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[susiefreer]

Good morning members. I am new to this site and have joined for some support from other suffers as i have tried the doctor only to be told every time im suffering IBS, STRESS, its my life style, etc etc. Im 51 and have not had reg periods since i was 47. I will say my symptoms are pretty irregular but when I'm bad it is unbearable. The hot flushes i can cope with and just make fun of them but the other things, well i just want to die. I will try to explain - think of your worst panic attack and multiply it by 1000. It starts low down in my tummy and rises up inside me until my heart feels as if its going to come out of my throat then i get what i can only describe as feeling like a combination between being drunk, hungover, light headed and totally exhausted. It can happen at any time of day or night but if it happens at bed time i have actually thought im not going to wake up, i said to my hubby on Friday morning, "gosh, im still here". I take my BP and pulse regularly to see if anything changes durning these episodes but it remains the same in fact slightly low and i have had monitors on and i actually have a very low pulse, under 50 during the day and sometimes under 40 over night. Does ANYONE ELSE suffers these things ?? 

[Butterfly22]

Hi and welcome your in the right place as so many helpful ladies here.
So sorry your really suffering, has the doctor not tested for your FSH hormone levels? See where your at regarding menopause?
It dose sound like a panic attack I get them (not to often thank god) but starts like a tight pain in my chest, then feels like someone is holding my neck and something is pushing down on my chest really hard, and I can't breath, it's so scary lasts for about 20 mins but I can't breath it's horrible, weirdly leaves me with a sore throat and dizzy.
Do you think that's what it is xxx

[CLKD]

Oh join The Club!

Have you seen the same Doctor?  Maybe your Practice Nurse would be a better approach, taking along a list of symptoms to discuss.  Or you can see a Pharmacist, most have private rooms, to discuss which GPs in your area seem to support menopause the best.

Browse round.  Which symptom would you like to ease first?  Anxiety has been a problem since I was three  so I have taken appropriate medication for many years as well as using relaxation therapy and deep breathing.  Yoga can be restful too, it's about 'me' time.

I was advised by the National Association of Pre-menstrual Syndrome (NAPS) to eat every 3 hours to stop that awful sudden drop of blood sugar.  For me it starts as sudden nausea and the need to find a bucket/loo FAST though I've never been ill.  But I feel like I'm going to die  .  Eating every 3 hours, that is - 24/7! so I have Dextrose tablets and plain biscuits by the bed.  Slow release foods can be useful, i.e. porridge or bananas ...... ginger biscuits .......

I also have a nerve in the back of my neck which if I turn suddenly makes me feel suddenly dizzy, enough to go 'oh!' but it's over by then. 

Maybe keep a mood/food/symptom diary?

[Yammy1]

Hi and welcome, the anxiety has to be the worst meno symptom. the dizziness is horrible and the one thing i hate the most. I have an emergency pill (xanax) which I break in half when absolutely needed. I find just knowing I have pill calms me a bit. Try keeping a diary of when anxiety is worst, maybe you will see a pattern and know it's hormonal. Just know you are not alone and like you I can bare the flushes but the anxiety and dizziness really are scary. Maybe ask doc for an anti anxiety pill just for the really bad attacks, also you could try some rescue remedy, it can take the edge off. x

[Lizab]

Excellent description, susiefreer! I've had some variation of these spells for a couple years. Of course everyone calls it panic attack, but the funny thing to me was that I usually never felt anxious until during or after the spell. If I wasn't suffering anxiety when they started, I certainly am now. They come out of nowhere. For me they seem to be some form of hot flush. Sometimes they build into a hot flush, after which I feel completely relieved. If the flush never surfaces, I am stuck in that drunken exhausted blur for awhile. Usually after some time I become fed up with that blurry feeling and have a good cry and that brings me back around.

[Roadrunner]

Hi susiefreer

I've had something similar, particularly since March when my hormones have been all over the place, and like Lizab I think it's a form of hot flush. If it ends in a "complete" hot flush I actually feel better. If not, just jittery and not quite with it for a bit. And tired! Horrid feeling.

