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Author Topic: Peri/Meno symptoms  (Read 3031 times)

KdLang

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Peri/Meno symptoms
« on: August 18, 2024, 11:48:28 AM »

Hello!

I am no stranger to hormone issues, if I'm honest..I just feel like I'm going crazy a little and wanted to see if my symptoms sound like Peri/menopause to you all.

I have had mild PCOS and had endometriosis. I had awful periods that started getting heavier in my 20s with terrible pain and a variety of symptoms that went with them. I had my daughter at 28 and then at 31, I was having troubles getting pregnant which prompted me to see a specialist who ran all the tests and said I had premature ovarian failure and would be in menopause by 40. I was able to have my son thankfully and considered myself lucky. I also saw an Endo specialist at 34 who confirmed menopause by 40. I started night sweats a year after that at 35. They were only occasional at first. Around this time, during ovulation I would start getting episodes of severe indigestion, and I would have extreme fatigue.

Now, today at 38, my physicians, despite being told of my history, say that I'm too young. However, all my blood work is within normal limits so they say, anxiety and send me away. Current symptoms are: cannot sleep. I have terrible terrible insomnia. I wake up at least twice, sometimes more, a night and cannot sleep. I also wake up extremely early. I have never struggled with sleep, ever. Some of this is definitely due to anxiety as this has also hit me extremely hard. I have nausea almost constantly. Food does not taste good to me. Before this, I had an insatiable appetite. I have been eating. I haven't been eating less per say but combined with the anxiety and insomnia, I'm a nervous wreck. I lost about a stone in 6 months. I have gained some of it back by making myself eat. I have episodes during my cycles of extreme rage and migraines. My hair is falling out in clumps. And now, the worst symptom. I have constant buzzing and muscle twitches. They started in my legs where they are constant. Sometimes small, sometimes large and happens in my shoulders, arms, feet, everywhere..I get tingles in my face and over my scalp and earlier this year I had an instance where my mouth and tongue felt like it was on fire. I have word salad and terrible brain fog that comes and goes, especially around my cycles. I also have terrible pain and stiffness in my hip and shoulder.

That is a lot, I know but I honestly can't point this all to anywhere else. My periods were regular with occasional skips but now I haven't had a period in 3 months. I had all the symptoms last month but nothing ever came.

I'm terribly frustrated with my physicians here, I live in the US currently. Even with my history of 2 specialists telling me I would be in menopause at 40 and all of these symptoms, they say I'm too young. Anyway, does this sound like The Change to you all?  :) :-\
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CLKD

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Re: Peri/Meno symptoms
« Reply #1 on: August 18, 2024, 11:58:50 AM »

Welcome.  No one can tell us when to expect to reach menopause.

Peri-menopause - those years leading up to the final bleed = menopause.  During periods we may experience waxing and waning of periods: mine went, returned, disappeared, returned for several years.  Some then get more anxiety, worries about health, flushing - all normal with hormonal fluctuations but can become overwhelming.

When we have missed 12 months of bleeds we can consider us into menopause proper, however: Mother Nature can throw in the curved ball so we have to begin counting again.

Blood tests are reliably un-reliable and should be taken at certain times if we are aware of our cycle. 

Brain fog - normal
Flushing - usual
Anxiety - nuisance and worrying - etc. from where I'm sitting you are going into peri.

Itchy skin = loss of oestrogen

My taste buds altered.  My morning cup of black tea with 2 sugars is lovely , 2nd OK-sh.  By mid afternoon it tastes foul so DH has devised different types of tea through the day.  Otherwise I drink bottled fizzy water.  Some find that alcohol intolerance becomes a problem ;-)

We can find that foods eaten for years suddenly upsets the gut.  MayB review your overall diet for 3-5 days/nights to C what to cut out/alter.  I'm lucky [very some would say ;-) ] that my DH cooks for us both, usually from scratch with lots of fresh veg..

U R not alone!

Some find it useful to make a food/symptom/mood diary to chart progress. 
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CLKD

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Re: Peri/Meno symptoms
« Reply #2 on: August 18, 2024, 12:00:31 PM »

As oestrogen levels drop the body may become dry: inside and out; skin, vagina, scalp, in between the toes, deep in the ears, eyes.  As well as muscles may become lax = aches and pains.

We have a thread: bladder issues : and several on vaginal atrophy, do read.  Make notes.  VA mimics repeated urine infection-type symptoms really really well so if U get a lot of need2P symptoms, a urine sample should be sent for testing.  Antibiotics will ease any aggravation but will not replace the lack of oestrogen.

