Menopause Matters Forum
Menopause Discussion => All things menopause => Topic started by: Cthrnstowe on August 10, 2015, 07:29:30 PM
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I'm 53 really don't know were to start, I've not had a period for 5 month but am convinced I have something sinister wrong with me, I spend more time at the doctors than I do at home, I've had every test going done 2 MRI scans, xray's on every part of my body but I'm still convinced something is wrong with me, can the menopause make you feel this way, any one else feel this way xx
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Hello there,
Sorry to hear that you are feeling like this, it sounds like health anxiety and yes it is very common, hope you feel better soon.
Shellb
xXx
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Hello Cthrnstowe and welcome to the forum.
You may be comforted to know that yes, the menopause can make you feel this way and yes many of us feel as you do.
There is a wealth of information on this site and of course the ladies here are willing and able to help you.
Take heart, you are not alone in what you are going through, the menopause can do strange things to the best of us.
Wishing you well and keep posting.
K.
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I feel like I'm going off my head, I spend hours on the internet looking at symptoms of everything and I've always got some of the symptoms, I'm never happy nothing excites me, my family don't understand, I was driving home from work and I just felt like disappearing xx
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Their isn't anything in particular, I have the hot flushes, no energy, no interest in anything, I had a blood test last week, they said my iron levels were too high that was it I lost it couldn't concentrate, had the test done again and it come back normal, I've got another X-ray booked for next week on my stomach because i have pain there, I've just had a course of treatment with a chiropractor because of my back pain, I was considering paying for a full body scan, it's driving me crazy xx
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A friend I used to work with years ago had the same problem and was always at the doctors. She was convinced she had various cancers and every time she had a sore throat, it was throat cancer, if she had headache, it was brain tumour, the list was endless and it really got her down. In the end, it turned out that the hypochrondria was caused by depression. It might be worth checking to see if it is menopausal/hormonal related depression or just simply depression. Please keep up posted and let us know how you get on.
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:welcomemm: you sound 'within normal limits'. How supportive is your GP?
I agree you sound clinically depressed. What type of X-ray has your GP arranged if you have pain in the stomach? A full body scan is possible but if you have already had an MRI what do you want to achieve? I had a body scan when I had cancer treatment to make sure that my bone density was OK and that there were no signs of spread. Everythign was OK!
Have a browse of the pull down menus top of screen. Make notes. You will get through this once the result return without showing anything. Ask away!
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Hi and :welcomemm:
You certainly not alone ,I have at least 2 or 3 terminsl illnesses at any one time from time to time. ;).......
But seriously I have felt like that before and its Truely terrifing at the time but it seems to pass then rationally you can view it objectivly. I decided to take ADs for the panics and anxiety it has helped,hope you find some relief soon.
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Sorry it's a scan I've got on my stomach, the X-ray I had on my throat because I feel I have a lump in my throat, that come back fine, I sound like I'm nuts xx
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My vitamin d did come back abit low but the doctor said the majority of people have low vitamin d due to the weather in England x
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That's what mine is acid reflux, it's horrible theirs times that I feel like I'm choking, it got that bad one night when I was in work I phoned a ambulance x
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Hi Cthrnstowe, no you are NOT going nuts. That is how we all feel and quite frankly its cr*p :-X
It is making me so sad to see how many of us get to feeling like this. My GP wrote me off some time ago and I refuse to go again, I changed doctors twice and I swear it just says 'hypochondriac' on my notes. It was suggested to me here to make an appointment with the practice nurse which I have done, looking forward to being able to talk about this in person. I will then be referred to the well woman's clinic, so hopefully get help there too.
One suggestion I do have is 'yoga' maybe not your thing, but certainly helped me with many things - I am lucky too as most of the 'girls' are around my age so also gave me an extra support group, its good to have that hour or so of 'me time' a week too.
take care, and remember you are in good company here.
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I can empathise with you entirely, if you looked back at my old threads I too have many dread diseases. Lol. Im 53 not on hrt and finding life horrid right now.
I am so very tired in bouts, headachey or a full blown migraine which pills don't fix. I dont care about shopping any more, so not like me. Few flushes not a problem. No energy. Can barely laugh but oh can I cry. Back ache, neck ache so I cant even do nice pass times like painting due to my neck. I too see a chiro. Tinnitus.Appetite poor. On and on goes the list. I too want to run away. I find life overwhelming. the worst is not knowing when it will end and I can be me again.
