Is It Over Yet? The Perimenopause Thread

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Replies

  • I searched and came across a forum where people have similar complaints.

    healthboards.com/boards/menopause/300665-prickling-burning-skin-perimenopause-anyone-else-have.html

    Also this page which specifically addresses these skin sensations.

    menopausehealthmatters.com/symptoms-of-menopause/menopause-itching/

    That sounds like a very annoying problem to have! I hope you can get some relief!
  • SueSueDio
    SueSueDio Posts: 4,796 Member
    Recently I've been getting that weird "crawling" sensation just on one shoulder blade now and again, along with a temperature feeling that's hard to describe... it might be either 'so cold it's hot', or maybe 'so hot it's cold', if you know what I mean! A strange kind of "burning" sensation that's hard to pin down. Feels very odd, but the crawling is the worst! Feels like a million ants climbing over my back. It usually lasts a couple of minutes or so and then goes away, and so far I haven't noticed it happening anywhere else.
  • hlblakeley
    hlblakeley Posts: 55 Member
    I just came across this thread and am so thankful I did. I started peri about 4 years ago when I was 38. Kind of on the young side but I started my periods very young so I kind of expected it. I went two years where I was not doing much in the way of having a period. I was having hot flashes, night sweats, mood swings (although they felt more like rage fests...I'd be fine then suddenly the kids dropped a gum wrapper on the floor and I turned into the hulk!) I went several months between actual periods, and loved it. Then my daughter started her cycle and after she got regular so did I. The downside... I'm still experiencing all the peri symptoms but now have a regular period and pms to deal with to! I am hoping that in the next year or so I'll go back to skipping a month or 12 :smile:
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,617 Member
    I searched and came across a forum where people have similar complaints.

    healthboards.com/boards/menopause/300665-prickling-burning-skin-perimenopause-anyone-else-have.html

    Also this page which specifically addresses these skin sensations.

    menopausehealthmatters.com/symptoms-of-menopause/menopause-itching/

    That sounds like a very annoying problem to have! I hope you can get some relief!

    Yeah, it is a thing.

    And as with my hot flashes, it comes just before and at the start of my periods. I presume that's when my hormone levels are the lowest, and if I could do the hormone thing, that would probably solve it.

    But I did have to have a bit of a chuckle about something ... so there I was all day yesterday with this "phantom sunburn" and feeling hot in general and having hot flashes periodically throughout the day and wondering why they had the heat turned up so high in my office when I noticed that one of my coworkers was putting on her jacket. I figured she was planning to go out in a moment, but she sat down and continued to work. Someone else came by and asked her if she was cold, "Yes, it's freezing in here" she said. :astonished: "Yeah, OK", I thought, "It is just me melting with hot flashes here."


    Anyway, today is a bit better ... only a mild phantom sunburn. The ol' hormone levels must be on the rise.
  • boopster99
    boopster99 Posts: 48 Member
    Ah yes, our devilish friend peri menopause. I'm just past 52 and have been told I've been in this cycle for about 5 years already. I was always super regular with menstruation but absolutely miserable with PMS most of my life. After some minor uterine surgery in 2009 my flow has been significantly reduced but the pain/PMS associated with my periods has never stopped and recently has become worse than ever. I'm still pretty regular - about 6 weeks apart now preempted by 2 weeks of miserable cramping, bloating and being hangry. And the hot flashes ... OMG ... there are days when it's -30 here in winter and I'm in the garage trying not to lose my mind. Night sweats are the worst, waking up in a sea of my own sweat but waking up only when I'm freezing. Ugh! My hot flashes are definitely triggered by consuming certain foods and beverages. And never mind the scale not moving for up to a month because of water retention and bloating. My latest weight plateau has been around a month long, hoping after this cycle I see some movement downwards, it's really disheartening to work so hard and not see any changes in the scale. And looking at yourself and seeing the bloat just adds to the dismay.

