Pre Menopause and Menopause struggles

Options
13

Replies

  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
    edited July 2017
    Options
    This chart was shared on the other perimenopause thread I linked to. I think it pretty much says it all! Not hard to appreciate why so many different, bizarre symptoms are linked to it!

    hylm4clpzfhn.gif

    Here's the article it was from:

    https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/publication/menopause-time-change/introduction-menopause
  • conchita962
    conchita962 Posts: 327 Member
    Options
    @syndnisd183 I'm surprised they prescribed Trazedone for hot flashes!! How would an antidepressant address hormonal issues? Interesting... I've been on Trazedone for sleep for many years.
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
    Options
    conchita962 wrote: »
    @syndnisd183 I'm surprised they prescribed Trazedone for hot flashes!! How would an antidepressant address hormonal issues? Interesting... I've been on Trazedone for sleep for many years.

    I don't have any personal experience here, but I'm wondering if the Trazodone is strictly to help with the sleep disruption, not necessarily the hot flashes themselves?
  • conchita962
    conchita962 Posts: 327 Member
    Options
    @try2again OMG! Itchy skin? For the past 2 weeks I have been getting random itchy bumps that come and go and it's been driving me nuts!!! >banging head on desk<
  • becky10rp
    becky10rp Posts: 573 Member
    Options
    I was prescribed Prozac for hot flashes/sleep - very low dosage - seems to be helping.
  • sydnisd183
    sydnisd183 Posts: 247 Member
    edited July 2017
    Options
    try2again wrote: »
    conchita962 wrote: »
    @syndnisd183 I'm surprised they prescribed Trazedone for hot flashes!! How would an antidepressant address hormonal issues? Interesting... I've been on Trazedone for sleep for many years.

    I don't have any personal experience here, but I'm wondering if the Trazodone is strictly to help with the sleep disruption, not necessarily the hot flashes themselves?

    I think I worded it wrong upthread, they help me to sleep through them, sorry about that. What happened to me was that I was sleeping through, but the flashes have been ramping up lately. Not the number of them, but the severity of the flash. It's enough to wake me up at night. It's happening more and more now. When I first started taking Trazodone, I woke up maybe 1x. Now i'm back to 3+.

    I've been having them since my late 40's. When will they end man....WHEN WILL THEY ENDDDD???

    haha
  • carterbrent
    carterbrent Posts: 91 Member
    Options
    I know several people that took effexor xr an antidepressant to help with the hot flashes
  • conchita962
    conchita962 Posts: 327 Member
    Options
    @try2again More than likely it was Rx for that. I don't hear or know about a lot of people that take that but especially for menopausal things so I was a bit surprised. Shoot..whatever works!!!!
  • Locolady98
    Locolady98 Posts: 92 Member
    Options
    Perimenopause here. About to turn 50. Major changes in energy levels, motivation, sleep patterns, mood swings, plus the fun stuff like night sweats...

    Here's the deal. Weight management *still* comes down to calories in, calories out. So, here are my thoughts about "new" strategies I need to adopt.

    1. I can NOT worry about "rapid" weight loss. 1 lb a week is FINE. Every day I engage in healthy habits is a day I'm healthier than yesterday.
    2. Gentler exercise is A-OK!!! Not up for a 5 mile run with wind sprints? No worries. How about a 3-mile brisk walk? Today I burned 250 calories going for a 3-mile walk. It was very nice. I enjoyed it.
    3. For the first time in my life, I'm thinking about sodium intake, due to retaining Niagara Falls sometimes. Okay. Lifestyle change. Just be aware of salty foods, drink my fluids, and maybe squeeze some lemon into my water (that helps reduce water retention).
    4. Fitbit!!!! Every step counts. So, if I'm not setting aside a chunk of time for a workout, I'm still active, moving, and motivated to keep moving.

    Hang in there. This is a totally natural, 100% normal thing. If Mom could do it, so can I!
  • Locolady98
    Locolady98 Posts: 92 Member
    edited July 2017
    Options
    bonnielee708 wrote: »
    Hello everyone, I am 48 (for a few more days anyway) and just entering perimenopause. Saw my doctor this morning seeking a confirmation because my sleep patterns have changed dramatically in the last few months. While the flushing, sleep issues and irritability suggest perimenopause, I am still getting periods every month, so it is too early for HRT. My doctor shocked me my suggesting anti-depressants. Is this normal? Anyone here used them to help with symptoms?