You have my sympathies.
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Sarai, I'm so glad I've found this forum I thought I was going mad, the other thing I'm struggling with is looking at things that might go wrong, but it's on a big scale, so I can't enjoy anything, I keep thinking something bad is gonna happen, I've never been like this did you feel like that xx
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I have to say I was a glass half empty person, but I muddled on quite well. I've never ever felt this bad both mentally and physically at the same time. I feel I've gone see through or I'm made out of fine china. I was loud and feisty, always solved everybodys problems for them. I was the 'go to' person. Now I want to hide away a bit like 'stop the world I want to get off'. It really is soul destroying. I have a teenage student at home and she cant believe the mum shes come home from uni to, I'm so different.
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Hi Cthrnstowe,
With regards to the pains in your stomach, are the upper abdomen or lower? The reason I ask that since 2012 I have had either pains or discomfort in my upper abdomen 24 hours a day, every single day. The lump in my throat, like yours, is caused by reflux. It's a long long story but after several scans, two endoscopies and a 24hr tube-down-throat into stomach reflux test at Barts, I have hiatus hernia and GERD/GORD.
I have been waiting for a Nissen Fundoplication (anti-reflux surgery and hernia repair), but after discussion it's not going ahead because even if they stop the reflux it doesn't stop the pains in the stomach. The only time it lessens is if I do the Cambridge Diet (liquid only) for two weeks, then it just about disappears. Losing weight helps - that's no help to you if you've none to lose though!
PPIs stop the reflux as they completely block the acid receptors in the stomach, but the side effects for me were horrendous and the long term effects are unknown (yet still they dish them out like smarties). This all happened at the same time as the menopause - which is known for causing stomach/digestive problems.
I'm only telling you all this so you know that you're not alone and sometimes the feeling that you're sure that there is something serious wrong turns out to be not true, although you certainly feel like it at the time! It's been 3 years I've suffered with my stomach, all the tests I've had done, and I don't have anything 'major' although I concede that it is a hindrance to my life! I've recently had a CT scan on my stomach and although it has shown up a mass on my adrenal gland, that isn't the cause of my stomach pains and my stomach is clear other than the hernia!
I am hoping that when/if all this menopause madness ends, some of the other ailments will go too - the hormonal anxiety being one of the worst ones!
But you are not going mad, I thought I was too, it just feels like you are! Ask for all the tests you want done, don't hold back, push and pester, if only to set your mind at rest x
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The pains are in my upper abdomen, I have the scan in 2 week, the tablets they have put me on are esomeprazole for the acid reflux, think the doctors are getting fed up of me now, I've started to make a appointment a month in advance just in case anything is wrong, that's how bad it's got me xx
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Yes upper abdomen is where mine are, I have Omeprazole (same as yours just sight difference in name) but the side effects were too bad for me; blurred vision, panic attacks and anxiety, generally feeling unwell.
Don't worry about docs getting fed up with you - it's their paid job to listen to you and look after you, I think they forget that sometimes, I even had a barney with one of mine, tried to tell me I had IBS at first just to fob me off having any in-depth tests done.
Yes I do understand how you're feeling, that's what I felt like, it's only when I sort of 'gave-up' on the NHS and just accepted that I just had to put up with it for a while, well it was sort of a relief, and the health anxiety stopped.
See what happens after your scan and let us know xx
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My GP suggested Colpermin tablets - to swallow within the hour prior to eating my main meals. After 2/3 weeks my poo smelt of peppermint :D but symptoms eased.
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Thanks ladies for all your info, will deffo be staying on the forum xxx
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Sparkle, I just bought some probiotics, never had them before so I'm glad you said that!
I've tried Lansoparazole, didn't work as well as Omeprazole but less of the bad side effects. I really think it was hormones that have caused all my stomach issues, I used to have a stomach of iron - could drink and eat anything, never a murmur1
Because of the effects, I'm only using Ranitidine, Gaviscon, Tums etc and with Omeprazole as emergency - the side effects don't come unless I take them 3 days in a row.
