Menopause Matters Forum
Menopause Discussion => All things menopause => Topic started by: Londongirl on February 11, 2013, 03:27:17 PM
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So I am on Femoston Conti and ant depressants (sertraline 50mg).
When I started the sertraline I was also becoming very very tired, not just tired but the real exhaustion...... not able to get up for work and feeling constantly washed out.
Thought it was HRT so changed back to Femoston and thought it could be sertraline too.
A few weeks back went to gp and had blood tests which showed am low in vit d.
Just wondering here if anyone has experienced this during meno? Could it be yet another flipping sympton of meno and/or HRT?
Also, annoying throat symptons are coming back, notably swollen glands and had flipping tonsitilis last month :(
I am now on high dose vit d supplements prescribed by gp and have decided to give the femoston conti another two months before I ask to go back onto Angelique (as I only gave that a month before I gave up on that one!).
Femoston conti is still giving me monthly bleeds (sometimes twice a month) and they are not too heavy but the symptons beforehand are awful, very nauseous, sore boobs, extreme tiredness, awful mood, lethargy, apathy.;....... you name it!
So quite a lot in this post but just putting feelers out to see if anyone having this and/or comments or suggestions?
Londongirl, Anna
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Sorry to hear about your problems, Londongirl, but happy your blood tests showed something you can work with... nothing worse than feeling rough and not knowing the reason why.
Funny you should mention vit d - I've been wondering about taking supplements but would rather have my levels checked first.
You also mention throat symptoms - I've been having problems in that area - swollen glands, horrid cough that won't shift, and think it borders on tonsillitis (haven't had time to see the GP). Are we more prone to this?
I can't advise about the HRT, but hope you feel better soon.... :)
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I believe we get our vit D from sunshine... as we have officially had 18 months of winter according to country file its no wonder we feel SAD all the time... it rained most of last summer!
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I have not had Vit D levels checked, but it would not surprise me if they are low. Work all week in an area with no windows. I defo get sad, occupational health dept also said many of the staff get sick building syndrome as well with the lack of daylight. Roll on summer and here's hoping it is a scorcher.
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I don't think it is anything to do with meno but more the sort of lives we lead and the weather. For years we have been told to stay out of the sun and covered ourselves up with all sorts of creams (unless you are me of course who stays indoors in the summer ;D). It is a really worrying problem http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/9742176/Plethora-of-diseases-caused-by-low-vitamin-D.html
My doc wont test for Vit D deficiency though.
Taz x
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My doc wont test for Vit D deficiency though.
Taz x
Any particular reason, Taz? I've never asked, so don't if my GP would test for it.
You do hear a lot about Vit D deficiency these days though, for the reasons you mentioned.
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Lgirl, does one have to ask to have vit D levels checked or is it standard when doing bloods for tiredness etc? I had bloods done lately because i have been feeling tired too! but they all came back 'normal'. I did however before this appt get myself a high dose vit D spray.
I would say Lgirl that this has had an effect on your overall wellbeing but the only way to make sure is NOT to change anything else in the meantime apart from intro of Vit D. I have heard a lot of people lately talking about tiredness and low mood so would not at all be surprised if its lack of sunlight/winter blues. I also used to get the throat symptoms thinking i was coming down with virus and then it would just disappear so this is probably a meno thing perhaps affecting our immunity.
Anyway hope the vit D does the trick :)
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Hi
When my meno symptoms kicked off over 2 years ago I had overall joint and bone pain. This did go away for a while but reared its head almost a year ago. After several trips to the doctors complaining of foot, knee and bone pain when I sat or laid down, I had a vit d blood test. It came back with a low reading and I'm on high dose vit d for a year. The knee and bone pain has almost gone but am still left foot pain which may not have been related to the vit d. I didn't really feel tired just worn out with the pain. I've just had another reading and its within normal levels but still have to carry on with vit d.
Hope this helps you.
Lesley x
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Hi
I went on to HRT due to a few symptoms of the menopause, the main one being bone pain. HRT was not suitable for several reasons, but it did help the pain. When I stopped taking it the pain returned and was extreme. My GP did blood tests and Vit D was very low. He prescribed high dose Vit D3 for 3 months and the pain has eased to the extent that I am now taking daily walks and cycling.
I am due back to have my levels checked but would now worry about stopping the VitD tablets as they have certainly improved my mobility and pain.
