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[Bette]

I think most ladies find that the hot flushes start at night and progress to being during the day as well later in the process. I didn't get as far as the daytime ones before I started HRT for other symptoms. Now only get a couple of gentle night ones for a couple of days a month during my period. The lack of sleep was one of the reasons I went on HRT. I hope the acupuncture works for you this time but sadly, a lot of ladies have reported that alternative therapies aren't much help once their symptoms really kick in. 
Bixby x

[Zamboni]

So I went for another round of Acupuncture.  It's been 9 days since the first, and no relief from the hot flashes/night sweats.  This time the doctor recommended trying a Chinese Medicine:  Gengnianan.  Day one of that - I don't know if it was the acupuncture, Gengnianan, or a large dinner, but I slept better in between hot flashes.  I still woke up, but got better quality in between.  I also had more energy for my morning workout routine - much appreciated, as I was feeling like a slug.

I also picked up some Starflower, but don't want to mix things - will wait to see if the Gengnianan helps.  If not, will cut that, then try the Starflower.  If neither work, I will likely go for HRT - I can't afford to 'not sleep' - I work and am doing an advanced degree, so I need solid rest to get maximum benefit from my brain cells.

Will report as it goes.

[Bette]

Hope you get some relief using "alternatives" but have to say that I'm very happy with my decision to take HRT. It has truely "given me my life back" which for me far outweighs the possible negatives.
Look forward to hearing from you again.
Bixby x

[Zamboni]

So my last period was 20 October, and hot flashes started 20 November - the day my period was to start.  by 29 December: 2 acupuncture sessions, Gengnianan, Starflower Oil.  No joy.  Hot flashes got to more than once an hour - every hour, day and night.  Was taking a sleeping tab to get some quality sleep inbetween flashes (each woke me up) so that I was able to think/work the next day.  Gave up.

So went to the doctor and got HRT.  I'm not in any of the risk groups for problems, and was told 2-3 days and the hot flashes should go away.  Day 3, and I just took off my sweater for a hot flash.  Not quite as severe as they were, and not quite as frequent, but still really annoying and draining.  Hopefully they will go away soon, or I have to go back on sleeping tabs - will then go back to the doctor.

Found this website (http://www.power-surge.com/educate/whatsinahotflash.htm) when I was looking up how to prevent hot flashes - figured that during the years I will be on HRT I can find ways to change diet or lifestyle to prevent them from hitting me when I inevitably go off the hormones.  I already excercise frequently, eat high-fibre and healthy, but there are a few things in there that may be beneficial for prevention.

Here's hoping the hormones kick in...

[Taz2]

Hi Zamboni - I  hope your HRT works quickly. Are you on patches or pills? Patches can stop hot flashes within a day or so but pills can take longer to build up in the system.

Your idea to watch your health and "take charge" is very good. It is not sensible to just rely on HRT. Keep up the exercise!

Taz x

[joanne louise]

Thank you Thank you thank you. I've just found this web site and feel better already.  I am 46 years old and have not had a period for 18 months thank goodness.  Recently though i've been feeling either down or angry and want to cry, for no reason .  This web site has given me a better understanding of what i'm going through. .  I,ve been having hot flashes for about 2 years, and the best thing for me is leaving the bedroom window open and sleeping naked.  My husband works nights and gets home after i've gone to sleep, and he closes the window then.  In the summer I have a fan at the side of me juston my face and that seems to keep all my body cooler.

[Michelle Hull]

Well where do I start, the mere fact that I am having to concentrate with all my mite to answers this question ( How am I coping ) says it all, Not coping very well at all  I know it is only early days for me as my flushes only started in Dec last year, but after reading some of these posts of ladies having them for years has reduced me to tears ( again ) I have regular flushes all day long and even more thrugh the nite, I feel so dehidrated, even though I am drinking more water than I have ever drank before. I just feel sooooooo tired, upset, on edge, and to think this is going to last for months - years ?? Is too much to bear. I went to the doctors ( waste of time ) came out of there with a scrappy piece of paper with the name of a couple of health shop remedies on it, so I rushed to the health shop spent a fortune, only to find that the side effect of the pills was dehidration, so I have had to stop taking them. ( crying again sorry ) I am getting to the point where I just don't want to get out of bed. Well thats about it don't know what else to say ( headache coming on )

[Bette]

Hi Michelle
 
Did the gp discuss HRT with you? If not, go and see a different gp! It might not be the route you decide to take but it should be considered.
Maybe try starting a new thread on "New Members" than more will be likely to see it and welcome you - newbies often get missed in the middle of existing threads.
There's lots of info in the Green Menu and our posts - not all bad!  Browse around, join in and don't forget to check out the "Funnies." 
Bette x

[Eddie]

Hi Michelle, My blood test came back def meno, and the g.p. i saw told me "if you are having trouble try flash fighters, take calcium, and more veg. £30 later i was quite annoyed so saw my normal g.p. male, who didn't even wait for me to ask, was already deciding which hrt to start me on. Eddie. x

[Taz2]

Hi Michelle - welcome to the forum.

