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LauraCoth
Posts: 303 Member
Is there anybody out there? 
So -- I just turned 60, started menopause early at age 42, and since then have suffered terribly from insomnia. Because I was unable to work on 2-4 hours of sleep a night, my GP gave me a prescription for Ativan, which I took for 15 years, until I retired at 56.
I'm one of the lucky people who was able to wean myself off the Ativan easily, but of course the insomnia came back, and with the hot flashes and anxiety attacks in the middle of the night.
I find doctors to be fairly clueless about menopause and treating the symptoms, so I've been consulting with a licensed naturopath, She's got me on tryptophan and bio-identical progesterone, which has helped enormously.
Lack of sleep robs us of our joy. We can function, but we aren't really living. It's a curse. I still struggle, but things are better now.
So -- I just turned 60, started menopause early at age 42, and since then have suffered terribly from insomnia. Because I was unable to work on 2-4 hours of sleep a night, my GP gave me a prescription for Ativan, which I took for 15 years, until I retired at 56.
I'm one of the lucky people who was able to wean myself off the Ativan easily, but of course the insomnia came back, and with the hot flashes and anxiety attacks in the middle of the night.
I find doctors to be fairly clueless about menopause and treating the symptoms, so I've been consulting with a licensed naturopath, She's got me on tryptophan and bio-identical progesterone, which has helped enormously.
Lack of sleep robs us of our joy. We can function, but we aren't really living. It's a curse. I still struggle, but things are better now.
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I started menopause in my 30's and was intolerant of the meds you name the side effect I got it. So at 40 I was just suffering miserably and I decided well I can't do any worse than the Dr's so I tried over the counter stuff. I found Sam-e and it has done wonders for me. things aren't perfect but I sleep better and I only get an occasional hot flash instead of what it was like and according to my last blood work it looks like my blood work is back to normal. Now according to my daughter who is a chemist I am taking crap something that isn't even FDA approved but she also has to say that my blood work has improved so what is going on. My Dr. says he doesn't care he has me down as taking the drug. Sometime you just have to go out there and do what's best for you.0
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Agreed. Whatever works. I take many supplements for things such as low stomach acid and adrenal insufficiency. My doctors says these things don't exist, but since I'm improving over time, he has had to acknowledge my success.0
