Is It Over Yet? The Perimenopause Thread

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Replies

  • Scarlettriestorun
    Scarlettriestorun Posts: 40 Member
    I always say it but HRT has been a miracle for me. I've been on it two years, I'm my old self now, loads of energy, no sweats or foggy head, I'm 51 and its literally saved me.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,610 Member
    I always say it but HRT has been a miracle for me. I've been on it two years, I'm my old self now, loads of energy, no sweats or foggy head, I'm 51 and its literally saved me.

    Unfortunately ... it could kill me. Blood clots. So I've had to go it alone, as it were.

    But if it works for some, that's great!
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,610 Member
    Machka9 wrote: »
    Yes, I go through the "usual stuff" as though my period is going to start ... but most of the time now, it doesn't. :) I'm hoping that eventually all the "usual stuff" will ease off.


    And then sometimes ... it does. Is It Over Yet? Nope ... apparently not.
  • garber6th
    garber6th Posts: 1,890 Member
    My gyno told me that the frequency and duration of my cycle would gradually decrease, that it isn't normal for your cycle to just stop, but that's exactly what happened to me. I am hoping I don't get surprised at some point but then again I wouldn't be too surprised if that happened!
  • whitpauly
    whitpauly Posts: 1,483 Member
    AgileK9 wrote: »
    So I went to the doctor and actually saw her Nurse Practitioner, whom I love, and she gave me lots of options. I haven't read through this whole thread so I'm not sure if this has been suggested before, but we decided on trying a product called Relizen which is a Swedish Bee Pollen.

    https://hellobonafide.com/products/relizen?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI-oz4_--T4QIVQbXACh1caAr9EAAYASAAEgIS0_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

    Anyone used it? She told me it's been used in Europe for a good 2 decades with great success. Unfortunately it takes awhile to work up to helping, like a month or two, but I'm much happier to give another non hormone treatment a try rather than hormones or antidepressants.

    I suggested Relizen a few pages back,it worked for me but is kind of pricey,I need to get back on it though cuz I'm going thru heck again and feel awful
  • icemom011
    icemom011 Posts: 999 Member
    whitpauly wrote: »
    AgileK9 wrote: »
    So I went to the doctor and actually saw her Nurse Practitioner, whom I love, and she gave me lots of options. I haven't read through this whole thread so I'm not sure if this has been suggested before, but we decided on trying a product called Relizen which is a Swedish Bee Pollen.

    https://hellobonafide.com/products/relizen?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI-oz4_--T4QIVQbXACh1caAr9EAAYASAAEgIS0_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

    Anyone used it? She told me it's been used in Europe for a good 2 decades with great success. Unfortunately it takes awhile to work up to helping, like a month or two, but I'm much happier to give another non hormone treatment a try rather than hormones or antidepressants.

    I suggested Relizen a few pages back,it worked for me but is kind of pricey,I need to get back on it though cuz I'm going thru heck again and feel awful

    @whitpauly , @AgileK9 .
    Is it a bee pollen in general that's supposed to be helpful, or something special about that one in particular? Asking because i bought bee pollen at the local market a while ago and i have been talking it.
  • whitpauly
    whitpauly Posts: 1,483 Member
    icemom011 wrote: »
    whitpauly wrote: »
    AgileK9 wrote: »
    So I went to the doctor and actually saw her Nurse Practitioner, whom I love, and she gave me lots of options. I haven't read through this whole thread so I'm not sure if this has been suggested before, but we decided on trying a product called Relizen which is a Swedish Bee Pollen.

    https://hellobonafide.com/products/relizen?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI-oz4_--T4QIVQbXACh1caAr9EAAYASAAEgIS0_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

    Anyone used it? She told me it's been used in Europe for a good 2 decades with great success. Unfortunately it takes awhile to work up to helping, like a month or two, but I'm much happier to give another non hormone treatment a try rather than hormones or antidepressants.

    I suggested Relizen a few pages back,it worked for me but is kind of pricey,I need to get back on it though cuz I'm going thru heck again and feel awful

    @whitpauly , @AgileK9 .
    Is it a bee pollen in general that's supposed to be helpful, or something special about that one in particular? Asking because i bought bee pollen at the local market a while ago and i have been talking it.