RR

[CLKD]

  LOVING the avatar 

[susiefreer]

Hi everyone and thank you for the replies, very helpful. I have tried rescue remedy and i must say it did help - i must buy some more The drug for the anxiety, is this on prescription ? And, excuse my ignorance but what is the test for FSH levels?? I have suffered panic attacks at various times in my life but this is different, i have even laid in bed thinking i better write a letter to my children as i fell i wont wake up, its just awful. I started in menopause age 47 but these symptoms have only begun this year. I am keeping a diary and it does seem to be following a pattern similar to that of when you have PMS but then relieved by a period beginning. I do have other symptoms like bloating, dreadful indigestion and a feeling of fullness in my tummy a lot of the time, headaches,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,the list goes on. I dont want to go back to my doctor only to be told its stress and my stressful life, its IBS, its lifestyle, its depressing so i dont want to go again. My husband who is 23 yrs older than me is wonderful but i do feel sorry for him as he has PD which is enough for anyone to deal with 

[CLKD]

PD   

Indigestion can be 'common' at The Change.  It may be a hiatus hernia.  As oestrogen levels drop muscles may become lax = aches and pains, also the body may dry: nostrils, deep in the ears, skin, vagina ......... I try not to take my evening meds too close to bedtime or reflux starts as soon as I lay down 

I have used Rescue Remedy and am taking 20mg Betablocka night and morning, as well as having a prescribed emergency drug when anxiety takes over.

[Yammy1]

Yes you have to get pill on prescription, my doc will only give me a few at a time as she says they are addictive. If i'm going on holiday she will give me some, but I usually save them for emergency's. It is so frustrating feeling doom and gloom, I know it's my hormones but it's still very scary when it hits. Really hope you start to feel better soon x. I take betablocka at night it helps to slow my heart down a tad when it's racing

[CLKD]

I've used both Valium and a more recent drug on an as-necessary basis: [not at the same time!]  because I know they work I have little risk of getting addicted ;-).

[Hurdity]

Hi susiefreer

 

Sorry to hear about all your symptoms. If your periods are very irregular (maybe you skip the odd one - cycle varies by at least a week each time) and you are over 45 and experiencing symptoms then you do not need a blood test to determine your menopausal status - you are in peri-menopause. FSH tests are advised for younger women (under 40 and sometimes early 40's who think they might be peri-menopausal. What was the cycle length of your last few periods? Maybe the blood flow has also changed?

Good that you've had you heart checked and there is nothing wrong. Perhaps you are very fit (re low pulse rate)?

Have you thought of HRT? This is recommended as first line of treatment for menopausal symptoms in women of your age - and not anti-depressants or similar. In any case beta-blockers would not be prescribed for you, as they are a heart slowing medication and also reduce blood pressure. If you are not medically contra-indicated then I urge you to consider taking this as you should not have to suffer, and taking the right dose of the right preparation could transform your life! You are so young and you don't want to spend the next maybe 40 years struggling - or even just the next 5 years....

I am appalled that once again your doctor does not consider your symptoms to be  menopause - I mean where has s/he been? There has been so much publicity in the last couple of years, it is shocking that women like you are still being  fobbed off with labels like IBS and stress! Please try to find a doctor in the practice (receptionist/secretary should know?) that is sympathetic to women in menopause and more to the point also, who is willing to prescribe HRT and work with you while you find the right product - if this is what you decide to do.

In the meantime read as much as you can about menopause and treatments from the information on this website (top pale green tabs).

Please do give this thought and if we can help guide you towards the right choice then do ask again.

Hope this helps

Hurdity x

[susiefreer]

Hi Hurdity, thank you for your help. I really think perhaps HRT will need to be the road to go down again. I have tried it 3 times but it didnt suit me but not tried for a year or so. My periods were approx 4 times a year when i was 47 / 48 then i had one the following year but nothing since and i am now 51. I think it might be a good idea to go and see a lady doctor, mine is male and new to me. Today the worst has gone from last week but i am still very light headed and mild anxiety feelings but not anxious about anything ! Will make an app right now. 

[CLKD]

Or with your Practice Nurse?

[Wrensong]

Hi susiefreer, sorry to hear you are having these horrible symptoms.  Just wondering whether your rather low pulse rate has anything to do with it.  As Hurdity says, this can be a sign of being very fit, but I'm wondering whether you've had your thyroid function checked recently?  If this is a bit low, this could give you a low pulse rate & perhaps lead to the feelings of doom you describe.  Thyroid problems do sometimes start around menopausal age, so if you can bear to ask your doc about this, it might be worth doing.  Bloating & indigestion can sometimes be due to an underactive thyroid too, as the digestion slows down along with the rest of the body's systems, causing a tendency to constipation.  Headaches can also be a sign.  If you have noticed unusual coldness, drying skin or weight gain, this would also make me question thyroid status.