Hope this helps and good luck
PN x x
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My mum (age 82) has low vitamin D and she has been prescribed Vitamin D with calcium. Apparently it is practice for over-75s in that practice.
I take BetterYou mouthspray - one spray = 1000mg per day as part of my supplements.
My friend had her levels tested by her Doctor because of joint pains. She was told she has the highest Vitamin D reading in the practice! No wonder, she has 3 holidays in the sun and has always been a bit of a sun worshipper 8).
Fx
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Hello Ladies
I haven't posted for a while but do dip in and see how everyone is getting on!
I would say that everyone should be taking a Vit D supplement during the winter. From what I hear the UK has had even less light than usual this last year, I'm in Australia, it's summer and I've just had a routine blood test which showed I was lacking in Vit D! I certainly didn't expect that and have to take a supplement during the summer as well.
It's not necessarily a meno thing, everyone's levels will be low in winter although maybe we don't retain it as well as we get older. It's a vitamin you flush out if not required so no harm in supplements and serious lacking in this vitamin has been linked to several diseases which are more prevalent in the northern hemispheres.
Australia has severe Vit D deficiencies because of the slip, slap, slop campaigns, it's very difficult as there is a lot of skin cancer here as well but 15 mins a day at either end of the day is supposed to be enough to keep levels topped up....I'm off to do mine!
I hope you get a decent summer this year, I do feel for you all, you must all be so fed up with the constant bad weather!
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Yes we do have severe VIT D here
Kids kepot in from school and I hear its the worst in the world in Tazzie so much so that kids are being made to go outside in their lunch breaks
But 15 mins of sun in Qld can burn you we say here walk to the washing line put on the clothes and thats a full days VIT D
I saw on emb Bodies you can buy a little machine with no UV rays that you can sit by for 30 mins and thats all u need?
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Hi
When my meno symptoms kicked off over 2 years ago I had overall joint and bone pain. This did go away for a while but reared its head almost a year ago. After several trips to the doctors complaining of foot, knee and bone pain when I sat or laid down, I had a vit d blood test. It came back with a low reading and I'm on high dose vit d for a year. The knee and bone pain has almost gone but am still left foot pain which may not have been related to the vit d. I didn't really feel tired just worn out with the pain. I've just had another reading and its within normal levels but still have to carry on with vit d.
Hope this helps you.
Lesley x
Hi Lesley
I have just been catching up with MM and my situation is the same as yours - can I ask if you take magnesium or calciulm alongside your Vit D?
PN x x
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Hi PN...
what dose of vit D are you on?
I get constant night pain in bones..waking almost hourly to shift..
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Hi Jax
I have been on gp prescribed 800 x twice daily for 5 months which has brought my levels up, but he wants me to continue with 1 tablet daily as I still get some pain, albeit a lot less than before. I spend many hours awake at night with either painful shins or irritable legs
Have you had a vit d blood test Jax?
I am wondering if wheat has anything to do with it as I ate more bread than usual and my legs were particularly bad - they improved but I had missed my 2 mile daily walk for 3 days, so it could be walking that aggravates them. Although the gp has said to keep walking.
I had no pain at all when on hrt but had to cease taking it for other horrendous reasons. Are you on hrt Jax?
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Hi Purplenanny
I have just started to take some magnesium alongside the vit d as was reading that you can sometimes be deficient in both - here's hoping. I take 1000 vit d tablets plus one a month of higher amount. I do take hrt but to be honest I had pain before taking it. I have tried on several occasions to cut out the hrt but I am all over the show. Do dread when I have to give up.
In the early days I did get constant pain in night wherever I lay seemed to hurt, like a very deep ache in my bones but that seems to have gone with the vit d.
As I said before I do get terrible pains in my feet but hope that this will improve one day.
Lesley x
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Hi lesley, my gp told me that it can take some time to build vitd back up, so hopefully if you keep going your feet may get better. I hope so for you as the pain is horrible. x x
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Do hope so, have been taking it for 6 months. Is your pain better than it was?
Lesley x
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yes it was but recently had a blip, as per my earlier post. Will stick with it - gp again in 3 months
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My husband, myself and my mum all had blood tests last year and all 3 of us had low vit d. GP said it was lack of sunlight. Hubby and I have taken vit D3 ever since but mum refuses to take anything, she is 81 and very set in her ways. :)
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do you feel better for it everyones mum?