    Not sure, I think this blend is swedish bee pollen extracted especially so there's no allergens in it but I've googled and supposedly just regular bee pollen is supposed to be good for hormones too, Relizen also has a product for PMS called Serenol,it has chromium(I think alot!) The pollen and royal jelly,I didn't like it much cuz it made me feel kind of weird but I also maybe didn't give it long enough,the 1,000 mg of chromium scared me haha
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
    edited April 2019
    garber6th wrote: »
    My gyno told me that the frequency and duration of my cycle would gradually decrease, that it isn't normal for your cycle to just stop, but that's exactly what happened to me. I am hoping I don't get surprised at some point but then again I wouldn't be too surprised if that happened!

    I also thought it was supposed to be the case where things gradually wind down, but at least among my close friends (and a few posts I've seen here), a common experience seems to be a lengthy hiatus with an occasional episode of bleeding again.
  • garber6th
    garber6th Posts: 1,890 Member
    try2again wrote: »
    garber6th wrote: »
    My gyno told me that the frequency and duration of my cycle would gradually decrease, that it isn't normal for your cycle to just stop, but that's exactly what happened to me. I am hoping I don't get surprised at some point but then again I wouldn't be too surprised if that happened!

    I also thought it was supposed to be the case where things gradually wind down, but at least among my close friends (and a few posts I've seen here), the common experience seems to be a lengthy hiatus with an occasional episode of bleeding again.

    How lengthy of a hiatus? My periods just stopped over two years ago and since then nothing but the hot flashes.
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
    garber6th wrote: »
    try2again wrote: »
    garber6th wrote: »
    My gyno told me that the frequency and duration of my cycle would gradually decrease, that it isn't normal for your cycle to just stop, but that's exactly what happened to me. I am hoping I don't get surprised at some point but then again I wouldn't be too surprised if that happened!

    I also thought it was supposed to be the case where things gradually wind down, but at least among my close friends (and a few posts I've seen here), the common experience seems to be a lengthy hiatus with an occasional episode of bleeding again.

    How lengthy of a hiatus? My periods just stopped over two years ago and since then nothing but the hot flashes.

    Well, once you hit a year you are officially considered menopausal, so I would assume that's the end of it. Very fortunate for you! :) I was referring to women going a few months only to have it pop up again.
  • BecomingMoreAwesome
    BecomingMoreAwesome Posts: 151 Member
    whitpauly wrote: »
    icemom011 wrote: »
    whitpauly wrote: »
    AgileK9 wrote: »
    So I went to the doctor and actually saw her Nurse Practitioner, whom I love, and she gave me lots of options. I haven't read through this whole thread so I'm not sure if this has been suggested before, but we decided on trying a product called Relizen which is a Swedish Bee Pollen.

    https://hellobonafide.com/products/relizen?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI-oz4_--T4QIVQbXACh1caAr9EAAYASAAEgIS0_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

    Anyone used it? She told me it's been used in Europe for a good 2 decades with great success. Unfortunately it takes awhile to work up to helping, like a month or two, but I'm much happier to give another non hormone treatment a try rather than hormones or antidepressants.

    I suggested Relizen a few pages back,it worked for me but is kind of pricey,I need to get back on it though cuz I'm going thru heck again and feel awful

    @whitpauly , @AgileK9 .
    Is it a bee pollen in general that's supposed to be helpful, or something special about that one in particular? Asking because i bought bee pollen at the local market a while ago and i have been talking it.

    Not sure, I think this blend is swedish bee pollen extracted especially so there's no allergens in it but I've googled and supposedly just regular bee pollen is supposed to be good for hormones too, Relizen also has a product for PMS called Serenol,it has chromium(I think alot!) The pollen and royal jelly,I didn't like it much cuz it made me feel kind of weird but I also maybe didn't give it long enough,the 1,000 mg of chromium scared me haha

    Chromium gives me intense nightmares. It took about a week for me to figure out what was causing them. Lots of people take chromium with no problems though.
  • Anna022119
    Anna022119 Posts: 547 Member
    After a year indeed.

    Hot flashes will go on for much longer.
  • whitpauly
    whitpauly Posts: 1,483 Member
    Wanted to mention that Estroven has a new product out that contains Siberian Rhubarb as it's ingredient, supposed to help with alot of our symptoms,I bought it off Amazon and tried it for a few days but felt like it made me wake up alot to pee? Could have been something else tho so I'm gonna try it again this week and update
  • ChrisCatMama
    ChrisCatMama Posts: 1,038 Member
    I just turned 50 but I’ve been having peri menopause symptoms for about 3-4 years. Only the last 6 months my hot flashes are increasing and my period is getting weirder. I take black cohosh pills and a multivitamin. They seem to be helping a little. I’ve put off seeing the on/gyn for it cause I hate going to the doctor. 🤭
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,610 Member
    try2again wrote: »
    garber6th wrote: »
    try2again wrote: »
    garber6th wrote: »
    My gyno told me that the frequency and duration of my cycle would gradually decrease, that it isn't normal for your cycle to just stop, but that's exactly what happened to me. I am hoping I don't get surprised at some point but then again I wouldn't be too surprised if that happened!

