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[dangermouse]

I just wanted to post about other services available outside of the NHS for those who may be concerned about using private services.

Just because the NHS, who can only fund basic treatment, doesn't offer a specific drug or treatment it doesn't follow that the drug or treatment is thus questionable or that the doctors/therapists are to be mistrusted (or worse deemed charlatans!) who are only out to take advantage of people.

As a psychotherapist myself, you either choose to train with the BMA or BMA approved training or you train privately and both options require extensive funding and years of commitment. Yes there are weekend courses in certain complementary therapies but these are usually add ons for experienced practitioners and could never form the basis of a career (or certainly not past the first month if you really were out to con the general public!).

99.99% of practitioners would not be so dopey as to spend thousands of pounds just to later try to make a quick buck. Training is painfully expensive and not taken on lightly. Practitioners are there to help and many are deeply passionate in their efforts and research to help their patients/clients.

Please don't, therefore, be overly suspicious of non-NHS practitioners, just give everything a try until you find what you need and, sensibly, try the NHS first as it will save you money and it will have had more thorough testing as the NHS want to ensure they get the most effective treatments.

Perimenopause, unfortunately, is not catered for by the NHS so you have to use the pill or ERT to suppress the cycle until estrogen stops surging about. Private BHRT clinics can offer more personalised options but it will cost because the NHS can only offer simpler hormone treatments such as topping up
low oestrogen.

I hope this helps to settle people's minds about going off piste if necessary!

[CLKD]

 

[Dancinggirl]

Very good post dangermouse.
I would certainly recommend a women in peri or post meno seek advice from a psychotherapist for CBT to help cope with symptoms.
I have tried many alternative therapies and treatments and apart from osteopathy and acupuncture ( although not for meno treatment) I haven't had much success generally for meno symptoms. However, I have mostly found the alternative therapists to be highly ethical and professional.
I do question your comment regarding the peri stage; oestrogen doesn't 'surge' in peri, it fluctuates, - (maybe that is what you meant ?) - it's the dips in oestrogen that cause the symptoms to come and go - there is much talk of oestrogen 'dominance' which I am not convinced is an accurate picture - I believe it is very rare for a women to produce too much oestrogen and this is why adding oestrogen can improve peri and post meno symptoms greatly. The lack of progesterone can cause thickening of the womb lining which can lead to problematic bleeding. I am not an expert on these things - Hurdity would explain it better - but it's the ovaries slowly failing that brings these dips in the hormones and i believe it is now adviced that a low dose HRT or BCP in peri will be the best option to control these fluctuations.
As you rightly say, one should seek nhs advice first - unfortunately, if you don't go to your GP armed with knowledge about appropriate treatment, the GP may well not know how to treat peri meno symptoms and that is why so many women spend a fortune on alternatives when they shouldn't need to.
This site is the best 'first port of call' to get fully clued up, so every women can make informed choices about how she wishes to manage her menopause, be it through conventional medicine or alternative methods. DG x

[dangermouse]

Thanks guys. I also practice CBT and it's really helpful for rationalising the physical anxiety.

Every woman is different in how they experience perimenopause but the diminishing eggs can cause more oestrogen to be made to boost fertility (sometimes double the amount experienced at peak fertility years). It's actually very common for oestrogen to surge very high and then fall very low until it finally drops around a year before menopause. I actually have liver growths from the high oestrogen which doctors diagnosed through an MRI scan following very extreme nausea. I also have terrible reactions to oestrogen replacement including oestrogenic herbs. I may be an extreme case though!

However, several GPs and an endocrinologist said ERT rarely works in peri unless it's a high enough dose (like the pill) to suppress our own hormones. As you get nearer to meno though then ERT is exactly what is needed. Peri is very poorly studied due to the volatility and great variance between women, hence why the NHS is often unable to help apart from the work arounds to subdue the cycle. It's also not simple with private docs and BHRT specialists but they just have more choice.

[dangermouse]

That's good to hear! Are you on HRT or did you feel better enough not to need it?

[dangermouse]

That's great, I'm planning on going through naturally as well as I get silent migraine (since peri) and even herbs and when the progesterone cream builds up I feel very sick and dizzy. I too have the extreme lethargy and so sticking with liver cleansing foods (and ok with proper milk thistle), homeopathy and having some Chinese acupuncture (as also have had very tight muscles for last 20 years despite dancing when younger and trying every form of stretching and massage since to no avail).

I do also wonder if when you take exogenous hormones if they act on the negative feedback loop and lower our own hormones further.

We just all have to find our individual way that works and reading about others experiences can be really helpful on here (even though we may react differently).