Is It Over Yet? The Perimenopause Thread

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Replies

  • dralicephd
    dralicephd Posts: 402 Member
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    I'm 2.5 weeks post-hysterectomy, so all that fibroid-driven unpleasantness is behind me now. :D They weighed 11 pounds. :o
    .

    Wow! 11 pounds!!?!?!? That's nuts! I hope you recover and feel better quickly. :)
  • dralicephd
    dralicephd Posts: 402 Member
    claireychn074 wrote: »
    (Ps in a few days I’ll be chill and right as rain again 🤣)

    This cracked me up. I know this feeling well. :D
  • justanotherloser007
    justanotherloser007 Posts: 578 Member
    Anyone else have insanity issues driven by hormones? I thought I would be angry, and have mostly been sad but sometimes I really have a distorted view of reality. P.S. when I was a kid I thought for sure I would be one of those dish wielding matrons... evidently I will have to constantly apologize until I can get past the brain fog and literal insanity.

    This just isn't going like I thought it would... I heard so much about angry peri-menopausal ladies
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    edited December 2022
    justanotherloser007 wrote: »
    Anyone else have insanity issues driven by hormones? I thought I would be angry, and have mostly been sad but sometimes I really have a distorted view of reality. P.S. when I was a kid I thought for sure I would be one of those dish wielding matrons... evidently I will have to constantly apologize until I can get past the brain fog and literal insanity.

    This just isn't going like I thought it would... I heard so much about angry peri-menopausal ladies

    Well, on the one hand you might just have a shorter fuse, which is perfectly normal, but on the other hand there might be an actual medical / psychiatric issue that you should get checked out.

    I'm adding the latter because your words indicate that it is much more than the former.
  • ythannah
    ythannah Posts: 4,371 Member
    justanotherloser007 wrote: »
    Anyone else have insanity issues driven by hormones? I thought I would be angry, and have mostly been sad but sometimes I really have a distorted view of reality. P.S. when I was a kid I thought for sure I would be one of those dish wielding matrons... evidently I will have to constantly apologize until I can get past the brain fog and literal insanity.

    This just isn't going like I thought it would... I heard so much about angry peri-menopausal ladies

    The closest I come to anything like that is an occasional odd sensation while I'm out walking that the ground is rising up toward me. It's not a feeling of falling, just this weird impression that the ground is suddenly closer to me than it should be. These episodes are generally accompanied by shakiness and I feel like I'm concentrating really really hard to just put one foot in front of the other. Fortunately they only last about 10 - 15 minutes and then I'm perfectly normal again.

    Somehow I don't think this is what you're describing, however.
  • ahoy_m8
    ahoy_m8 Posts: 3,053 Member
    Hi, MFP friends. Advice request. SIL just asked for Menopause Manifesto for Christmas. What are other companion gift ideas I can give along with?

    I don't know what symptoms bother her most. Last time she visited (they live in another state) she was down for the better part of a day with digestive flu like symptoms that she swore was menopause, not a virus. I didn't ask a lot of questions because she didn't seem like she wanted to discuss (and I do not blame her, actually.) The only thing I can honestly think of is Astroglide :D
  • glassyo
    glassyo Posts: 7,740 Member
    311ppb9zqodk.jpg

    Go for the humor. :)
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    My most recent GYN had nothing for me for me always being hot (not hot FLASHES - just always hot) and suggested I see an endocrinologist. He had hormone levels tested and said I had the estrogen of a young women. I'm 56.

    Oh, my other tests showed I am definitely not menopausal, despite my hysterectomy 8 weeks ago. My surgeon wanted to remove my ovaries, but I told her to leave them if they were healthy. Being an GYN/Oncologist, she pushed back, but I held firm. They were indeed healthy, and remain, floating around, but still producing hormones and keeping me from menopause.

    On the plus side, since discontinuing progesterone upon my surgery, I am somewhat less heat intolerant. And I am no longer bleeding, so no longer anemic. My hematologist said my iron stores are the best they've been in 10 years. :smiley:
  • claireychn074
    claireychn074 Posts: 1,608 Member
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    My most recent GYN had nothing for me for me always being hot (not hot FLASHES - just always hot) and suggested I see an endocrinologist. He had hormone levels tested and said I had the estrogen of a young women. I'm 56.