    My doctor suggested them for me last year following a concussion, and the mood swings that brought on. They were horrible. Made everything way worse. And then going off them was even worse than that. I was a basket case for a full 2 weeks trying to come off them. I know that everyone reacts differently to them, but be sure to self-advocate. If you don't think you need them, it's ultimately up to you. I was shocked by how quick my doctor was to suggest them and write a scrip, and try to talk me into staying on them. Like I say, I know different people react differently, but for me, never again.
  • Ag_eyedoctor
    Ag_eyedoctor Posts: 1 Member
    Options
    I started menopause in my 30's, it's been over 10 years but I still have lots of symptoms and no motivation for exercise. :(
  • demusiks
    demusiks Posts: 1 Member
    Options
    I went into perimenopause in my late 30s. I'm 43 now. My doctor put me on Clompiramine due to all the anxiety I was having. It helps a lot and my hot flashes are way down. One of the off-label uses for my antidepressant is for menopausal symptoms.
  • Itisneeded
    Itisneeded Posts: 147 Member
    edited July 2017
    Options
    bonnielee708,- my doctor suggested anti-depressants to me too. My husband and children warned me not to take them, and I'm so glad now. It is not easy, but surround yourself with people who love you and don't be hard on yourself. I found making things-to-do lists very helpful for those really bad moments when you feel like you're going crazy. I would go to my list and look for another thing to do. It helped me focus on something else than what I was feeling.
  • JackRussellTerrierMom
    JackRussellTerrierMom Posts: 15 Member
    Options
    I'm 56 and had my uterus and ovaries removed at 48 due to Stage 4 Endometriosis and the extensive scarring it caused on these organs. I'm 5'5" and weigh 139 pounds. I've lost 26 pounds in the last three years. Since surgery, I use bioidentical estrogen gel for nighttime hot flashes. In my opinion, the daytime flashes were managable but nighttime flashes ruined my quality of life due to lack of sleep. I added bioidentical low dose testosterone cream three years ago because testosterone levels drop off much faster when ovaries are removed than for nonsurgical menopause. I do not have hot flashes or night sweats and my weight and energy levels are stable. My recommendations are to read everything that you can get your hands on and subscribe to research updates from Medline for menopause issues. Forbes just published, "Testosterone, Strong Enough for a Man, Made for a Woman" by Dr. Mok and it reviews recent research on hormone replacement. There are many good books out there but this is a new publication and has a good overview of current research. As far as weight is concerned, diet makes a far greater impact on weight than exercise, however, weight-bearing exercise is essential due to age-related muscle loss. For me, heavy weight lifting four times a week comes before cardio since muscle is metabolism. My body is not able to process food the same way it used to--especially carbs--so it became a digestive necessity to gradually stop eating most processed foods, sugar, especially light use of alcohol, and more than a few ounces of fish or meat at a time. I get most of my protein from whole plant sources. Probiotics are important but they have to be the right probiotics and fermented foods or prebiotics are a necessity. A good book on how hormones effect weight is "Maimonides and Metabolism: Physiology of Fat Loss." It is not a diet book or an eating plan but a review of recent research on how insulin, cortisol, ghrelin and leptin effect weight and evaluates diet trends, such as Paleo, Atkins and South Beach among others. I do not take prescription or over-the-counter medication aside from bioidentical hormone replacement. I totally empathize with the tough choices out there to treat menopausal symptoms. The medical community is limited in what they have to offer so my recommendation is read, read, read.
  • bonnielee708
    bonnielee708 Posts: 65 Member
    Options
    Itisneeded wrote: »
    bonnielee708,- my doctor suggested anti-depressants to me too. My husband and children warned me not to take them, and I'm so glad now. It is not easy, but surround yourself with people who love you and don't be hard on yourself. I found making things-to-do lists very helpful for those really bad moments when you feel like you're going crazy. I would go to my list and look for another thing to do. It helped me focus on something else than what I was feeling.

    Thank you! I have shared with my husband to help him prepare, too ; )
  • bonnielee708
    bonnielee708 Posts: 65 Member
    Options
    demusiks wrote: »
    I went into perimenopause in my late 30s. I'm 43 now. My doctor put me on Clompiramine due to all the anxiety I was having. It helps a lot and my hot flashes are way down. One of the off-label uses for my antidepressant is for menopausal symptoms.


    Thanks for sharing. I will start reading everything I can find.
  • bonnielee708
    bonnielee708 Posts: 65 Member
    Options
    try2again wrote: »
    This chart was shared on the other perimenopause thread I linked to. I think it pretty much says it all! Not hard to appreciate why so many different, bizarre symptoms are linked to it!

    Thanks for this!
  • bonnielee708
    bonnielee708 Posts: 65 Member
    Options
    [quote My doctor suggested them for me last year following a concussion, and the mood swings that brought on. They were horrible. Made everything way worse. And then going off them was even worse than that. I was a basket case for a full 2 weeks trying to come off them. I know that everyone reacts differently to them, but be sure to self-advocate. If you don't think you need them, it's ultimately up to you. I was shocked by how quick my doctor was to suggest them and write a scrip, and try to talk me into staying on them. Like I say, I know different people react differently, but for me, never again.[/quote]

    Yeah, I watched my mom go on Prozac following surgery in her early forties to remove an ovarian cyst. She stayed on it for almost a decade because she was terrified to stop. When she did, she was on the other end of menopause. I need to learn more about why off-label uses for anti-depressants have expanded to include perimenopause and menopause.
  • Picoides
    Picoides Posts: 16 Member
    Options
    try2again wrote: »
    Picoides wrote: »
    try2again wrote: »
    midlomel1971 wrote: »
    I'll be 46 this August. What are the signs of pre-menopause?

    https://patient.info/forums/discuss/66-peri-menopause-menopause-symptoms-you-may-experience-which-may-help-some-ladies-271903

    Thanks for posting that. I'm 47 and knew I was having perimenopause symptoms but there were a lot of things on that list that I'm having that I didn't realize could be perimenopause (the itchy/crawly skin, dizziness, teeth aching, tinnitus, etc.).

    Turns out, the itchy skin & dizziness are pretty common. http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10482404/is-it-over-yet-the-perimenopause-thread/p1

    Oh wow - I'm going to go dive into that thread! Thanks for the link!

Categories