    I also thought it was supposed to be the case where things gradually wind down, but at least among my close friends (and a few posts I've seen here), the common experience seems to be a lengthy hiatus with an occasional episode of bleeding again.

    How lengthy of a hiatus? My periods just stopped over two years ago and since then nothing but the hot flashes.

    Well, once you hit a year you are officially considered menopausal, so I would assume that's the end of it. Very fortunate for you! :) I was referring to women going a few months only to have it pop up again.

    I've gone something like 3 months without a period, 1 month, 4 months, 1 month, 1 month, 3 months, 2 months ... that kind of thing appears to be the "gradually winding down".

    My longest without so far has been 132 days. This last time I only made it to 80 days.

    Still, this is definitely better than having them every 21 days.

    I use Period Tracker to keep track.
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
    Machka9 wrote: »
    try2again wrote: »
    garber6th wrote: »
    try2again wrote: »
    garber6th wrote: »
    My gyno told me that the frequency and duration of my cycle would gradually decrease, that it isn't normal for your cycle to just stop, but that's exactly what happened to me. I am hoping I don't get surprised at some point but then again I wouldn't be too surprised if that happened!

    I also thought it was supposed to be the case where things gradually wind down, but at least among my close friends (and a few posts I've seen here), the common experience seems to be a lengthy hiatus with an occasional episode of bleeding again.

    How lengthy of a hiatus? My periods just stopped over two years ago and since then nothing but the hot flashes.

    Well, once you hit a year you are officially considered menopausal, so I would assume that's the end of it. Very fortunate for you! :) I was referring to women going a few months only to have it pop up again.

    I've gone something like 3 months without a period, 1 month, 4 months, 1 month, 1 month, 3 months, 2 months ... that kind of thing appears to be the "gradually winding down".

    Yes, that seems to be the case. What I had always thought was that the time would gradually lengthen- 5 weeks, 6 weeks, etc.- and the nature of the flow would change, as opposed to all the rules just going out the window. I now know that was very dumb of me :D
  • kds10
    kds10 Posts: 452 Member
    I am 50 and to this point have had periods every 25 to 27 days...now this month I am day 40 and no period ...is it starting? :(
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,610 Member
    kds10 wrote: »
    I am 50 and to this point have had periods every 25 to 27 days...now this month I am day 40 and no period ...is it starting? :(

    You could be starting the gradual tapering off phase of perimenopause.

    But don't be surprised if it is another 2-3 years yet before it's over.
  • kds10
    kds10 Posts: 452 Member
    Machka9 wrote: »
    kds10 wrote: »
    I am 50 and to this point have had periods every 25 to 27 days...now this month I am day 40 and no period ...is it starting? :(

    You could be starting the gradual tapering off phase of perimenopause.

    But don't be surprised if it is another 2-3 years yet before it's over.

    It's just weird to go from normal monthly periods for years to all of a sudden basically missing one ...I also have no other symptoms except for this very late period.
  • Lolinloggen
    Lolinloggen Posts: 466 Member
    50 here and definitely peri menopausal, though I don't have periods - I have been on the pill continuously for at least 12 years due to severe PMS and period pains.
    Having said that I recognise mood swings, big emotional blow outs etc as my PMS signs, combined with foggy mind and things just not going as I want. Hot flashes generally just in the night thankfully and the occasional really bad night.
    I have scheduled a GP visit to discuss the PMS symptoms and maybe go off the pill. We'll see
  • Anna022119
    Anna022119 Posts: 547 Member
    Interestingly my periods went from fairly regular to nearly non stop to completely gone for over a year now.

    Blood test at GP has confirmed the post menopausal stage.
    Hot flashes and brain fog still a thing though.
    Must admit that I often feel cold, so having two minutes of extreme heat is not a problem for me.
    (Just turned 48 btw).