    Oh, my other tests showed I am definitely not menopausal, despite my hysterectomy 8 weeks ago. My surgeon wanted to remove my ovaries, but I told her to leave them if they were healthy. Being an GYN/Oncologist, she pushed back, but I held firm. They were indeed healthy, and remain, floating around, but still producing hormones and keeping me from menopause.

    On the plus side, since discontinuing progesterone upon my surgery, I am somewhat less heat intolerant. And I am no longer bleeding, so no longer anemic. My hematologist said my iron stores are the best they've been in 10 years. :smiley:
    That’s awesome news! 😀 bet you feel SO much better
  • justanotherloser007
    justanotherloser007 Posts: 578 Member
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    My most recent GYN had nothing for me for me always being hot (not hot FLASHES - just always hot)

    Right? It was 16 degrees here in Houston, TX and I was all like woo hoo!! Hey Frank (my pibull) we are going for a run!! And I was all like, how come a coat is too darn hot?? Yep, I am hot. I am so grateful we don't have a fireplace. Also, the hubby allows me to put the thermostat on 64 degrees because he loves me. Also, I tuck him in blankets.

    As for the temporary insanity, I think it is due to the STUPID BRAIN FOG + MEMORY PROBLEMS. If you want to know why that was all caps it is because I hate it sooooooooooo much. But my Mom went full on insane when she turned 40, so while I have been praying all my life, "Dear Lord and God, please help me to not kill anyone or go completely crazy when I hit menopause." I haven't killed anyone, so prayers are answered!! Also, I don't think I have gone completely crazy. I am never angry, but I cry all the time. So a little different from puberty, which is why I thought I might have problems with violence. I am so grateful that I don't! Again, praise God!!

  • ythannah
    ythannah Posts: 4,371 Member
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    Oh, my other tests showed I am definitely not menopausal, despite my hysterectomy 8 weeks ago. My surgeon wanted to remove my ovaries, but I told her to leave them if they were healthy. Being an GYN/Oncologist, she pushed back, but I held firm. They were indeed healthy, and remain, floating around, but still producing hormones and keeping me from menopause.

    Good for you for sticking to your wishes! A friend of mine had a similar argument with her OBGYN with regard to having an ovarian cyst removed vs whipping out the ovaries themselves. My friend has done a lot of research and it seems the ovaries still produce small amounts of hormones even in menopause so she wanted to keep them. Fortunately she won.
  • refactored
    refactored Posts: 455 Member
    Has anyone else noticed fluctuations in weight around what feels like should be TOM but ends up being missed?

    I am eating at my calorie target and exercising as usual. I haven't changed what I am eating substantially.
  • knotmel
    knotmel Posts: 80 Member
    Yes--along with other PMS symptoms, but no bleeding. I think of them as phantom periods. I went back on hormonal birth control to try to impose some regularity. Since then, it has been better (the amplitude of symptoms is lower), but not exactly like clockwork (things still aren't entirely predictable).
  • justanotherloser007
    justanotherloser007 Posts: 578 Member
    So I turned 50 this month! After two doses of IV iron, and the oncologist asking me "How often I usually get IV iron, was it like every two months?" lols. I mean, I think the last time I ended up anemic 6 weeks after the last dose. This was my fault for listening to the nurse who told me to stop taking my daily iron.

    I should have known that if I was anyone else, that would have been the correct thing to do to prevent too much iron in the blood. But I don't have to worry about that.

    I am holding out to keep all the womanly things, with no oblation. Also, I looked up some things to do for super heavy bleeding issues - that are non medical, or non-prescription. I saw on a couple of threads that it is possible that taking pro-biotics might help, since the gut has a role to play in properly regulating hormones.

    I started Culturelle for women. I have suspected for a while that I have had gut issues for my autoimmune stuff. I wanted to say this, because I will be back to tell you if it helped or not in a few months.

