomnia - as you can probably tell by the time of my posts) but with sleeping without waking up all the time sweating was buying a pure new wool duvet. It takes a bit of getting used to as for a few months it's very stiff & heavier than a normal duvet BUT it dramatically lessens the times you wake up dripping - very few totally unbearable nights since i bought it! I was willing to try anything plus I got a great deal - about £40 instead of £160 for a king size. Hubby loves it too. Heating - in the bedroom - are you crazy! Windows have to be open otherwise double glazing or no double glazing they are dripping!

Siestas - a wonderful invention Seven-day-weekend - what would i be like without them?

Working lifestyle before menopause - always either in management or running my own company, very confident, worked up to 12-14hrs a day 7 days a week. Took as many holidays as I could cram in - without jeopardising the business.
Gave up the business to look after mum full-time when she was terminal - major rethink on values - decided to enjoy life more & cut back on work to the detriment of having a proper social life/friends. What good is having all the good things if you haen't time to share?
Met & married wonderful man we set up a business together (far more laid back business in alternative health field) but also took lots of holidays & enjoyed life & working together.
Menopause (peri, pre, meno or post -for Margaret :-)) happened. Work became torture because of hot flushes, lack of sleep, lack of energy, impatience, inability to concentrate. OMG - let's knock this on the head!

What next? Finances gone down the shute in last few years - we've been living totally on rapidly diminishing savings. I still have little energy & my get up & go has gotten up & gone BUT I have a wonderful husband, we have a small place in Turkey & hopefully this year we'll move out there & live on the proceeds of selling our place here for 6 years till my pension kicks in. His will kick in 3 yrs later. We have done the maths & it is feasible. I have MUCH to be thankful for.

OMG - writing dia.....
I'm sure it'll happen one day soon - the sooner the better. I'll wake up & realise that I haven't had a hot flush for a day, then 2 days, then a week. I'm not having them every hour or less now - so I am thankful.
I AM starting to get vowels back - not always but I don't use as much sign language.
My mood swings are not as bad. I CAN be nice for a whole day now!
Hubby & I actually have laughed so much together in the last couple of weeks that we both have ached - a sign that things are looking up?
AND we've given up smoking - WOW!
All I need is for the insomnia to go - have thought about taking melatonin.
Energy boost - Ginseng again?
Mental faculties - DHEA again??

Vivmagb - I hope I haven't depressed you - I do think there is light at the end of this long tunnel for me & I sincerely hope you are over this curse soon. I feel for you and know what you are going through. A dear old neighbour of ours told me that she had appalling symptoms like myself which went on for many years BUT when she finally got out the other end ALL the health problems she had along with the symptoms also went away. She was in her 90's & as healthy & sprightly as could be - so I wish that for you & me.

Ted - you're the supplement King (sorry I thought you were a Queen - but it did say I in your post! ) any brilliant suggestions????

Careful_with_that_Axe

I was wondering whether to look at the forum for menopause info last night when my first period for 10 months started last night. And it's a biggie! I'm 44 and it's possible I've been peri-menopausal for 2 years. However, I do have some other significant health problems, so stopping and starting periods could possibly be due to this. Have a fabulous GP who understands and sympathises with relatively infrequent hot flushes etc, but would prefer this issue to be left on the back burner with no intervention for fear of disrupting other health issues. I'm on some pretty horrible medicine (I call it poison!).
I've found like the poster above that natural fibre bedding, cold bedroom really helps. Also I try to only wear natural fibre clothes and always carry wet wipes to freshen myself up after a "pressure cooker" moment.
However, I am obsessed with the idea of taking HRT! My Dad's wife once said to me it made her feel wonderful and I've fixated on this even though it will undoubtedly not have this effect on me. Also maternal history of osteoporosis which is a negative.
The mental fog I get is terribly annoying and distressing - particularly the word search - I know what I want to say and can go round it but can't land on the target.

Although my symptoms are insignificant in terms of what other posters are experiencing, it's all relative isn't it - it's what is happening to you.
Tips and suggestions here have been read with great interest - thanks.