    Hang in there!
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,610 Member
    50 here and definitely peri menopausal, though I don't have periods - I have been on the pill continuously for at least 12 years due to severe PMS and period pains.
    Having said that I recognise mood swings, big emotional blow outs etc as my PMS signs, combined with foggy mind and things just not going as I want. Hot flashes generally just in the night thankfully and the occasional really bad night.
    I have scheduled a GP visit to discuss the PMS symptoms and maybe go off the pill. We'll see

    I would go off the pill and see what your cycle is doing. My periods changed a lot in the last few years. When I was younger I used to have really painful periods but as I got older they became less painful, and now when I have them, I have to take panadol or something on the first day, but that's about it.
  • Lolinloggen
    Lolinloggen Posts: 466 Member
    Machka9 wrote: »
    50 here and definitely peri menopausal, though I don't have periods - I have been on the pill continuously for at least 12 years due to severe PMS and period pains.
    Having said that I recognise mood swings, big emotional blow outs etc as my PMS signs, combined with foggy mind and things just not going as I want. Hot flashes generally just in the night thankfully and the occasional really bad night.
    I have scheduled a GP visit to discuss the PMS symptoms and maybe go off the pill. We'll see

    I would go off the pill and see what your cycle is doing. My periods changed a lot in the last few years. When I was younger I used to have really painful periods but as I got older they became less painful, and now when I have them, I have to take panadol or something on the first day, but that's about it.

    I went off the pill for a while in my late thirties and it was h*ll. Pain was just bearable (I have a high pain threshold) but the PMS was not. So I am very reluctant unless under GP supervision
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,610 Member
    Machka9 wrote: »
    50 here and definitely peri menopausal, though I don't have periods - I have been on the pill continuously for at least 12 years due to severe PMS and period pains.
    Having said that I recognise mood swings, big emotional blow outs etc as my PMS signs, combined with foggy mind and things just not going as I want. Hot flashes generally just in the night thankfully and the occasional really bad night.
    I have scheduled a GP visit to discuss the PMS symptoms and maybe go off the pill. We'll see

    I would go off the pill and see what your cycle is doing. My periods changed a lot in the last few years. When I was younger I used to have really painful periods but as I got older they became less painful, and now when I have them, I have to take panadol or something on the first day, but that's about it.

    I went off the pill for a while in my late thirties and it was h*ll. Pain was just bearable (I have a high pain threshold) but the PMS was not. So I am very reluctant unless under GP supervision

    Everything started to change for me in about my early to mid-40s.

    Now I will add that I had DVT when I was 42 and was on Warfarin for a year ... that changed things a lot! But when I went off Warfarin at 43, I went into Perimenopause and everything went wonky.

    But yes, do it with GP supervision ... even Gynaecologist supervision.
  • dramaqueen45
    dramaqueen45 Posts: 1,009 Member
    I take Blac Cohosh to help with symptoms. I rarely have hot flashes anymore and I haven't had a period in over a year now.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,610 Member
    Bumpity ...
  • BecomingMoreAwesome
    BecomingMoreAwesome Posts: 151 Member
    edited May 2019
    Fun times. I’m starting to move from the phase of shorter than usual cycles to much longer than usual. I thought I’d like this better, but have learned to be careful what I wish for. I’m getting the pre-ovulatory cravings and water retention at the usual time, and then it takes me 2 weeks of up and down symptoms to actually ovulate. I remember seeing this chart in Taking Charge of Your Fertility 15 years ago and thinking that long pre-ovulatory cycles must really suck. Yes, yes they do.
  • ChrisCatMama
    ChrisCatMama Posts: 1,038 Member
    Does anyone else experience vertigo? I did look it up and found it’s one of the symptoms. I get teased a lot because I am a natural clutz to begin with. Nowadays it’s happening more often!
    Lately I’ve been going from a hot flash to being suddenly very cold.
    I can’t wait for this to be over!
  • OooohToast
    OooohToast Posts: 257 Member
    Does anyone else experience vertigo? I did look it up and found it’s one of the symptoms. I get teased a lot because I am a natural clutz to begin with. Nowadays it’s happening more often!
    Lately I’ve been going from a hot flash to being suddenly very cold.
    I can’t wait for this to be over!

    Yes, I've been getting vertigo for about 6 months - peri blinkin' menopause is the gift that just keeps on giving.

    It has got better since I lost some chub (still about 40lb to go though :( )

    I also take Agnus Castus which helps with moods and keeping me pretty close to a 30 day cycle (for now).