    P.S. I like how the oncologist was all like, "Oh, you will probably finish and be in menopause in a year." Which I heard 3 years ago. Soooo, I kinda felt like... why do doctors say stuff like this?? Especially after I had 2 super heavy periods back to back that were 11 days and 7 days respectively?? I mean, it is just cruel.
  • claireychn074
    claireychn074 Posts: 1,608 Member
    Well I started HRT a month ago (it was either that or I was going to pay privately to get a hysterectomy as I can’t cope with the constant heavy bleeding any more). And I look like a puffer fish. I’ve always become bloated near my period and I am good at holding water (must have been a cactus in a previous life) but wow, I am like a water balloon 😳

    Hoping this is a side effect of a new treatment and that it will calm down in time. Peri I hate you!!
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    edited August 2023
    claireychn074 wrote: »
    Well I started HRT a month ago (it was either that or I was going to pay privately to get a hysterectomy as I can’t cope with the constant heavy bleeding any more). And I look like a puffer fish. I’ve always become bloated near my period and I am good at holding water (must have been a cactus in a previous life) but wow, I am like a water balloon 😳

    Hoping this is a side effect of a new treatment and that it will calm down in time. Peri I hate you!!

    Because of the type of surgery needed for a hysterectomy for my 11 pound fibroids, my surgery plus three night hospital stay cost almost $100,000, but Uncle Sam picked up the tab. :smiley:

    Wouldn't yours be medically necessary and covered by your insurance? My GYN had been imploring me to have this done for years.

    I had no puffiness with the progesterone norethindrone acetate.

    Hey, if you're taking Cymbalta/duloxetine or similar for depression - don't. I needed a blood transfusion after an unbelievably heavy bleeding incident. Turns out Cymbalta, especially when taken with NSAIDS, can increase bleeding. WHICH MY PRESCRIBER SHOULD HAVE KNOWN >.<
  • claireychn074
    claireychn074 Posts: 1,608 Member
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    claireychn074 wrote: »
    Well I started HRT a month ago (it was either that or I was going to pay privately to get a hysterectomy as I can’t cope with the constant heavy bleeding any more). And I look like a puffer fish. I’ve always become bloated near my period and I am good at holding water (must have been a cactus in a previous life) but wow, I am like a water balloon 😳

    Hoping this is a side effect of a new treatment and that it will calm down in time. Peri I hate you!!

    Because of the type of surgery needed for a hysterectomy for my 11 pound fibroids, my surgery plus three night hospital stay cost almost $100,000, but Uncle Sam picked up the tab. :smiley:

    Wouldn't yours be medically necessary and covered by your insurance? My GYN had been imploring me to have this done for years.

    I had no puffiness with the progesterone norethindrone acetate.

    Hey, if you're taking Cymbalta/duloxetine or similar for depression - don't. I needed a blood transfusion after an unbelievably heavy bleeding incident. Turns out Cymbalta, especially when taken with NSAIDS, can increase bleeding. WHICH MY PRESCRIBER SHOULD HAVE KNOWN >.<
    I’m in the UK so in theory healthcare is free at the point of use. But our health system is massively struggling. It’s awesome for serious or life threatening care, but for stuff like this you wait ages and ages (had blood tests 25th May, was told to organise appointment with GP to discuss them, first appointment was 6th august). So I paid privately to get on top of any potential issues (previous cancer causes weird stuff!). Have paid to see a private HRT specialist who was incredibly thorough and prescribed - but only if the NHS agreed.

    I don’t want surgery, I really don’t, but I’ve been struggling to get anyone to listen to me. The HRT specialist was the first person to actually agree that the bleeding isn’t normal and should be treated - I can’t blame GPS as they aren’t trained in menopause in the UK. But the bleeding led to a blood disorder which enabled me to get attention.

    I am still a pufferfish but if this works then I’m all for it! 😀
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    edited August 2023
    claireychn074 wrote: »
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    claireychn074 wrote: »
    Well I started HRT a month ago (it was either that or I was going to pay privately to get a hysterectomy as I can’t cope with the constant heavy bleeding any more). And I look like a puffer fish. I’ve always become bloated near my period and I am good at holding water (must have been a cactus in a previous life) but wow, I am like a water balloon 😳

    Hoping this is a side effect of a new treatment and that it will calm down in time. Peri I hate you!!

