Menopause Matters Forum
Menopause Discussion => Personal Experiences => Topic started by: EllaM on May 12, 2016, 11:00:06 AM
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Hi everyone, coming to the end of my 6th week on sick leave as a result of awful peri symptoms. I am sure my own hormones have been fluctuating horribly over this time. Just coming to the end of a bleed and was hoping this new cycle would be better for me but so far no improvement. Woke this morning with a bit of nausea, fatigue, dry mouth and just generally feeling crap.
I have another appointment at the meno clinic in June but apart from waiting for this to settle naturally it looks as though Zoladex may be the only other option to see if that can improve my quality of life.
Have other ladies experienced long periods of feeling rubbish? (it's not all anxiety although this has been a feature. I would say it's the generally feeling rubbish that is more the issue).
It can be very frustrating as evenings I can feel relatively ok then it's back to square one in the morning.
Sorry to vent but I'm so scared that I will never feel healthy and happy again xx
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Hello,
I spent 3 months off work at the end of last year with what I initially thought was stress and depression but turned out to be perimenopause. I didn't want to take any medication, either antidepressants or HRT, so I am battling it through with nutrician and exercise. I have been lucky that I have been able to make some changes at work to reduce stress factors there, but I still get very tired, headaches and generally feel a bit rubbish from time to time and especially if I don't have time to fit in a workout, it's nowhere near as it was towards the end of last year though.
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Thanks Cider and so pleased you are feeling generally better.
I do feel really down but if I could feel well enough to get back to work I would be so much happier. I just feel generally rubbish and no where near well enough to cope with work as I manage a team dealing with finances. It is a demanding role and I really need to be on top form to cope.
Feeling so frightened but knowing that other ladies have had similar experiences does help x
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EllaM hi!
I know how you feel. Been there and now back there again but I have the anxiety & low mood with it.
Just feel generally unwell. Once I get my mirena changed( you may have seen my thread) hopefully it will all balance out and I'll feel 'normal' again. Whatever that is? ;D
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Hi Dyan, I saw the thread but will have a good read. Dr Currie has suggested a mirena to me to avoid the effects of starting and stopping utrogestan but I am interested in how the Mirena makes such a difference to your overall wellbeing.
My manager has just been to do a sickness interview. It's so difficult because you just can't predict when you will feel well enough to return. He was lovely and there was no pressure but I just want to be back to 'normal' again. I have a wonderful husband and two grown up children and want to spend quality time with them.
I hope the new Mirena sorts you out xx
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Hi Sparkle. The plan is to work 12 noon till 6 but at the moment I just don't feel well enough to be able to do this. It's often not until the evening when I feel remotely ok.
Apart from being off to have my children and periods of sickness as a result of peri I have worked full time for the last 34 years so don't cope well with being away from it.
I wish we knew why we can go to bed feeling reasonable then wake feeling awful. It seems that this is a common problem x
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EllaM - sorry to hear you are feeling rubbish. I can't remember how old you are, where in menopause you are, what your periods are doing and whether you have tried/considered HRT? You will have posted about this I'm sure!
Hurdity x
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Hello to you!
I have been feeling pretty unwell for 2 years now, but things are looking up. I've tried tablet form HRT, Evorel Conti patches and now 10 days into the Oestrogel/utrogestan route. It's early days, but I am having far more good days than bad, with mornings being the worst time. I was bleeding pretty continuously with Evorel Conti.
I've been super healthy my entire life and it's hardly surprising that some of us develop HA due to feeling so groggy. Nausea, headaches, lethargy, tiredness and just a general feeling of malaise. Strangely, I've never had a hot flush but my menopause has been hellish due to these other horrendous symptoms.
Lolly X
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Hi ellam did you ask to see Dr M in June ? I'm there in July wouldn't be suprised if bumped into you there one day. Sorry to hear your not too good hope visit to meno clinic helps
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Hi Walking the dog, yes I should be seeing Dr M in June. Just hoping she can help me.
We should both wear a red carnation so we can ick each other out although not hard amongst the sheepish looking students! 😉 x
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Hola Lolly (really spooky as my daughter's pet name is Lolly and she is fluent in Spanish!).
I have had some good times on this regime so can only presume it's my own hormones fluctuating in the background causing the problems.
I hope you improved health continues. Ciao xx
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The reason we tend to feel better in the evening is because of our circadian rhythms. We pump out a rush of adrenaline at around 5am (add an hour for BST) and then it gradually subsides and then builds again from 11am and then really starts to climb at 2pm, peaking at about 5pm, gradually coming down at around 7/8pm. 5am and 5pm are when there are the highest amount of stress hormones floating about.
Low oestrogen makes us pump out extra adrenaline to keep the heart beating sufficiently and high oestrogen naturally causes high adrenaline. In peri we get massive surges up and down making all our symptoms worse at these times.
Getting your oestrogen levels balanced makes a huge difference - not easy in peri though! I had to stop working for 6 months (without pay as self employed :() as didn't know it was my hormones, and now I'm on the pill I still feel lethargic some of the month but I am so much better and can function again. I know how you feel, like you're never going to get better and its very frightening - but you will!
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Thank you for the explanation Dangermouse. Today has been one of the exceptions when I have felt awful all day!
Oh to have balanced hormones again! I have been here before, it is very frightening but I have so much to live for and I have come through it before. Tomorrow is another day xx
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Hurdity, thank you for your response. I was not ignoring you, I did respond but it seems to have gone in to cyberspace somewhere :-\
To answer your question, I am almost 51 and have been experiencing awful peri fluctuations for approx 5 years. Peri was never suggested to me as everyone was convinced it was my thyroid (Hashimoto's). I ended up having my thyroid removed as a result but when my symptoms returned 3 weeks later it was suggested there was another cause but no one put 2 +2 and made 4. It was me that began to realise it was cyclical and when I found this website hey presto!