What a nightmare - oops I'm going back to read our 'thinking positive' thread! x
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Hi everyone
I too feel as if I am going mad, I seem to spend my whole life self diagnosing just lately. I had an upset tummy two nights ago, some kind of IBS or similar thing - I've had it before a million times but this time it was such a big deal, I am waiting for it to come back again as if that will prove I am really ill. I keep feeling fuller than normal, quicker - I've just been checked out thoroughly by a gynecologist/blood tests/scan - but since that all came back ok I've now moved my "terminal illness" to my stomach. Started very recently with hot sweats and pretty severe (I think) night sweats. Can't sleep - and I need my sleep - and just wish I never had to work again, not because I am lazy but because it's making me feel so anxious. If I am honest I just want to stay at home where I feel safe. Confidence at an all time low. Thank goodness I found this forum!
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:welcomemm:
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I will do it for her shall I :poke2:
;)
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;D
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Hi Sparkle,
That's quite a low dose of Lansoprazole, so you're definitely not overdoing the meds which is good, I really think PPIs are quite evil though if you can take them without side-effects, well I'd be on them regularly too! They do work well don't they.
Yes the cough, it is a flipping nightmare, real lack of sleep last night, was coughing so much I thought my eyeballs were going to pop out. Silent reflux they say, really? - certainly weren't silent in my house! A couple of weeks ago my throat was so sore that I could only croak at people, so I understand what you feel like. Took me a good few days and loads of sore throat meds to ease it where I'd coughed myself raw.
What sort of problems did your gallbladder cause?
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Why not Milk of Magnesia or Rennies :-\
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Hi CLKD, don't know about sparkle, but for me Rennies & MoM aren't strong enough most of the time, I suppose it depends just how bad your reflux is.
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Yep. I try not to eat or take medication within an hour of laying down to sleep. I find that heartburn begins as soon as I lay down ………. or when I eat too fast.
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Yes, no way could eat before bedtime, or anything with tomatoes, chocolate, wine, butter, milk, white bread .... endless list, and sometimes I get it just for nothing, I can even get up in the morning with it. The only time it's ok is on a two-week no solids diet - but I can't do that forever. Sometimes the only partial relief is to throw-up, sorry if that's TMI!!
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I feel like I'm going off my head, I spend hours on the internet looking at symptoms of everything and I've always got some of the symptoms, I'm never happy nothing excites me, my family don't understand, I was driving home from work and I just felt like disappearing xx
You are posting in the right place. I had a breakdown in March and it was, in part, menopause related in combination with some very stressful events. Some of the symptoms I had included anxiety that was off the wall and also anhedonia (the inability to feel pleasure). I would encourage you to get checked out for depression and get some help sooner rather than later if you can (I hope you find one decent Dr in the practice you are in - if not see if you can find another practice - this was something I had to do as I had very bad medical care at one practice). One of the things I learnt after my breakdown is that there are oestrogen and progesterone receptors in the brain - so when menopausal hormones get out of whack, it affects everything including how we emotionally feel. In my case I completely lost the ability to make decisions as well.
Re: the lump in the throat - there is something called globulus hystericus which occurs as a result of anxiety - I've just been reading Sally Brampton's account of her depression (shoot the damn dog) and she had that symptom.
Before all this happened to me, I always thought that depression just meant being really really sad and gloomy - but it doesn't. And a nervous breakdown is now classed as a depressive episode under the DSM (which is the manual psychiatrists use to diagnose).
Sending hugs xx
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Sparkle: Ah, so I can see how gallbladder can get muddled in with hernia and GORD, some of the symptoms are similar.
Crikey, no, no way can I eat peppermint or drink mint tea, the acid is hitting the ceiling on that. I do find ginger tea helps though, and I love it. When I'm coughing (like now), the thing that eases it a little is sipping hot water or putting Vicks on my chest and throat, and also ......