    Because of the type of surgery needed for a hysterectomy for my 11 pound fibroids, my surgery plus three night hospital stay cost almost $100,000, but Uncle Sam picked up the tab. :smiley:

    Wouldn't yours be medically necessary and covered by your insurance? My GYN had been imploring me to have this done for years.

    I had no puffiness with the progesterone norethindrone acetate.

    Hey, if you're taking Cymbalta/duloxetine or similar for depression - don't. I needed a blood transfusion after an unbelievably heavy bleeding incident. Turns out Cymbalta, especially when taken with NSAIDS, can increase bleeding. WHICH MY PRESCRIBER SHOULD HAVE KNOWN >.<
    I’m in the UK so in theory healthcare is free at the point of use. But our health system is massively struggling. It’s awesome for serious or life threatening care, but for stuff like this you wait ages and ages (had blood tests 25th May, was told to organise appointment with GP to discuss them, first appointment was 6th august). So I paid privately to get on top of any potential issues (previous cancer causes weird stuff!). Have paid to see a private HRT specialist who was incredibly thorough and prescribed - but only if the NHS agreed.

    I don’t want surgery, I really don’t, but I’ve been struggling to get anyone to listen to me. The HRT specialist was the first person to actually agree that the bleeding isn’t normal and should be treated - I can’t blame GPS as they aren’t trained in menopause in the UK. But the bleeding led to a blood disorder which enabled me to get attention.

    I am still a pufferfish but if this works then I’m all for it! 😀

    @claireychn074 Thanks to MFP, I am trained to measure things. I have a menstrual cup, and noted how many times I changed it, and guessed at the volume when I was gushing clots. This way, I was able to tell my providers more than "I'm bleeding a lot" but, "I lost 500 ml of blood" or "I lost over 1000 ml of blood." (Went to the ER and got my second transfusion after that one.)

    I went to the website where I bought the cup and they don't sell them there anymore, but hooray! They sell them on Amazon, where there are tons of choices but this is a really good XL one, with a capacity of 40 ml.

    https://www.amazon.com/Gladrags-Xo-Flo-Menstrual-Cup/dp/B06XFKGP1K

    Prior to that I used the OB Ultra tampon. Since you're in the UK, you should be able to get the OB "European Ultra" which is more absorbent than the one sold in the US. But for gushing blood, I preferred a cup.

    For pharmaceutical interventions, I started with progesterone, first Prometrium, then norethindrone acetate.

    Then I added Tranexamic acid, which I'd take once the bleeding kicked in. I took the first progesterone from ovulation until menstruation. The norethindrone acetate was supposed to stop my bleeding all together. It did reduce it to a trickle, and once in a while I'd have these crazy bleeding incidents. I had some amount of bleeding from February - November, when my hysterectomy put an end to that at last >.<

    Last April, I started a 6 months course of Lupron, which was supposed to reduce the fibroids 50% and bridge me to menopause, but it did nothing for me, and made my GYNs concerned that I might have cancer, which is what finally talked me into the hysterectomy. (No cancer :smiley: but they could not establish this until the post-surgery biopsy. )

    I'm a veteran and get my health care through the VA. The Prometrium and Tranexamic acid were not in the formulary, and I had to jump through hoops to get them prescribed. I'm sure me being able to quantify my blood loss was helpful for this.

    I also had to jump through hoops to get a fibroid expert from outside the VA. My plan was for her to get me to menopause without surgery, but when this became medically necessary, I was so glad to have it done at a superb Boston hospital rather than from one of my VA GYNs who'd been underperforming for 10 years.

    Ugh, 2022 was a hard year for so many reasons!
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    edited August 2023
    PS - while the menstrual cup worked better for me once my bleeding was ridiculous, this is the "US" OB Ultra - purple stripe, comes 40 to a box. The "European" one was in a green box and came 16 to a box.

    https://www.amazon.com/b-Applicator-Digital-Tampons-Ultra/dp/B00NJNJGUA/

    wyjabpu8vlt6.png
  • justanotherloser007
    justanotherloser007 Posts: 578 Member
    I had an ob/gyn tell me that my menstrual cup probably caused my fibroids... but I am pretty sure I started using a cup because the flow was so incredibly heavy. Was she fibbing? I am about to buy a disc instead of a cup, but her stupid comment is in the back of my mind. Pads are a bit ridiculous with the clots, and I think I still have PTSD from 2 cycles back.
  • claireychn074
    claireychn074 Posts: 1,608 Member
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    claireychn074 wrote: »
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    claireychn074 wrote: »
    Well I started HRT a month ago (it was either that or I was going to pay privately to get a hysterectomy as I can’t cope with the constant heavy bleeding any more). And I look like a puffer fish. I’ve always become bloated near my period and I am good at holding water (must have been a cactus in a previous life) but wow, I am like a water balloon 😳

    Hoping this is a side effect of a new treatment and that it will calm down in time. Peri I hate you!!