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I'm suffering from Joint & Muscle pain so wondered if a a Doze of 5000iu be too high as a start - I've had very little sun for years ..and daylight hoursare short over the winter months ..dark till 10am and dark again at 4pm :(
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I should live where you do Jubilee - I love the short days.. don't ask me why!
Taz x
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Hi Jubilee
There does not seem to be any firm conclusions about the safest levels. The levels were initially recommended at 2,000iu, then increased to 4,000iu, then the number of 10,000iu was used.
I take Better You Vitamin D3 mouthspray - very easy to take and immediately absorbable. They also do a 3,000iu mouth spray.
Not sure how you were planning to take Vitamin D, but that is one option for you to consider and perhaps the 3,000 would be a better level for you if you want to start higher than 1000?
Just a thought.
Fx
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Yes, purple nanny we do feel better. Both hubby and I had joint pain in our shoulders and both feel better now. We also take a high grade fish oil which has probably also helped us.
When we all had our bloods checked last year I noticed alot of other people were being diagnosed with low vit d and I wonder if the test was a recent addition to routine blood tests as none of us had ever been labeled with it before xx
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I had a blood test for Vit D 5 years ago- but it was at a private hospital.
To be honest, I wasn't aware that low Vit D caused bone or joint pain. I thought this was symptomless until you had some physical signs such as broken bones or rickets ( in children.)
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Hi
I had sore throats ( not bad) but just there and swollen glands and achey bits but didnt mention this to doctor as had them so long, she tested me for low thyroid when I needed more HRT for palpitations and found out I had low thyroid which she treats, after a few months i realised the throats etc had gone,
take vit d3 , magnesuim spray . Perhaps ask for a thyroid test and at least then you can rule it out.
:D
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Thanks Firewalker50 I'll take a look at the Spray , that might be the answer as I take lots of various tabs to try and help the Joints , I take evening primrose oil 1000MG , Ester C 100mg , Spirulina , and Blue Green Algae + by choice a 75mg Aspirin 3 days a week
I walk lots and go to the gum but nothing helps to ease the stiffness and pain in Muscles & Joints
Thank you all for the posts all are helpful to read :)
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Hi Jubilee
Like Winterose, I also use BetterYou magnesium spray (good quality mid cost range) and I will have magnesium baths now and again.
I find if my muscles are sore that a few nights of the spray eases them all. I don't have so much pain in my joints. My friend does though and she says she feels so much better with exercise and losing a bit of weight too.
Good quality Omega3 fish oil (I take pharmaceutical grade lemon flavoured) also helps to combat inflammation. EPO is Omega6 and you need a balance of both. I don't really know your personal health situation but you may like to read this article on balancing 3:6. My chiropractor explained this to me and since then I have taken Omega 3 fish oil as stated. If you have a diet high in grain it creates Omega 6. So depend on your diet and supplements you may have an out of balance Omega 3:6 and possibly unwittingly causing inflammation. I cannot know of course - this is just one thing to consider.
I also use chiropractor to keep my skeletal system in check and that in turn eases my join and muscle aches. That may or may not apply to you.
I know you asked about Vitamin D. I do not know how long you have been on the other supplements.
Sometimes it is good to re-visit them and adjust if necessary.
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Yes, purple nanny we do feel better. Both hubby and I had joint pain in our shoulders and both feel better now. We also take a high grade fish oil which has probably also helped us.
When we all had our bloods checked last year I noticed alot of other people were being diagnosed with low vit d and I wonder if the test was a recent addition to routine blood tests as none of us had ever been labeled with it before xx
Hi everyones mum - I've been told that vit D isn't included in standard blood tests.
Almost 2 years ago, I started having pain and swelling in my feet. After first being diagnosed with tendonitis, and going to a physio for several months (with no improvement), I was sent to a foot specialist and had x-rays done which also showed nothing unusual. This was followed by a MRI scan which showed fractures in both feet! Since I hadn't injured myself, the doctor suspected a vit D deficiency - the blood test confirmed I was severely deficient.
After a couple of months of taking a very high dose (42000iu per week), I was back in the normal range, and my feet started to heal. I now take a maintenance dose of 2000iu per day, and I'm tested 3 times a year to make sure my levels remain ok.