    OKAY, enough misery and venting - just think of how nice it'll be to get through this nonsense and be free!! :):):)

    Now, where's my wine? Oh wait, that gives me hot flashes ... :p
  • scarlet67
    scarlet67 Posts: 107 Member
    I messaged on here about a month ago after having my menopause medically induced due to being peri. At the time I messaged I was devastated at having it done, fast forward 6 weeks my hrt had kicked in its the best thing ever! ! Cannot believe the reservations I had but I'm like a totally different person. No crying no pain no flushes no headaches or mental blocks! ! I'm not here to tell my life story but please ladies if you are experiencing bad peri get help don't suffer you don't need to :)
  • Machka9 wrote: »
    I searched and came across a forum where people have similar complaints.

    healthboards.com/boards/menopause/300665-prickling-burning-skin-perimenopause-anyone-else-have.html

    Also this page which specifically addresses these skin sensations.

    menopausehealthmatters.com/symptoms-of-menopause/menopause-itching/

    That sounds like a very annoying problem to have! I hope you can get some relief!

    Yeah, it is a thing.

    And as with my hot flashes, it comes just before and at the start of my periods. I presume that's when my hormone levels are the lowest, and if I could do the hormone thing, that would probably solve it.

    But I did have to have a bit of a chuckle about something ... so there I was all day yesterday with this "phantom sunburn" and feeling hot in general and having hot flashes periodically throughout the day and wondering why they had the heat turned up so high in my office when I noticed that one of my coworkers was putting on her jacket. I figured she was planning to go out in a moment, but she sat down and continued to work. Someone else came by and asked her if she was cold, "Yes, it's freezing in here" she said. :astonished: "Yeah, OK", I thought, "It is just me melting with hot flashes here."


    Anyway, today is a bit better ... only a mild phantom sunburn. The ol' hormone levels must be on the rise.

    LOL! That's funny! When I was pregnant with my first baby I was in bed one night unable to sleep because of the unbearable heat. I was naked and barely even under a single bed sheet. I looked over to see my poor husband wrapped up in like 3 thick blankets. Another time during the same pregnancy I had called the apartment management because my AC "wasn't working". When the maintenance man knocked I opened the door and when he stepped inside he immediately got goose bumps from the cold. LOL! I feel bad for people who freeze when we feel like we are roasting!
  • Nixi3Knox
    Nixi3Knox Posts: 182 Member
    Bad breath about a week before my period! Holler if ya hear me!
  • SueSueDio
    SueSueDio Posts: 4,796 Member
    Ladies, can we talk about unwanted facial hair?!

    In the space of a few days I've had both my husband AND my son comment on my emerging "mustache"... It's only a few dark hairs right now but I guess it's only going to get worse in the future. I don't want to pluck them out because I'm sure that'll just make things worse when they grow back, so what's the best way to deal with it? Is bleaching the only answer?

    (I've also had fluffy hairs at the sides of my face for a loooong time - to me it always looks like I have very light sideburns and it's the main reason I'm reluctant to have my hair cut shorter, although other people don't seem to notice it. Any suggestions for that, or should I just put in my application to the circus as their new Bearded Lady now? ;) )
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
    SueSueDio wrote: »
    Ladies, can we talk about unwanted facial hair?!

    In the space of a few days I've had both my husband AND my son comment on my emerging "mustache"... It's only a few dark hairs right now but I guess it's only going to get worse in the future. I don't want to pluck them out because I'm sure that'll just make things worse when they grow back, so what's the best way to deal with it? Is bleaching the only answer?