    Because of the type of surgery needed for a hysterectomy for my 11 pound fibroids, my surgery plus three night hospital stay cost almost $100,000, but Uncle Sam picked up the tab. :smiley:

    Wouldn't yours be medically necessary and covered by your insurance? My GYN had been imploring me to have this done for years.

    I had no puffiness with the progesterone norethindrone acetate.

    Hey, if you're taking Cymbalta/duloxetine or similar for depression - don't. I needed a blood transfusion after an unbelievably heavy bleeding incident. Turns out Cymbalta, especially when taken with NSAIDS, can increase bleeding. WHICH MY PRESCRIBER SHOULD HAVE KNOWN >.<
    I’m in the UK so in theory healthcare is free at the point of use. But our health system is massively struggling. It’s awesome for serious or life threatening care, but for stuff like this you wait ages and ages (had blood tests 25th May, was told to organise appointment with GP to discuss them, first appointment was 6th august). So I paid privately to get on top of any potential issues (previous cancer causes weird stuff!). Have paid to see a private HRT specialist who was incredibly thorough and prescribed - but only if the NHS agreed.

    I don’t want surgery, I really don’t, but I’ve been struggling to get anyone to listen to me. The HRT specialist was the first person to actually agree that the bleeding isn’t normal and should be treated - I can’t blame GPS as they aren’t trained in menopause in the UK. But the bleeding led to a blood disorder which enabled me to get attention.

    I am still a pufferfish but if this works then I’m all for it! 😀

    @claireychn074 Thanks to MFP, I am trained to measure things. I have a menstrual cup, and noted how many times I changed it, and guessed at the volume when I was gushing clots. This way, I was able to tell my providers more than "I'm bleeding a lot" but, "I lost 500 ml of blood" or "I lost over 1000 ml of blood." (Went to the ER and got my second transfusion after that one.)

    I went to the website where I bought the cup and they don't sell them there anymore, but hooray! They sell them on Amazon, where there are tons of choices but this is a really good XL one, with a capacity of 40 ml.

    https://www.amazon.com/Gladrags-Xo-Flo-Menstrual-Cup/dp/B06XFKGP1K

    Prior to that I used the OB Ultra tampon. Since you're in the UK, you should be able to get the OB "European Ultra" which is more absorbent than the one sold in the US. But for gushing blood, I preferred a cup.

    For pharmaceutical interventions, I started with progesterone, first Prometrium, then norethindrone acetate.

    Then I added Tranexamic acid, which I'd take once the bleeding kicked in. I took the first progesterone from ovulation until menstruation. The norethindrone acetate was supposed to stop my bleeding all together. It did reduce it to a trickle, and once in a while I'd have these crazy bleeding incidents. I had some amount of bleeding from February - November, when my hysterectomy put an end to that at last >.<

    Last April, I started a 6 months course of Lupron, which was supposed to reduce the fibroids 50% and bridge me to menopause, but it did nothing for me, and made my GYNs concerned that I might have cancer, which is what finally talked me into the hysterectomy. (No cancer :smiley: but they could not establish this until the post-surgery biopsy. )

    I'm a veteran and get my health care through the VA. The Prometrium and Tranexamic acid were not in the formulary, and I had to jump through hoops to get them prescribed. I'm sure me being able to quantify my blood loss was helpful for this.

    I also had to jump through hoops to get a fibroid expert from outside the VA. My plan was for her to get me to menopause without surgery, but when this became medically necessary, I was so glad to have it done at a superb Boston hospital rather than from one of my VA GYNs who'd been underperforming for 10 years.

