Menopause Matters Forum
Menopause Discussion => All things menopause => Topic started by: Tempest on September 01, 2018, 04:44:11 PM
-
I have this. It's HIDEOUS! I literally feel like I'm either going to throw up, go mad, jump off a bridge or pass out. I know its a spike in adrenaline - but frankly I don't care that I know what it is, I just can't take it any more! >:( :'(
It started after my first 'migraine aura' - and that started after I was given Sertraline to help my 'low moods' instead of help finding the right HRT, which is what I wanted and needed. I think that little experiment properly buggered everything up, and I've never truly recovered from it.
I've been dealing with it for a year now, staying quiet and hoping it would get better but i'm sick of trying to suck it up and trying to be optimistic. So - i'm 'out of the closet' now, just in case you thought things were getting better!
Do any of you have it THIS BAD? I know my fellow surgical (chemo) menopause sister Racjen has hideous anxiety too, and Kathleen as well but I just wanted to see if anyone else relates, please.
Thank you, lovelies. xxxx
-
Hello Tempest.
I simply had to respond but there will be others I'm sure! I was only thinking earlier today that my adrenaline surges are nothing like as intense as they once were so there is hope for you and all other sufferers. I know other ladies have described their flushes as more like waves of dread followed by some sweating so I assume our experiences are another variant on the standard hot flush.
I know you are science minded and enjoy doing your research ( for which we are all grateful incidentally ) but I agree that sometimes we couldn't care less about the cause and just want it fixed!
Hopefully other responders will have some practical advice for you including tips on how to ride out these horrible surges. From my perspective I can assure you that they do pass.
Wishing you well.
K.
-
I think that Taz was aware prior to a flush. Perhaps she will confirm ......
-
Hello Tempest,
I used to get the impending doom feelings before a hot flush whilst in peri. Thank goodness it's gone now. Interestingly, now that I have this awful peripheral neuropathy, literally burning in hell, the hot flushes are not perceived as bad as they were before. My neurologist said that this has a central nervous system component and it's what they call chronic pain syndrome, hence the pregabalin/duloxetine/chrolobenzaprine prescription. I haven't tried them, though. The burning feeling comes and goes, mainly triggered by heat and sunlight.
I understand that each brain reacts differently to the hormonal withdrawal challenge and imbalance but the neuronal pathways are similar. That's why mindfulness sometimes works because you can shift the brain learned response to different thoughts/neuronal pathways. I'm trying to visualise snow to make the burning go ;D
I know that my fluctuating oestrogen levels were the culprit and if you are too sensitive to oestrogen due to your surgical menopause, maybe the adrenal surge can have the same effect, after all steroids have similar structures, receptors and actions. Have you been tested for estradiol levels recently?
Sending hugs and hoping you find some relief soon. :love:
Conolly X
-
Yes I had these feelings. Total panic. Wanted to run away, just leave the room I was in, felt sick and also not sure if I would need the loo urgently. Heart rate through the roof..feeling weak and so tired..then the sweat would begin. I had them every 20 minutes and they would last for 5 minutes from the first feeling of panic until the sweat subsided and the heart returned to normal.
The first few weeks were very difficult as I work in a class as support for one child but as time went on I managed to reassure myself that it would pass as it had other times. I did find that being able to drink water at the time it was building did help me stay calmer. In the end I chose to begin HRT as I was exhausted from the effort required in just keeping going through each day and also the lack of sleep at night. It's hard to describe how trapped it makes you feel.
Taz x :hug:
-
:thankyou: Taz
-
You've got a good memory CLKD! 😊
Taz x
-
Thank you so very much for all your kind words, ladies! Oh, I do wish this would get better Kathleen! You've given me some hope.❤❤
Taz, I had no idea that you'd experienced this too! It truly drives you to the edge of madness, doesn't it? I also scared myself today as I found an old DM article about a lady who suffered the very same intensity of feelings, and was still experiencing flushes as bad as these 20 YEARS LATER! I was thinking - please God, no!!! This is undoubtedly what HRT is meant for (amongst many other things) - I just hope I can find something that I can tolerate/that works this time!
I don't want to take the beta blockers particularly that my GP has prescribed unless I really have to - I'm not really sure my current GP knows what they are doing with this anyway as i'm an anaphylaxis sufferer and have to carry epipens - and bb's block the pen's effectiveness of course. That could be very dangerous, or even fatal! I definitely think (like I was saying on another thread earlier) that now all my long battery of tests are over that it's time to get another GP. xxxx
-
I was prescribed sertraline three years ago and only took one. Had a horrible reaction. Initially extremely euphoric for about an hour then plunged into the worst panic attack ever. My doctor said it was a high sensitivity reaction. Well you can say that again.
I don't think enough attention is paid to adverse reactions like this. Especially when the effects are long lasting. I know the general advice is to perceiver until the medication has a chance to work. I wonder if this really is the right advice.
-
I would add that for me a hot flush and a panic attack are very different. I never had feelings of anxiety with a hot flush. Panic attacks were in a different league completely. Very scary, long lasting and feeling hot without sweating.