    (I've also had fluffy hairs at the sides of my face for a loooong time - to me it always looks like I have very light sideburns and it's the main reason I'm reluctant to have my hair cut shorter, although other people don't seem to notice it. Any suggestions for that, or should I just put in my application to the circus as their new Bearded Lady now? ;) )

    Shhhh.... I'm trying to ignore the mustache hairs, and you bringing it up isn't helping! ;)

    The hair issue bothering me right now is my eyebrows. I've always had full eyebrows that didn't require any shaping or attention. Now it's like they've left their neat little packs and have begun roaming all over. And like you say, I remove one and 3 more grow in its place! *sigh*
  • Nixi3Knox
    Nixi3Knox Posts: 182 Member
    My eyebrows and eye lashes look horrid! They are very faded and barely there anyway.
  • jfrederick99
    jfrederick99 Posts: 3 Member
    I'm 38 (will be 39 next month) and while my doctor is not testing me (saying I am too young)... I believe I am peri. I have had hot flashes and night sweats. I call them hot flashes because I cannot not think of any other reason I would be running the ac with the windows rolled down in my car in 25 degree (fahrenheit) weather and still feel so hot that I am fanning myself and thinking about taking my blouse off. I typically go 3-4 months without a period. This last time was 6 months. When I finally had a period I was so hormonally imbalanced that I felt like a crazy person. I am typically described as nice, sweet, and caring... I honestly felt like a crazed she devil. I even picked verbal arguments with the people around me. What causes this? What corrects this? Six months is the longest I have gone without a period do the symptoms get worse the longer you go without one?
  • scarlet67
    scarlet67 Posts: 107 Member
    I'm 38 (will be 39 next month) and while my doctor is not testing me (saying I am too young)... I believe I am peri. I have had hot flashes and night sweats. I call them hot flashes because I cannot not think of any other reason I would be running the ac with the windows rolled down in my car in 25 degree (fahrenheit) weather and still feel so hot that I am fanning myself and thinking about taking my blouse off. I typically go 3-4 months without a period. This last time was 6 months. When I finally had a period I was so hormonally imbalanced that I felt like a crazy person. I am typically described as nice, sweet, and caring... I honestly felt like a crazed she devil. I even picked verbal arguments with the people around me. What causes this? What corrects this? Six months is the longest I have gone without a period do the symptoms get worse the longer you go without one?

    Ask for blood tests to check your hormones. You sound peri to me, I was exactly the same, I'm 49 though, insist on getting it done. I waited ages keep getting fobbed off. I'm now in a medically induced menopause and have hrt. Best thing I ever did. Don't let your quality of life suffer. I send best wishes
  • deetox68
    deetox68 Posts: 9 Member
    edited April 2017
    LAWoman72 wrote: »
    So I'm in a very weird place.

    Specifically, it's called perimenopause.

    I feel like this category warrants its own thread, since technically, we have not achieved menopause (12 months without a period) but we never know what's going to happen, when...and we only loosely why. (Or is that just me?)

    So, who's on board? Get on the peri train, woot! Here's the haps with this old bird. I am 49, have been in ovarian failure for I believe seven years now per labs but my periods only began to go wonky two years ago. Before that, I was like clockwork including ovulation signs so who the kitten knows. I assume it is basically cobwebs in there by now with some mummified Knight Templar propped up against one ovary or something, and yet...the periods just keep on coming. But...weirdly. Two in a month, nothing for a couple months, long, short, whatever.

    I am currently on my longest cycle ever - 90 days (I track on fertility friend).

    Is it over yet? Will it ever be over? Who knows...in the meantime...shout out if you're peri!

    I am 48 now and have not started the menopause at all yet...Yet started periods when was only 10 years old. But the Pill I am on stops my periods now.
  • Sumiblue
    Sumiblue Posts: 1,597 Member
    Argh, this is what I'm going through. I'm 48. My periods are irregular now and have been for months. I was driven to take Zoloft for severe PMS symptoms & I never had that.
    Hot flashes have started. I've always been prone to being cold but now, several times a day & night, I am stripping off layers to cool off.
  • fbchick51
    fbchick51 Posts: 240 Member
    I searched and came across a forum where people have similar complaints.

    healthboards.com/boards/menopause/300665-prickling-burning-skin-perimenopause-anyone-else-have.html

    Also this page which specifically addresses these skin sensations.

    menopausehealthmatters.com/symptoms-of-menopause/menopause-itching/

    That sounds like a very annoying problem to have! I hope you can get some relief!