    Ugh, 2022 was a hard year for so many reasons!
    Really, really helpful info - thank you!

    I do use a cup but I also looking a disc, following a recent study where they measured the amount of actual blood (not saline for the first time) that products can hold.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    justanotherloser007 wrote: »
    I had an ob/gyn tell me that my menstrual cup probably caused my fibroids... but I am pretty sure I started using a cup because the flow was so incredibly heavy. Was she fibbing? I am about to buy a disc instead of a cup, but her stupid comment is in the back of my mind. Pads are a bit ridiculous with the clots, and I think I still have PTSD from 2 cycles back.

    I'm hoping you just misunderstood her, because as there is absolutely no mechanism for cups to cause fibroids, this would be a very ... weird ... thing for her to say.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    claireychn074 wrote: »
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    claireychn074 wrote: »
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    claireychn074 wrote: »
    Well I started HRT a month ago (it was either that or I was going to pay privately to get a hysterectomy as I can’t cope with the constant heavy bleeding any more). And I look like a puffer fish. I’ve always become bloated near my period and I am good at holding water (must have been a cactus in a previous life) but wow, I am like a water balloon 😳

    Hoping this is a side effect of a new treatment and that it will calm down in time. Peri I hate you!!

    Because of the type of surgery needed for a hysterectomy for my 11 pound fibroids, my surgery plus three night hospital stay cost almost $100,000, but Uncle Sam picked up the tab. :smiley:

    Wouldn't yours be medically necessary and covered by your insurance? My GYN had been imploring me to have this done for years.

    I had no puffiness with the progesterone norethindrone acetate.

    Hey, if you're taking Cymbalta/duloxetine or similar for depression - don't. I needed a blood transfusion after an unbelievably heavy bleeding incident. Turns out Cymbalta, especially when taken with NSAIDS, can increase bleeding. WHICH MY PRESCRIBER SHOULD HAVE KNOWN >.<
    I’m in the UK so in theory healthcare is free at the point of use. But our health system is massively struggling. It’s awesome for serious or life threatening care, but for stuff like this you wait ages and ages (had blood tests 25th May, was told to organise appointment with GP to discuss them, first appointment was 6th august). So I paid privately to get on top of any potential issues (previous cancer causes weird stuff!). Have paid to see a private HRT specialist who was incredibly thorough and prescribed - but only if the NHS agreed.

    I don’t want surgery, I really don’t, but I’ve been struggling to get anyone to listen to me. The HRT specialist was the first person to actually agree that the bleeding isn’t normal and should be treated - I can’t blame GPS as they aren’t trained in menopause in the UK. But the bleeding led to a blood disorder which enabled me to get attention.

    I am still a pufferfish but if this works then I’m all for it! 😀

    @claireychn074 Thanks to MFP, I am trained to measure things. I have a menstrual cup, and noted how many times I changed it, and guessed at the volume when I was gushing clots. This way, I was able to tell my providers more than "I'm bleeding a lot" but, "I lost 500 ml of blood" or "I lost over 1000 ml of blood." (Went to the ER and got my second transfusion after that one.)

    I went to the website where I bought the cup and they don't sell them there anymore, but hooray! They sell them on Amazon, where there are tons of choices but this is a really good XL one, with a capacity of 40 ml.

    https://www.amazon.com/Gladrags-Xo-Flo-Menstrual-Cup/dp/B06XFKGP1K

    Prior to that I used the OB Ultra tampon. Since you're in the UK, you should be able to get the OB "European Ultra" which is more absorbent than the one sold in the US. But for gushing blood, I preferred a cup.

    For pharmaceutical interventions, I started with progesterone, first Prometrium, then norethindrone acetate.

    Then I added Tranexamic acid, which I'd take once the bleeding kicked in. I took the first progesterone from ovulation until menstruation. The norethindrone acetate was supposed to stop my bleeding all together. It did reduce it to a trickle, and once in a while I'd have these crazy bleeding incidents. I had some amount of bleeding from February - November, when my hysterectomy put an end to that at last >.<

    Last April, I started a 6 months course of Lupron, which was supposed to reduce the fibroids 50% and bridge me to menopause, but it did nothing for me, and made my GYNs concerned that I might have cancer, which is what finally talked me into the hysterectomy. (No cancer :smiley: but they could not establish this until the post-surgery biopsy. )

    I'm a veteran and get my health care through the VA. The Prometrium and Tranexamic acid were not in the formulary, and I had to jump through hoops to get them prescribed. I'm sure me being able to quantify my blood loss was helpful for this.

