Menopause Matters Forum
Menopause Discussion => All things menopause => Topic started by: Kathleen on June 13, 2014, 08:38:27 AM
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Hello Ladies, another moan coming up so brace yourselves!
Am I the only one struggling with this hot weather? I'm still flushing so this heat is just adding to my discomfort. Due to my husband's snoring I usually sleep in a spare room but it is small and stuffy, even with the window open. I'm wondering if this is causing me to become dehydrated so I'll be drinking more water today but I feel terrible at the moment.
Everyone seems to enjoy the sun but I certainly don't.
Take care everyone.
K.
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I am heat intolerant due to having ME. Over the years I have found coconut water to be of enormous help to me as it prevents dehydration. Also good are Nuun tablets - you get these on Amazon- add to water and they are hydrating in hot weather. I also keep a can of Avene Thermal Water spray next to the bed- now available in Boots and use this to keep cool in the night. This is brilliant- I buy the large cans as they last for ages.
Menopause certainly has made this worse although I now have a period 11 months after the last one, and have a reprieve from my sweats which I am sure will return after this cycle! Almost got to one year but knew a period was coming as I lost the night sweats a month ago!
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From past experience try a good oscillating fan and keep it on all night. Direct it so it is aimed at the length of your body. It always helped me whilst I was having night sweats. In fact I sometimes got cold!!!!
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The current humidity levels are torture for me, particularly at night. Fortunately I live near the sea so i've been going for a lovely dip in the sea late afternoons to cool down - my dog swims around with me. I've ordered a Chillow as many women seem to rave about this - my legs get soooo hot at night and get that horrible creeping sensation - i hoping I can sleep with the Chillow between my calves to keep them cool.
At the moment I'm seriously wanting to go back on HRT - I was more or less ok through the winter months but I'm really struggling to control my body temperature at the moment.
Tracstu and Machair and Kathleen - is HRT not an options for you? DG x
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Dancing girl, I've slept with chillow between my thighs before now. Anything which cools my hot legs.
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I absolutely cannot tolerate the hot weather. I feel like I am burning up as if I am in a furness. This is in itself depressing as before meno I was never like this. The longevity of the symptoms are getting me down as I cannot see an end to them. I would love to be able to look forward to summer again. So many GP's since the WHI study are not willing to prescribe HRT or only prescribe it for 5 or 10 years. I have met a few women over the last couple of weeks who cannot get HRT from their practioners, even oestrogen only.
Meg
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I absolutely cannot tolerate the hot weather. I feel like I am burning up as if I am in a furness. This is in itself depressing as before meno I was never like this. The longevity of the symptoms are getting me down as I cannot see an end to them. I would love to be able to look forward to summer again. So many GP's since the WHI study are not willing to prescribe HRT or only prescribe it for 5 or 10 years. I have met a few women over the last couple of weeks who cannot get HRT from their practioners, even oestrogen only.
Meg
What in particular did the WHI study show & how recent was it?
I'm going to see my GP in July/August when I will be post meno about the possibility of going on HRT but wondering if my symptoms might calm down when I've reached the post meno.
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If you research on the net you will probably find this study. I think the study was released in 2002 and the papers at the time were full of all the scare stories of the increased risk of breast cancer. I believe the study has since been rather discredited because it was a very narrow study of older women on the older style of HRT. The risks of breast cancer are very small and do not apply until 5 years beyond the natural age of meno if you are using HRT - so really about 55-60. If you have family history of breast cancer then HRT may be an issue.
Somewhere on this site are the latest recommendations from the British Gynae body
Dalhousie, why are you waiting to try HRT - the peri stage is often the best time to start? Meno symptoms can take years to subside and the hormone levels continue to drop over the next months and years so the 'wait and see' method can be very long.
You may be lucky and find the symptoms die down over a couple of years - everyone is different. DG x
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What in particular did the WHI study show & how recent was it?
I'm going to see my GP in July/August when I will be post meno about the possibility of going on HRT but wondering if my symptoms might calm down when I've reached the post meno.
Dalhousie you will find information on this site about the findings of the WHI study, so this would be the first place to look:
http://www.menopausematters.co.uk/risks.php
If you look in the news section of this site too, and look through the archives you will find press releases and summaries of the latest findings related to HRT. In May 2012 a paper (or series) was published where the data were re-examined but I can't seem to find the summaries any more. Here is the press release anyway:
http://www.menopausematters.co.uk/newsitem.php?recordID=135/The-Women-s-Health-Initiative-study-and-Hormone-Therapy-what-have-we-learned-10-years-on
The updated recommendations on HRT can be found here:
http://www.menopausematters.co.uk/newsitem.php?recordID=145/BMS-Council-Consensus-Statement-on-HRT
and the detailed paper here:
http://min.sagepub.com/content/19/2/59
Hurdity x
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Thank you Hurdity - I'm still not good at finding things on this site!!!
DG xxx
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Neither am I but I do have 3 other medical issues at present so trying to remember things for the different conditions is sending my memory into overdrive & seem to get quite muddled.
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I think I might buy a chillow. It was very hot last night & I put a cold pack (that I use for my hip) in between my hips & it soothed me and helped me get to sleep. I find it more effective than a fan which just blows the warm air around.
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I've recently invested in a Chillow and I must say the relief of being able to put my burning hot feet and legs on something cool is lovely. It really helps to cool me down when I get the night flushes. For me the night hots tend to be isolated to my legs and feet - I get that horrid creeping sensation - it's like my blood is seriously overheating all through my muscles as well. Dg x
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We have a stand-alone A/C unit in our bedroom which we switch on around 8pm then by the time we go up to bed the bedroom is lovely and cool. No duvet, just the cover on my side while hubby shivers under a pile of throws ;)
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Having an air conditioner in the bedroom last summer was an absolute godsend for me. Some nights the temps were barely below 30C outside, but the air con kept the bedroom much cooler. So even if I did wake up with a hot flush, I cooled down quite quickly and got back to sleep for a few hours (until the next one woke me up!). I dread to think how I would have functioned if I hadn't had the A/C as I wouldn't have slept much at all and would have been hopeless the next day.
If you can possibly get hold of one, it is a good investment :)
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Anything over 24 degrees is a killer for me. I've also got MS, which is very heat-sensitive and means that I just get too weak to function at all. I live in Switzerland, which can get very hot in summer, believe it or not, and the only thing that helps at all is to shut all the windows and blinds and wait for the sun to go down. A/C is extremely rare here, for some reason ;D
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I sufer too with theheat K.
My MS really plays up if I get too hot so I have two air cond machines. One in the bedroom and one in the lounge otherwise I know I would go blind for one thing let alone the other symptoms.
Hope you manage to stay as cool as possible.
Shazzie xx
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Well it's been raining for nearly 24 hours now, and the temperature has dropped 10 degrees. It won't last, but it's been a nice change. :)