I hope you won't think I'm completely mad, but there is something else that can stop a cough when it's tickling persistently and this is to rub Vicks into the soles of your feet when you go to bed, honestly, I read it online and thought, 'Yeah right, nice try .... I ain't that stupid', but it does work, don't ask me how or why, no-one seems to know. If I'm bringing up a lot of mucus it doesn't stop that, but if like me you sometimes get that dry unproductive tickly cough, it does. x
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Yeah Sparkle, completely pee'd off with it! Do give it a try, let me know if it works for you too! x
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Greenfields - anhedonia - I'd never heard of it but so glad you mentioned it as it sums up how I feel and have for at least a year. I live in Norfolk, enjoy lots of beautiful walks with my dogs, have a lot to be thankful for but I just can't feel pleasure in anything, my life, hobbies, beautiful things, music - I was only thinking last night it's like someone has switched that switch off inside of me. I don't feel depressed but there is a marked lack of me ever feeling pleasure :( I don't feel miserable, just don't feel lifted.
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My mum told me years ago about Vicks on the soles of your feet,I too thought she was stark raving mad but as usual Mums know best ,she was right. :P
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Norfolk people can be stand offish ::) - one isn't welcome until 1 has great grandchildren going through school ;)
However: Lynda07 - this may be depression. Do you feel better after your dog walks? I found when meeting people briefly that my mood lifted, because it was a boost to my adrenaline.
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CLKD - they will be waiting a long time for me then as I have no kids lol.
I don't feel much different after a dog walk no - and that's not right as I live for them and in past years they have kept me sane as they have made me feel happier.
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Maybe you need to see your GP about treatment for depression. There is a scoring scale to fill in which gives the GP an idea as to moods etc.. A course of 8-12 months of ADs might well lift your brain sufficiently so that you feel better, the brain is an organ that is often forgotten ;)
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Dazned - thanks for that, after I posted about Vicks on your feet I was sure everyone would think I was off my trolley! Don't suppose you know why it works do you?
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CLKD - they will be waiting a long time for me then as I have no kids lol.
I don't feel much different after a dog walk no - and that's not right as I live for them and in past years they have kept me sane as they have made me feel happier.
It does sound like a symptom of depression so worth getting checked out. When I thought of depression I used to think that it meant folks were really miserable and gloomy but it doesn't necessarily mean that at all under the medical description - thats why I prefer to use the term nervous breakdown to describe what happened to me as it was a breakdown and I wasn't overly miserable - I was just very ill and it's taken a lot out of me and is taking a long time to recover from - but anehedonia is definitely something I still experience and is a symptom of depression - I can't find meaning in life these days although I remind myself constantly that what I am experiencing is a symptom and not me and who I am as I used to be a very upbeat person and I'm hoping, that at some point, that quality will return.
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It will return once your upheaval has lessened ;-). I thought I would never feel well again but with good support from our GP, a loving husband and medication, most days I feel OK! There were times when I didn't recognise that I was slipping into depression, my GP drove past me when I was walking my dog one morning, rang me later that day and told me to visit him in the Surgery the next morning. He could see by my posture that I was slipping back.
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Thanks. Guess I will have to visit the Dr at some point, I hate medication but with the feeling low, panic attacks, tearfulness, flushes and night sweats - I know it's all part an parcel but I'm only a month in and wondering how I will cope already :(
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Thanks. Guess I will have to visit the Dr at some point, I hate medication but with the feeling low, panic attacks, tearfulness, flushes and night sweats - I know it's all part an parcel but I'm only a month in and wondering how I will cope already :(
If you don't want to go down medication yet, then I would really encourage you to do other things that can support you. I know you exercise because you walk the dogs but do you do anything aerobic? Like swimming or dancing for example? If you can find some exercise that gets your heart rate up and you can fit it in, then it might help - my menopause symptoms worsened because I got ill with a viral infection and so I didn't exercise for 2 months which didn't help any, I then compounded the situation by doing a 3 week meditation retreat where I did no exercise and drank lots of sweet sugary chai tea - it was then that my night sweats went into overdrive (but I didn't appreciate my hormone system was getting out of complete balance by then). Although I had a solid meditation practice (meditation helps too) I was also under a huge amount of stress as I was going to move from the UK back to Canada - so that didn't help either.
Also look at your diet. I cut out all coffee and regular tea - I only drink non-caffeinated herbal teas now. I also cut out all sugar and I don't drink alcohol. I also used to see an acupuncturist for menopausal symptoms and stress and that helped for a while until I got the viral infection that made me really ill. I also take fish oil capsules - there are some really good ones by Eskimo which have a very high EPA - Eskimo 3 Advanced EPA - I take one a day - they are really good for depression and mental health issues. I went to a nutritionist to get some advice on my diet as well - I eat more meat and protein and feel better for it. I've also almost completely cut out wheat - I eat it a little but not that much which is a big change from how I used to eat. Most of the meals I make are made completely from scratch and I try to eat a lot of fruit and vegetables.