    I also had to jump through hoops to get a fibroid expert from outside the VA. My plan was for her to get me to menopause without surgery, but when this became medically necessary, I was so glad to have it done at a superb Boston hospital rather than from one of my VA GYNs who'd been underperforming for 10 years.

    Ugh, 2022 was a hard year for so many reasons!
    Really, really helpful info - thank you!

    I do use a cup but I also looking a disc, following a recent study where they measured the amount of actual blood (not saline for the first time) that products can hold.

    Huh, those differently shaped cups I saw when looking for the XO Flo must have been discs, that's new to me.

    Good luck!

    xxxooo
  • TheMarvelousMsT
    TheMarvelousMsT Posts: 1 Member
    I went 84 days with no period, then 3 weeks later had one for 7 days, then 3 week later started bleeding with huge clots. That started on June 10th non stop, OBGYN found a fibroid 4.4 centimeters, said all other organs and uterus wall looked okay and that she didn't think the fibroid was causing the bleeding. She put me on Slynd and said they would watch the fibroid. I'm 52, I think I have been in peri-menopause for two years now. Gained 25 lbs over the last 2 years. Found an article from a doctor talking about how diets can shrink fibroids. It's worth a try.
  • justanotherloser007
    justanotherloser007 Posts: 578 Member
    edited August 2023
    I once looked into the diets for shrinking fibroids and less bleeding, unfortunately for me I am already eating that way. Or maybe fortunately? Not sure. I couldn't do anything else to improve my chances for a better outcome. BUT I did try the menstrual disc! And I gotta say, where was this in 2017 to now? LOVE IT! It is so nice to not have to wear an overnight pad, and period underwear, and still bleed through throughout the day!! I mean, I literally have a towel/blanket in the car, and couch because my periods have been so crazy! I often joke that there needs to be a period diaper!

    Well, period diaper needs no longer!! I bought this reusable menstrual disc, called flex - https://www.amazon.com/Reusable-Menstrual-Alternative-Medical-Grade-Disposable/dp/B00LWE69NU/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=H3XCZVE70QUH&amp;keywords=flex+reusable+menstrual+disc&amp;qid=1693429805&amp;sprefix=flex+re,aps,153&amp;sr=8-1-spons&amp;sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&amp;psc=1 , but I am sure all discs are nice since they hold so much more and have zero problems with clots, unlike pads! The cups I have had could never handle the flow. Also, the discs have some sort of "magic" happening when you pee or bear down, it automatically releases the contents (yes, you do not have to take it out every hour on a heavy bleed day!!!). Which as a previous cup user was a bit of a challenge if I ever wanted to leave the house or simply wanted to make darn sure I didn't bleed everywhere. I love the mechanism of the disc. I can take it out every 12 hours to clean it and know it has released the contents when I used the bathroom. Voila! I really really really really like it.

    Also, I wish I had heard the ob/gyn wrong about menstrual cups - but she was specific and graphic about the cup backing up into the womb and "causing fibroids" from the inability to drain during heavy periods. (which again begs the chicken and egg question as I was using the cups BECAUSE I was bleeding heavily and couldn't deal with pads). I don't know where she got the idea from, but I haven't seen this anywhere else, and I had difficulty with her personality anyway and found a different one I trust more than her, which wasn't difficult - since my trust in her was pretty much zero.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    justanotherloser007 wrote: »
    I once looked into the diets for shrinking fibroids and less bleeding, unfortunately for me I am already eating that way. Or maybe fortunately? Not sure. I couldn't do anything else to improve my chances for a better outcome. BUT I did try the menstrual disc! And I gotta say, where was this in 2017 to now? LOVE IT! It is so nice to not have to wear an overnight pad, and period underwear, and still bleed through throughout the day!! I mean, I literally have a towel/blanket in the car, and couch because my periods have been so crazy! I often joke that there needs to be a period diaper!