    OMG.. THANK YOU!! I've been losing my mind over the past 2 years thinking it was my excema going insane and stressing why the usual remedies didn't seem to work.


    SueSueDio wrote: »
    Ladies, can we talk about unwanted facial hair?!

    In the space of a few days I've had both my husband AND my son comment on my emerging "mustache"... It's only a few dark hairs right now but I guess it's only going to get worse in the future. I don't want to pluck them out because I'm sure that'll just make things worse when they grow back, so what's the best way to deal with it? Is bleaching the only answer?

    Don't worry about plucking the hairs out. It's mainly a myth that more will grow back or that it will grow back thicker because you plucked. Not saying you won't see more, just that it has nothing to do with plucking!

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/27/does-tweezing-make-hair-grow-back-thicker_n_1705267.html

    I've been plucking chin hairs for years now and I'm not growing a full beard yet. Sure, there are more of them now that perimenapuase is having fun with me... but I've found plucking beats almost every other option I tried. Bleaching just changed the color, but the darker hairs are so much thicker that it still looked funny.

  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,617 Member
    Over the last 2 or 3 months ...

    I've noticed a connection between hot flashes and either my period or spotting.

    For some time, I've had hot flashes and night sweats the day or two before my periods start ... seems to happen when my hormone levels drop off.

    Well, more recently, it appears I've been having a mid-cycle hormone drop as well, during which time I have a whole lot of hot flashes/night sweats and I also spot for a day or two. This is what I'm doing right now. So much fun.

    I don't mind the hot flashes so much ... I just wish they weren't accompanied by nausea.
  • ronjsteele1
    ronjsteele1 Posts: 1,064 Member
    Machka9 wrote: »
    Over the last 2 or 3 months ...

    I've noticed a connection between hot flashes and either my period or spotting.

    For some time, I've had hot flashes and night sweats the day or two before my periods start ... seems to happen when my hormone levels drop off.

    Well, more recently, it appears I've been having a mid-cycle hormone drop as well, during which time I have a whole lot of hot flashes/night sweats and I also spot for a day or two. This is what I'm doing right now. So much fun.

    I don't mind the hot flashes so much ... I just wish they weren't accompanied by nausea.

    I just noticed this week that there is a pattern to my hot flashes as well. I seem to get them when I ovulate and right before my cycle starts. Both times are on the downward swing of my hormones at that time. I'm guessing this must be a common occurrence?

    Sorry you get the nausea to go with them. :-( I'm thankful I haven't had to deal with that.
  • Nixi3Knox
    Nixi3Knox Posts: 182 Member
    About a week and a half ago I suddenly felt like my face was getting hit with a blow torch like, all over. Is this a hot flash?
  • ronjsteele1
    ronjsteele1 Posts: 1,064 Member
    Nixi3Knox wrote: »
    About a week and a half ago I suddenly felt like my face was getting hit with a blow torch like, all over. Is this a hot flash?

    Sure sounds like it!
  • SueSueDio
    SueSueDio Posts: 4,796 Member
    I've been having a lot of short-lived ones recently that feel like I just opened the oven door or something similar. I'll be fine, then suddenly feel really hot and have to take off a layer. Then a few minutes later I'm cold again!

    I feel like one of my cats sometimes. "I wanna go out!" "I wanna come in!" "I wanna go out!!" Make up your mind, body... are you hot or cold?!
  • boopster99
    boopster99 Posts: 48 Member
    edited April 2017
    SueSueDio wrote: »
    I've been having a lot of short-lived ones recently that feel like I just opened the oven door or something similar. I'll be fine, then suddenly feel really hot and have to take off a layer. Then a few minutes later I'm cold again!

    I feel like one of my cats sometimes. "I wanna go out!" "I wanna come in!" "I wanna go out!!" Make up your mind, body... are you hot or cold?!

    OMG!! I just bust a gut laughing. This is TOTALLY my life with my 2 princesses ... meow, let us out, mmrrroww let us in, mrrowwww, let us out again, oh wait a sec ... MRROOWWWWW let us in!!!