-
My once confident, career driven daughter went to her gp as she was having palpitations and nausea after she found out her ‘good' friend was using her in a cruel way
Gp gave her sertraline, within 4 days she suffered her first ever panic attack, followed by 3 more in the same day
She stopped the tablets but the cruelty of her reaction to them carried on. At her worst she couldn't leave her bedroom, was dependant on diazepam and was frantically searching the net for a hospital to take her in, she felt suicidal
It's been a horrific year (feels like 5 years) she's tried counselling, the weight literally fell off her usual size 12, 8s were hanging off her.
Just over a year on she's being investigated for a gastro problem and has been given anti nausea pills (this is what she originally asked for) and within 20 mins of taking the anti nausea pill she hadn't felt sick since. She ate her first proper meal that night and text me with such excitement
She's still having swallowing issues which limits what she can eat but I pray they find out the cause and she can start living her life again x
-
Good grief. I glad I only took one of the damn things.
Best wishes to your daughter Annie.
-
Yes, Tempest, I can completely relate to everything you say. I have been having these for 10 years and they are still quite ferocious.
I first get a low level feeling of anxiety, then feel myself heating up, face, neck and chest turn red. I have urgent need to pee along with a feeling of wanting to cry and feeling sick and shaky. Then I sweat on my upper lip, forehead and back. I have been known to steam up my glasses. I then cool down gradually. It helps if I relax and fan myself but often you can't do that.
I find that when I eat healthily (low sugar) then the flushes are less. In the past I was on fluoxetine which helped a bit, at least it certainly helped my mood. I came off it last year as I was having pituitary surgery. The other day my Endocrinologist suggested I discuss with my GP the possibility of HRT. I am 60 and have been reluctant to try this for fear of side affects but I would love some respite now.
Thinking about you Tempest and hope you find a way to improve things. They do decrease with time. xxxx
-
Taz - you stuck in my brain with that one, as well as not liking the Summer ;)
There is an NHS yellow card system for reactions to drugs but I have never been offered one. They are given to the drug Companies. Apparently ::)
-
I don't think they are "given" to the drug companies or "offered" to patients as such CLKD :-\, however there is a website here that encourages people to report a problem/issue whilst taking medicines. I also think that there is a link to the website in the patient leaflet advice which is with all meds:
https://yellowcard.mhra.gov.uk/
-
Certainly I have never had one offered and I've had some reactions over the years >:(.
-
When I went back with a different script for Prozac the pharmacist did ask some questions about my reaction to the sertraline. However I was feeling so sh.t I really couldn't be bothered.
-
Oh I remember that feeling too :'(. When ill I really hadn't the energy to fight my corner.
Panic is awful, however felt :-\
-
Oh bless you, Honey! It's truly awful, isn't it? Have you now had your pituitary surgery, and has this had any effect at all? I explained this symptom to my neuro., and he wondered if it might be a pituitary issue but that has been discounted now as I had a thorough CT scan as part of my SPECT DaT scan and a high resolution MRI.
I would say that if you can give the HRT a go to get relief, then do. You definitely deserve a better quality of life. Sending much love! xxxx
-
I've had quite extreme reactions to 8 different anti-depressants now - citalopram was the first, gave me massive panic attacks. After that a succession of SSRI's made me depressed to the point of thinking about suicide constantly (and I was being treated for anxiety, not depression, so this came out of nowhere). More recently I've had the same suicidal reaction to propranolol, pregabalin and most bizarrely of all, testosterone. It is a really really distinctive feeling, not like ordinary low mood but an absolute extinguishing of all hope, coupled with a terrifying fear that that's it, it's all over. I feel like I'm only just managing to convince health professionals that this is real, not some kind of imagined syndrome designed to keep the attention on me - as if that would be more attractive than just finding a way to get better and live a normal life again. And yet every packet of ADs comes with a huge warning that they can cause suicidal ideation, and if they do you should contact your doctor immediately; but when you do it seems they just think it's so unlikely it can't possibly be true.
-
I'm pretty lucky in the respect, Racjen. My psychiatrist absolutely believes that I am that sensitive!
He was very dubious that I would tolerate Venlafaxine which was prescribed by my Neuro., and he was right. I told him how long I tried it for when I saw him the other week, and he said 'im surprised you gave it that long - it's a very powerful drug'. Well - I wish I hadn't because this one has left me in an even bigger mess!
3 days into cold turkey withdrawal, and I'm not ashamed to say on that day I actually crawled under my kitchen table, sobbing in terror. I have no idea why but I just felt as if I was literally going insane. My psychiatrist reassured me that withdrawal was very intense, and that it was unwise to use diazepam or anything similar that might 'muddy the waters', so I've just had to endure it.
2 weeks after stopping it, I'm still getting muscle spasms, brain jolts, sheer panic and nausea after eating anything no matter how small. Also jaw clenching, headache and extreme light sensitivity.