    Well, period diaper needs no longer!! I bought this reusable menstrual disc, called flex - https://www.amazon.com/Reusable-Menstrual-Alternative-Medical-Grade-Disposable/dp/B00LWE69NU/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=H3XCZVE70QUH&amp;keywords=flex+reusable+menstrual+disc&amp;qid=1693429805&amp;sprefix=flex+re,aps,153&amp;sr=8-1-spons&amp;sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&amp;psc=1 , but I am sure all discs are nice since they hold so much more and have zero problems with clots, unlike pads! The cups I have had could never handle the flow. Also, the discs have some sort of "magic" happening when you pee or bear down, it automatically releases the contents (yes, you do not have to take it out every hour on a heavy bleed day!!!). Which as a previous cup user was a bit of a challenge if I ever wanted to leave the house or simply wanted to make darn sure I didn't bleed everywhere. I love the mechanism of the disc. I can take it out every 12 hours to clean it and know it has released the contents when I used the bathroom. Voila! I really really really really like it.

    Also, I wish I had heard the ob/gyn wrong about menstrual cups - but she was specific and graphic about the cup backing up into the womb and "causing fibroids" from the inability to drain during heavy periods. (which again begs the chicken and egg question as I was using the cups BECAUSE I was bleeding heavily and couldn't deal with pads). I don't know where she got the idea from, but I haven't seen this anywhere else, and I had difficulty with her personality anyway and found a different one I trust more than her, which wasn't difficult - since my trust in her was pretty much zero.

    Yikes! Glad you switched doctors. Oy. I also developed fibroids long before I relied on a cup. And it had no problem not backing up - just ask my stained Glad Rags and underwear, lol.

    I missed out on the disc but am happy for you ladies!
  • dralicephd
    dralicephd Posts: 402 Member
    claireychn074 wrote: »
    Well I started HRT a month ago (it was either that or I was going to pay privately to get a hysterectomy as I can’t cope with the constant heavy bleeding any more). And I look like a puffer fish. I’ve always become bloated near my period and I am good at holding water (must have been a cactus in a previous life) but wow, I am like a water balloon 😳

    Hoping this is a side effect of a new treatment and that it will calm down in time. Peri I hate you!!

    I've been off the forum for a bit, so maybe you've gotten past this by now.... In any case, just wanted to say that the pufferfish thing has happened to me also, but it went away after about 2 months of hormones. Give your body time to adjust.

    I've had some issues over the last few months with changing hormone levels to try and dial in the right dosage for me. Each time, side effects leveled out right at about week 8. I'm on a new, good dosage, and at week 7. Waiting for the current pufferfish mode to go away.....

    Given the choice, however, I'll take pufferfish over crime scene periods and lack of sleep.

    I hope all is well for you!

  • karene1313
    karene1313 Posts: 1 Member
    refactored wrote: »
    Has anyone else noticed fluctuations in weight around what feels like should be TOM but ends up being missed?

    I am eating at my calorie target and exercising as usual. I haven't changed what I am eating substantially.

    Hey there! I've been in "peri-menopause" for 7 years now. What a pain. And yes, especially when I first started, i gained 5 lbs for no reason (and I was actually eating healthy and working out at the time) - it was extremely de-motivating. I will say after the first year of peri things normalized and I could go back to eating normal and not gaining weight, but it was difficult.

    Re: the anger / losing your mind. I also had that in spades. I would find myself getting angry at the drop of a hat for something that was rather inconsequential. I'm not normally a "supplement" girl, but I found Maca Root for menopause and it really worked for me. On days i forgot to take it (because I am not good about pills) I would notice getting more irritable around 12 - 2. To me that was enough "proof" it was working for me.

    Good luck to everyone. I think I'm 6 months away from the official menopause but peri can go on for a very long time...
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    I'm feeling a little hormonal, which I thought was odd, because I had a hysterectomy 11 months ago. But I kept my ovaries, which can apparently still keep kicking out testosterone anyway for up to 20 years. I had my hormones tested earlier this year and the endocrinologist said I had the hormone levels of a young woman. I'm going to be 57 :lol: I've still never had a hot flash.

    I wonder if I can still have ovulation-related water retention...

    @claireychn074 how's it going?

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