My GP mentioned that routine testing for vit D deficiency isn't carried out, it's only when you have symptoms that the NHS will test for it (which seems a bit daft IMO).
Living in the UK, most people will struggle to meet their daily vit D requirements unless they eat 3 portions of oily fish a day which isn't very realistic. I do think supplementation is essential especially as you get older. I certainly feel better for it - I used to get sick every winter but have got through the last 2 without getting cough/colds/flu etc.
There's lots of good information here:
http://www.vitamind3-cholecalciferol.com/index.html
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Chairmaine - that was very interesting to me.
I fell downstairs about 8 years ago and my feet have never healed.
Any time I exercise, my ankles and feet are painful and feel as if they are injured.
I used the link and from there took the link to calculate Vitamin D levels.
I would need to use a high dosage too.
Thank you for the link. I am due to go to the doctor to follow up on something, and I think I will ask her to do a Vit D level test to make sure. I currently take 1000iu Vit D3 Spray most days.
Fx
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Yes, definitely ask to be tested - if you're deficient, 1000iu per day isn't enough to get your levels up quickly.
Once your level is in the normal range, it will probably take some time to find the maintenance dosage that's right for you - your GP should offer to test you every few months to make sure your level remains steady.
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Hi Charmaine
Yes that is very interesting and I did have a suspicion that vit d wasnt tested for as anyone I spoke to last year that had had a recent blood test said they were low in vit d. I found this strange. Glad you got to the bottom of it and are now on the mend x
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FW is that the lemon flavoured spray you can get from Holland & Barrett?
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My Endo suggested taking Vit D after I complained of tiredness and aching joints - I have an underactive thyroid, but my thyroid levels were good so he didn't want to increase my Thyroxine.
I started taking Vit D Sunvite 1000iu (Holland & Barrett) as he suggested, and have since had a VitD blood test, which has come back at 22.9 - apparently severely deficient.
I have been told to just continue taking the dose I am already taking or I can increase it to 2000iu a day (this message came via his Secretary) I am a little concerned that maybe I need to take more than this to get my level up quickly - can anyone advise?
Tina
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I have been told to just continue taking the dose I am already taking or I can increase it to 2000iu a day (this message came via his Secretary) I am a little concerned that maybe I need to take more than this to get my level up quickly - can anyone advise?
Tina
Hi Tina,
I don't think 2000iu a day is enough to correct a severe deficiency - it should be more like 6000-7000iu daily. When I had my first vit D blood test, my level was 11 and I was put on 42000iu per week - it took 2 months for my levels to rise to the normal range. I'd suggest speaking to your doctor again and see if he will reconsider - large doses are generally only necessary for a short time, and you should be monitored (via more blood tests) until you find the maintenance dose that suits you.
Charmaine
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Charmaine
Thanks for your reply - you have definitely confirmed my concern.
Did your GP treat your deficiency?
I am thinking that rather than contact the Endo again, maybe I should make an app with my GP to discuss.
Tina
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Yes Tina, it was done through my GP.
I use Boots brand Vitamin D 25ug (which is 1000iu) tablets which come in packs of 90 - they cost £4.99 each but they're almost always on sale 3 for 2. So £10 buys you 270 tablets which isn't too bad.
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I should live where you do Jubilee - I love the short days.. don't ask me why!
Taz x
Do you really Taz , I really feel quite depressed from October - March I want the longer days and look forward to may ..then after 22cd june its down hill again quite quickly into winter
but I take my vitamins daily all year round ... keeps general health good although joints still sore & creaky x
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How you feel in the Spring is how I feel in the Autumn Jubilee. I hate the shortest day as this shows that we are about to head into longer days but love the longest day as it means the nights will then begin to draw in. I love getting up while it is still dark which, as my usual getting up time is around 6 a.m., is ok in the winter but in the summer I would have to get up really early for it still to be dark. I have stopped trying to work out why I feel like this but I have found some research on the net and it is called "Reverse SAD".
Taz x
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Oh Dear Taz we are complete opposites, aren't we ? ..strange isn't it
As I have a big garden I am very busy with that and the greenhouse from early spring as I grow all my own Annuals + Tomatoes and cucumbers so that keeps me busy through those months and takes my mind of myself and my probs ... the Autumn and Winter and the long nights gives me time to dwell
on those probs ...and my boring life - Jube x