Let us know how you get on.
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KdLang

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Re: Peri/Meno symptoms
« Reply #3 on: August 18, 2024, 12:25:44 PM »

Thank you!  ;D ;D I just feel so frustrated with all of these symptoms. It's enough to drive me mad!
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CLKD

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Re: Peri/Meno symptoms
« Reply #4 on: August 18, 2024, 12:48:49 PM »

Join the Club  ;D - All the World is Mad: except U and me - and even U R a little ...........

The Change - does what it says on the tin.  I don't remember much about Mum going through it other than suddenly switching off the cooker at tea time, sitting down and falling asleep.  😴  'crashing fatigue' . 

Browse round.  Make notes ;-)
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bombsh3ll

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Re: Peri/Meno symptoms
« Reply #5 on: August 18, 2024, 12:58:35 PM »

Blood tests cannot rule out perimenopause.

The ONLY way to know if symptoms are menopause related is to trial a therapeutic dose of hormone replacement and see whether they go away.

I would suggest looking at your country's directory of menopause specialists and finding someone who can help you with this.
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CLKD

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Re: Peri/Meno symptoms
« Reply #6 on: August 18, 2024, 05:44:21 PM »

Keep posting - let us know how you get on?  R your medical needs covered by Insurance?
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KdLang

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Re: Peri/Meno symptoms
« Reply #7 on: August 18, 2024, 08:08:25 PM »

Yes, thankfully I have insurance coverage!

My Mom went through menopause much later than I but my aunt and Grandma were much younger, like me. My Grandma isn't living any longer to ask questions of and my aunt was put on HRT right after she got an early hysterectomy because of endometrial cancer. She had just started having Peri symptoms similar to mine a few years previous at 36. Same age as me.

I definitely know I am perimenopausal. I just had no idea how many symptoms it could cause!
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Pearg

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Re: Peri/Meno symptoms
« Reply #8 on: August 21, 2024, 02:19:35 PM »

Hi I have been watching Mary Claire on Instagram and Dr Harper from the Harper clinic. This to me sounds like perimenopause. I had no help in Canada so I hired Dr Harper in the UK and did it over zoom. It was 700.00 Cdn but I trust her . The only thing is you have to find a dr who will prescribe Hormone replacement meds if you are wanting to go that route. She wrote a letter to my family dr and did not charge ..
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sheila99

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Re: Peri/Meno symptoms
« Reply #9 on: August 21, 2024, 03:27:26 PM »

Sounds like meno symptoms to me. The only other thing that crossed my mind is covid because you say food tastes different.  My money's on meno though.
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CLKD

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Re: Peri/Meno symptoms
« Reply #10 on: August 21, 2024, 05:09:29 PM »

My taste buds have altered over the years.  My 1st couple of cuppas R OK but as the day goes on ........ sometimes fried bacon tastes 'off' too.
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Jjumper

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Re: Peri/Meno symptoms
« Reply #11 on: August 22, 2024, 12:52:43 PM »

Hi,
I can relate to a lot of your symptoms… body-wide muscle twitching, lack of appetite, issues with mouth (for me its diminished swallow reflex), anxiety, night sweats, bad indigestion, fatigue, word salad (love this description!)… mine started in my mid-thirties. I thought perimenopause for a long time but I am now seeing a private thyroid specialist and have begun experimenting with thyroid replacement in addition to HRT. I am early on in the experiment so can’t say if it will work or not.

Thought I would mention thyroid as a lot of your symptoms sound thyroid to me - there are common symptoms between thyroid and menopause and they also affect each other. My thyroid bloods have always been within range but my T4 consistently on the low end of the range which according to many experts is too low and can cause symptoms. So even if bloods are ‘normal’ according to a GP it is still worth looking at them. Anyway, if I were you I would look at thyroid in addition to perimenopause.

I hope that is helpful. I don’t want to confuse you when you’re already feeling anxious. Just thought it worth mentioning to check your thyroid too. Best wishes.
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rferdi

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Re: Peri/Meno symptoms
« Reply #12 on: August 22, 2024, 09:28:49 PM »

Many of the symptoms you describe I've been having too since this whole perimenopause challenge began for me, so I 'd say this could very well be it. I'd definitely go to a well-informed gynaecologist specialized in menopause and try some estradiol and progesterone.
But I think what Jjumper says is important too, I'd check my thyroid with a good endocrinologist who knows all about thyroid, meaning he's not just going to check your T4.
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