    Oh wait a sec, we were talking about the flashes (and brain stalls obviously) ... and now the mood swings. One minute I'm Pollyanna and the next SOMEONE'S GONNA DIE TODAY! Jeepers! Anyone else driving through crazy town with me?!
  • Tmountainmom
    Tmountainmom Posts: 16 Member
    Just wanted to make a comment about hot flashes......I started having them last summer at age 48. Finally after months of major hot flashes throughout the day and night, I had acupuncture. They completely stopped after only 3 treatments. It's been 5 or 6 months since my last treatment and the hot flashes are gradually starting again, so am going to do the acupuncture again. Just wanted to throw that out there as option for relief.
  • ronjsteele1
    ronjsteele1 Posts: 1,064 Member
    Just wanted to make a comment about hot flashes......I started having them last summer at age 48. Finally after months of major hot flashes throughout the day and night, I had acupuncture. They completely stopped after only 3 treatments. It's been 5 or 6 months since my last treatment and the hot flashes are gradually starting again, so am going to do the acupuncture again. Just wanted to throw that out there as option for relief.

    Nice! So long as they don't do the pinky toes, acupuncture is awesome! Pinky toes? Not so much! They hurt! :s:#
  • SCoil123
    SCoil123 Posts: 2,111 Member
    Has anyone ever gone months without a cycle to then have them resume monthly on a regular schedule??? 3 months in a row now of really tough cycles physically but barely spotting exactly 32 days apart
  • Sumiblue
    Sumiblue Posts: 1,597 Member
    The emotional changes are worse than the physical ones, for me. I'm irritable & angry a lot. And, I have a young daughter daughter (5.5 yr old). I feel like a crap mom because I just don't have the patience to deal with my smart but very clingy & demanding child. I guess I'm thankful I'm not dealing with a moody teenager but my kid is def suffering from having a wackadoodle mom :(
    Anyone else dealing with parenting struggles and peri/menopause?
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    SueSueDio wrote: »
    Ladies, can we talk about unwanted facial hair?!

    In the space of a few days I've had both my husband AND my son comment on my emerging "mustache"... It's only a few dark hairs right now but I guess it's only going to get worse in the future. I don't want to pluck them out because I'm sure that'll just make things worse when they grow back, so what's the best way to deal with it? Is bleaching the only answer?

    Don't worry about plucking the hairs out. It's mainly a myth that more will grow back or that it will grow back thicker because you plucked. Not saying you won't see more, just that it has nothing to do with plucking!

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/27/does-tweezing-make-hair-grow-back-thicker_n_1705267.html

    I've been plucking chin hairs for years now and I'm not growing a full beard yet. Sure, there are more of them now that perimenapuase is having fun with me... but I've found plucking beats almost every other option I tried. Bleaching just changed the color, but the darker hairs are so much thicker that it still looked funny.[/quote]

    I've also been plucking chin hairs for years now with no regrets about the plucking. I'm 50 and these hairs are sometimes growing in white now.

    With just a few dark lip hairs I'd pluck them too. I have a faint blond mustache which I usually trim with a scissors and get waxed before big events. It looks sunburned for a few hours afterwards so I make sure to do this at least a day before the event.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    scarlet67 wrote: »
    I messaged on here about a month ago after having my menopause medically induced due to being peri. At the time I messaged I was devastated at having it done, fast forward 6 weeks my hrt had kicked in its the best thing ever! ! Cannot believe the reservations I had but I'm like a totally different person. No crying no pain no flushes no headaches or mental blocks! ! I'm not here to tell my life story but please ladies if you are experiencing bad peri get help don't suffer you don't need to :)

    Glad to hear you are feeling better!
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    Anyone else just warmer than their SO all the time? (Rather than hot flashes.) I am always turning the thermostat down on him. We are about the same amount of overweight; he may have a little more to lose.
  • Nixi3Knox
    Nixi3Knox Posts: 182 Member
    ALWAYS. Always hotter than everyone it seems.