I just hope this hasn't tipped things so far, that I can't find a way back. I'm seeing my psych. again on the 11th when he returns from his annual leave - he hopes things might have settled by then.
xxxx
-
I so want to give you both a hug, Tempest and racjen. That intense fear is beyond description. I would wake in the early hours, for me it was pre-hensile. Like that sabre-tooth tiger was there! and I had no-where to run. It was due to my being afraid that I would hurt myself if alone. There were times when I went into our village surgery to sit. Sometimes they would make me a cuppa. Always the GP would take me in and reassure me. Never judgemental. Always had time.
Hence the medication to keep me ticking over.
Some medications do work opposite to what they were designed to do. Dad had Ativan which is used as a relaxant and as a pre-med, it made me very agitated. We walked miles together, saying nowt but in company. I don't remember it raining when we walked. My friend can't take beta-blockas as they make him hyper. We don't know enough about the brain ......... and with the gut being the 2nd brain :-\
I would have taken the Vallium. It has a calming effect for me and was what the Private Mental Health Hospital recommended when I was crawling along the hall in 1991 saying "I can't take any more". I wanted a professional to take the responsibility off my husband. I was on 10mg at that time as necessary.
It is SO tiring :'( but there is hope >wave<.
-
That sounds a horrific time for you CKLD. So glad it came right for you in the end. I'm sure you too Tempest will recover well, just give yourself time and be kind to yourself, big hugs.
With regard to the pituitary surgery I had last year to remove a benign tumour, in order to lower my growth hormone. It was a success but did not really improve my flushes/sweats. My sore and stiff joints have improved a little though. They think now that the sweats are due to menopause and advise me to consider hrt or fluoxetine. Unsure what route I will take as the symptoms are now “liveable†now that I am retired. It would be nice though to have a break. Sounds like what you are going through just now Tempest is much much worse and my heart goes out to you. Take care. 😘
-
It was horrendous. I thought that I would never feel well. A loving husband and good GP helped.
-
I'm so glad that you've had your surgery and that it was a success, Honey! And thank you so much for your kind words. It's hard to know what to do if things are manageable, I guess - if I had to choose, I would say give a low dose of HRT a go.
Good luck! xxxx
-
I think that sadly the extreme physical anxiety is very common.
I used to sit in the local pharmacy until they closed or park in the supermarket car park just so that I was around people in case ‘something?' happened as it was such a terrible feeling of doom.
Not knowing what caused it though made it so much worse and if I get hit now it's still terrifying but I know it will calm down once it gets to about 10pm. Not good when it starts at 5am though!
I'm just going to post something that may help some of you that I've just discovered.
-
DM, I identify with what you have posted too! Except mine lifts a bit at about 11.45 pm every night. A tiny sliver of half an hour every day before I go to bed of feeling 'normal'.
I know this is when cortisol is lowest - midnight - so that is surely relevant.
I'm looking forward to seeing your next post! xxxx
-
Those gaps are just so precious aren't they, like coming up for air!
Here it is, as wanted it as a separate post:
https://www.menopausematters.co.uk/forum/index.php'topic=41007.new#new
-
No way, DM!!!! You're NOT going to believe this, but I almost bought some a good few weeks ago after trawling some menopause threads on an online forum called 'Gardenweb', of all things. A lady there had success with just the same symptoms, so it can't be a fluke! :o
Well, what do you think of that then!? You may be onto something major here.....!❤❤❤
-
Well I'm kicking myself as I nearly bought them 2 years ago when my nausea was made worse by a wrist brace I was wearing for an injury. The pharmacist told me that it was pressing on the ovaries point and he suggested the Sea Bands but I felt so I'll at the time I didn't want to risk making anything worse. I then forgot all about it!
-
Hello ladies.
I seem to remember buying these years ago for travel sickness so they may still be in the back of a cupboard somewhere.
Dangermouse - I completely agree with your description of the panic and how any respite is like coming up for air. I've just had a good old flush and panic so clearly my 3 pumps of gel are still way off beam!
Tempest - many times my horrible symptoms ease about 9pm and even if I am exhausted I try to make the most of the rest of the evening because I refuse to go to bed early and miss the best part of the day! These reprieves also remind me that they can and do disappear completely, it's just frustrating that it doesn't happen more often, preferably at night while we sleep soundly!
Wishing you well ladies.
K.
-
DM, you've got me googling all sorts of things now. The connection between adrenaline and nausea, how adrenaline plays a part in migraine (which is why beta blockers help as a treatment), the 'aura' before hot flushes - etc....etc.....Basically, I think we're all held hostage my adrenaline at this awful time. If only there were an off switch.....😥😥
Kathleen, I do exactly the same as you. Any little snippet I can claim, I do. Usually I don't want to go to bed as I know at any time after 4.30 am, it's going to start all over again.....
I'm so sorry you've had a flush and panic on the 3 pumps - I'm hoping and praying that this is just a wee fluctuation as you've recently changed your dose. How I hope one day to hear that you've found 'the one' and are symptom free! You do surely deserve it. xxxx