If all this sounds boring, I apologise! I had a breakdown when my menopausal symptoms got so out of whack - so I was determined to do everything I could to get better - but it's taking a while. However, I do think the things I have done, have made a difference.
But I'm also on HRT now - bioidentical progesterone (called Utrogestan 100mg) and an oestrogen patch called Evorel 50 - and it really has made a huge difference to how I function - so don't be put off by HRT and the risks of it - it's very much an individual decision but, on balance, I function so much better on it, that I don't want to go back to where I was before the breakdown and experiencing the most horrendous symptoms (at the time of the breakdown my body had completely lost the ability to regulate my body temperature and my sympathetic nervous system was stuck in fight or flight mode - it was hell). I was always someone who used alternative health therapies before all this happened and rarely went to a Dr - I also practice yoga (I'm a qualified yoga teacher) so I never thought I would end up on HRT but I'm so damn grateful for it these days as what I experienced was horrendous.
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It will return once your upheaval has lessened ;-). I thought I would never feel well again but with good support from our GP, a loving husband and medication, most days I feel OK! There were times when I didn't recognise that I was slipping into depression, my GP drove past me when I was walking my dog one morning, rang me later that day and told me to visit him in the Surgery the next morning. He could see by my posture that I was slipping back.
Thanks for that - I keep hoping so! You sound like you have a really caring GP - that's so lovely.
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I'm so removed you have mentioned anhedonia Greenfield's. I didn't know it had an official name. When I am having one of my episodes of very low mood I definitely have anhedonia. I can't feel any pleasure about anything. I totally lose my sense of joy and cheerfulness. My lovely DH can give me a spontaneous cuddle, and I feel zero (whereas normally I still melt a tiny bit, because I still think he's gorgeous even after all these years). But oddly, I can still orgasm (sorry if that is TMI) and I still enjoy eating food. But recently, even watching my daughter collect an important award at school failed to make me feel even a tiny bit pleased or proud. It's a living death, really.
It's a horrible, soul destroying state of mind. You just felt numb, bleak, detached. Thank goodness these episodes only last a few days before disappearing and I can experience 'normal' emotions again.
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Thank you Greenfields. Looking at my diet and what I eat is next on my list. I do drink and I seem to live on bread - not good. I found your post really helpful!
I don't do any aerobic exercise, I used to run but my knee is shot. However I am quite seriously thinking of power walking with my younger dog.
I have had a particularly bad day today, I feel as if I could go mad with anxiety. Very bloated too - I've diagnosed this as yet another terminal disease - spent all of my spare time on line trying to find what it could be. And once home from work, my anxiety levels were through the roof when home, which is happy and relaxed, is the last place I should feel like this.
On a plus - the sage tablets I am taking seems to be reducing the severity of my flushes.
xx
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STOP Googling :bang: :bang: :bang:
White bread can cause bloatedness :-\
Exercise is good. Keeps the bowels working ;) . A few months ago I changed from toast for breakfast to granola with milk, fills me better. I eat Fuesli bars mid-morning/afternoon if necessary and our evening meal is usually at 5.00 - ish.
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Thank you Greenfields. Looking at my diet and what I eat is next on my list. I do drink and I seem to live on bread - not good. I found your post really helpful!
I don't do any aerobic exercise, I used to run but my knee is shot. However I am quite seriously thinking of power walking with my younger dog.
I have had a particularly bad day today, I feel as if I could go mad with anxiety. Very bloated too - I've diagnosed this as yet another terminal disease - spent all of my spare time on line trying to find what it could be. And once home from work, my anxiety levels were through the roof when home, which is happy and relaxed, is the last place I should feel like this.
On a plus - the sage tablets I am taking seems to be reducing the severity of my flushes.
xx
Aw sending hugs - it's a hard place to be. xxxx
Would definitely encourage you to try exercise - my knee is shot too (as well as my sinuses) but I found the aqua aerobics really helpful.