I think that if you want relief from your flushes and you are not opposed to taking HRT then you should ask for it from your GP and if you are refused it then question the reasoning and if you are not happy then change your GP. If your flushes are coming so thick and fast then I don't believe that any supplements will help you long term.

You will find lots of support and advice on here. If you post under the New Members thread more of us will be able to welcome you - sometimes new posters can get lost in a thread which already up and running.

Taz 

[terriw]

Larky - now that's called being organised!! Sadly I no longer am that......

[terriw]

Larky, you're not misleading!

I have today applied two coats of varnish to two bedroom floors. It's all I've done all day.

Now, two years or so ago I'd have got that done before my breakfast!

I need a bomb up my @r$e!!!

[losingtheplot]

Hi everyone
This is my first post but I have found this forum very helpful over the past 6 months. I am 46 and started having hot flushes in April 2010. Initially I thought they weren't too much of a problem but they became so bad that I was being woken up every hour through the night and was completely exhausted. I have a full-time demanding job and just couldn't function. Daytime flushes were not great but the lack of sleep was just horrible and impossible to deal with.
I decided to ask my GP for HRT and was initially put on Premique low dose. I had horrible headaches and, having read posts on this forum, realised I should be on a cyclical HRT. I took Premique cycle for 3 months but the side effects from the little green pills (ie progesterone phase) were just horrible - anxiety, very painful breasts, grumpiness on a shockingly grumpy scale. Work has been very stressful recently but I don't think the green pills helped my ability to cope! Premique cycle has been discontinued and I had had enough of the gremlins so, having done some research here, I decided to ask my GP for Tridestra. My logic was that the nasty progesterone pills will only happen every 3 months so I should be able to cope if it all goes horribly wrong again. I have a very nice GP who is happy to go along with my trial and error approach but I can't help feeling that it would be good to have a medical expert telling me what to do instead of researching it myself.
I took my first Tridestra pill today so fingers crossed this will be the miracle pill I have been looking for - no headaches, no hot flushes, lots of energy, no more losing the plot on a daily basis..

[Bette]

Hi losingtheplot
 
Glad we've been of help and that you're decided to join us! Look forward to hearing more from you. Hope this HRT works better for you - do let us know.
Bette x

[jesi]

Hi there to you all.  It is so encouraging to read some of your stories and thank god I am not the only one whose life has been made a complete misery by hot flushes. As I sit here dreading another miserable sleepless night of hateful sweats and aching joints I am wondering why? What function do they have. What dreadful message do they give us. I can only think that nature, having decided we cant be baby machines anymore, has engineered to make our lives so miserable that we want to stop the whole thing.
I took HRT at 50 when the hot flushes became so unbearable that I could not function in a normal way. I lowered the dose to just two tablets a week which kept the wretched things at bay.
But like a good girl and following the docs advice I decided to come off  at 58.. and yes so so, slowly, just as they tell you. But here I am one year later, back to square one with violent 24 times a day(yes I have counted..how sad is that!)  hot flushes, no sign of them abating and to be honest feeling that my quality of life is so dreadful that I am prepared to go back on HRT and stay on it forever. If it shortens my life then I would rather have a short happy life than this long drawn out misery. The thought of 15 years of this is abominable.
My hot flushes start with a little twinge then a huge wave of nausea followed by the feeling that someone is holding an electric fire to my face. I get desperate for air and wipe dripping sweat off my face and arms and chest. Bad ones last for half an hour cycling from mild to severe. In the evenings I go and stand outside barefoot in the cold just to get some relief.  At night I throw all the covers off 6 or 7 times and open the windows and just lately I have been getting some even stranger night chills when I am extra extra cold and shivering. What is that about? All this for a girl who never used to sweat at all is just no fun.

I have just been prescribed Clonidine for high blood pressure ( which I personally think is caused by the stress of the hot flushes and lack of sleep!!) which my nice young GP thinks might help. It is making me feel very strange so I am not too hopeful..I wonder if anyone else has any experience of it.  I have tried lots of supplements.. might give red clover a go .. meanwhile my sympathies go out to fellow sufferers. It all came as such a shock to me. I am a doctor phobe, dont take any medicines unless I have to and hate the sight of the surgery.. but, by god, this has got me floored!
I will report back if the Clonidine has any effect... thanks for giving us a chance to share experiences and support!