I have been on hrt for 2.5 yrs and utrogestan and estradot 75 for the last year and a half. Prior to this my periods were regular but changed in nature e.g prolonged spotting, thinking my period was never going to start properly.
I have managed a year without sick leave although at the predicted times I can feel awful - days 7-15 then when starting and stopping utro.
These last few weeks have been really awful though which I disappointing as I thought I was over the worst. I am sure I have ovulated as had stretchy mucous, felt really poorly followed by mid cycle spotting. I was also only able to tolerate 5 days utro as I felt so ill (was it adding to my own). I have had a reasonable bleed (4 days)
When my own hormones are behaving i do fine on the hrt - no sweats, flushes, good sleep etc but when they are fluctuating it seems to make me feel worse especially around the usual pre/ovulation time.
I do wonder if there is anything that can help me feel better as I'm not too keen on the thought of Zoladex.
Dr Currie has suggested either stopping hrt or if that is too daunting trying the Mirena. I am too frightened to stop the hrt but just don't know which way to turn x
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I used to have it all day around ovulation as my oestrogen surges were so strong then too!
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Hola from Lolly!
I think we are in a viscious circle with meno. I was one of the many who didn't put 2 and 2 together and was frustratingly treated for anxiety as a principle diagnosis for over a year. I tried various different preparations of anti-depressant which didn't make me feel at all better.
It's been an interesting journey, and the penny finally dropped when my symptoms started to resemble pregnancy nausea. I asked my GP if meno could be making me feel so bad and he guffawed and said absolutely not. He also said that HRT is only effective for hot flushes and for no other menopausal symptoms.
I find a beta blocker in the morning a great help generally as an adjunct to HRT and look forward to reaping the benefits of the Oestrogel /Utrogestan regime. This is coming from someone who works in the medical profession who refused to take an aspirin for a headache before all this started!
I do think you will find light at the end of the tunnel, but hormonal fluctuations can be an enormous challenge to even the most robust individuals.
Two years ago, I didn't think I'd ever work again as I felt so bad, but now I've changed my working day to start later and things are becoming a lot easier. Baby steps....
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Hi Dangermouse and Hola Lolly. Having an absolutely awful day today, feel dreadful, crashed on couch! Presume there is a surge/fluctuation going on as have been here before. It's just so debilitating and frightening.
Like you Lolly I was a very robust fitness fanatic who never sat still and would not take even a paracetamol but this has reduced me to a tiny shadow of my former self. I only wish we all knew how long the tunnel was which might help.
When I think about how little true help there is to help improve the quality of our lives I could scream >:(
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:bighug: all round!
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Thankyou so much CLKD. I love a good hug, if only they could magically make you better x
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They don't always though do they :'( ………
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Hello
I assume you're not on any type of HRT at present. Is that right?
If that's the case, I was wondering if you might ask your GP to prescribe the oestrogel/utrogestan combo before seeing the consultant?
After reading all the posts in this forum and from personal experience, it would seem that this combo is the gold standard for treating difficult meno symptoms. Not ideal for everyone I know, but a great place to start especially as you are feeling very low. The longer we feel ill, the more anxious and panicky we become, wondering if we'll ever get our old selves back.
I get all my treatment under the NHS, and that includes Testogel.
If anxiety is playing any part in your symptoms, I would wholeheartedly recommend propranolol, a beta blocker which is great for making you feel more relaxed. I take 40 mg every morning, and have done for months. For me, the hormonal surges of peri bring on symptoms of anxiety and the BB's go a long way to easing that. I don't think I'll be on them forever, but symptom control meantime is essential.
I wish I had taken BB's and the O/U combo right from the outset instead of struggling with SSRI anti-depressants, which did me no good at all. I am back to work full time now which is great.
I know what you mean about having good days and crashes. The above regime gives me infinitely more good days, and I'd hate to go back to where you are now. It gets better!!! Xx
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Hola Lolly - EllaM just explained in her post below that she is on Estradot75 mcg and utrogestan - which is what I asked ie if she was on HRT!
In your position EllaM if you are feeling that bad on the progesterone part I would be tempted to try the Mirena as the doc suggests and hope that you are not ultra sensitive to the very small amount that is absorbed systemically - many women do well on this. You could then perhaps very your oestrogen dose or at least then be less at the mercy of all the fluctuations that you are finding so debilitating.
Are your thyroid levels well controlled?
Hurdity x
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Hi Hurdity, my thyroid levels are good. When everyone thought the cause of my problems was thyroid related I did a lot of reading up and saw a private endocrinologist so know to keep my tsh level as low as possible.
Apart from the Mirena I'm also thinking about the pill to stop ovulation although being over 50 this may not be an option.
I really start to feel grotty from the end of week one of my cycle and often feel awful at mid cycle which suggests that it's the rising or fluctuating estrogen that is the cause. The added complication of the utrogestan, despite taking it vaginally, often does not help although some months are better than others. Lots of thinking and lots of questions to jot down before I see the consultant.
Thank you everyone for your much needed advice and support xx
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Hello EllaM
Sincere apologies for my latest ramblings above. I completely missed your post about your HRT regime.
I do really feel for you and the minefield you're going through just now. I hope you have better times ahead.
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Hi Lolly and no need to apologise.
I too hope things improve for all of us. Just wish it would happen now as it's so very hard to keep going xx