Menopause Matters Forum
General Discussion => New Members => Topic started by: Ellen May on January 15, 2019, 10:04:02 PM
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Hello 😊
I am so glad to have found this site and others going through the same as me. Not that I wish these awful feelings on anybody but so glad I am not alone!
I am perimenopausal and it started with a bang last year. One moment I was fine and then spent the next few months in and out of casualty and gp surgery convinced there was something wrong with my heart. Apparently it is all fine and nothing to worry about.
It wasn't until I saw the cardiologist though and she suggested it could be the menopause that everything fell into place. Since then I seem to have one pain after another....
Any ideas on how to manage this anxiety gratefully received!
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Hello and welcome Ellen.
Im quite new here, but this site has been an absolute god send for me. I have lots of health anxieties too, incuding the heart symptoms as well.
Now i realise so many of us are in a similar situation, and it does comfort me. Instead of rushing off to Google, or making an appointment with my poor GP I now look on here, and find many answers from the fab ladies on this forum.
It certainly helps knowing you are not alone xxx
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Hi Ellen May. Like you I was a happy 40 something until Peri started. I have been one neurotic round of anxiety, health worries for a couple of years now. It is hard as I know what would help but my brain just over rides with worries! Check out my posts if you ever need to know what is Peri ' normal' - I have been to loads of GPs with loads of health niggles that on retrospect have turned out to be hormones / anxiety related. I can recommend the CBT the NHS can refer you to. That is the only things I have found which I can see could help.
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Hi Ellen May
And welcome to the forum. Lot's of us went through what you're describing when peri hit , I know that's how I found this site.
7 years on I'm in a much better place thanks to help I have received. For me this has included eating clean, minimising stress (i.e., going part time), and finding a hrt that works for me.
Browse around and don't be afraid to ask questions x
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Hi and Welcome!
There's a thread in "The Funny Side..." section called "Things I've diagnosed myself with..."
It's a great read to see you aren't alone convinced you are dying!
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Hi Ellen and welcome aboard,as BlueButterfly says,that thread is funny,think most of us on here suffer health anxiety but it tends to come and go of it's own accord,the Bach remedy drops help and I also tried CBD oil,it's expensive for the high strength one but it's calming.
Heart palpitations are common also,we all think we're about to have a major heart attack but in reality it's just missed beats and the heart trying to correct itself,good your dr getting it checked out though
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Thank you for your replies. I had a look at the thread you mentioned and it certainly made me feel better as good to know others also diagnose themselves with awful things too. I found it funny to read through the messages whilst thinking yep that was me, and that, and that, and that.....
I suspect mine is particularly bad this week as I think I am due on, although hard to tell these days, my husband had an operation and I had both children at home with a bug. Therefore my stress and hormones are all over the place and that always causes anxiety!
I have made an appt to see gp tomorrow so will see what she has to recommend.
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Maybe take a list of which symptom/s you would like to ease first, make notes then come back here for advice ;). Don't be fobbed off.
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Well I saw the gp today and despite my best efforts I feel completely fobbed off! She wasn't interested in the slightest with my symptoms and history over the last year or so. Didn't want to see my list and didn't offer any advice other than:
- no way of knowing if it is menopause or something else
- no test to find out as blood test to inconclusive
- hrt not good as I am still having periods
- nothing else I can do
After almost pleading with her she has agreed to do a full blood count with iron levels and says she will refer me to a menopause clinic about an hour away. I said that I knew of one in the next town to us but she didn't so wouldn't look at the details.
She offered me counselling and antidepressants but that was it, no guidance on vitamins etc.
I feel very frustrated now, to put it politely, and also cross that there are so many women going through this without proper support....
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Seriously!?! Some drs are unbelievable,why would she put you to clinic that's further away?is there not another dr you can see?
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I have checked the surgery website and one of the doctors there does specialise in women's health. I think after I have had the blood test I will make an appt to see her and get a second opinion.
Just frustrating not to be listened too.
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Hi Ellen May, I'm fairly new to this site too and it is so informative and comforting! Your GP appointment sounds quite like mine, see my thread on All Things Menopause and the GP who didnt believe in the link between menopause and depression. You sound very like me but I have caved and gone on the anti depressants in an effort to feel better in myself, does nothing for the other symptoms though.Good luck with the clinic appointment, hopefully you will get a more understanding doctor there!
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Yes,do that Ellen,it's unacceptable to be fobbed off like that,sometimes we do actually know our bodies better than anyone
Welcome knockmany 👋
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Again: another GP with no knowledge. There's no support is there, no 'well lets do this journey together and learn as we go along'. Do make an appt either with the GP you have spotted on your Surgery web-site or with the Nurse Practitioner. Let us know!
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Hello Ellen may and welcome to the forum.
Sorry to hear your issues with GP.
As you will see on here its sadly happens way too often. I had the same issues with several doctors in my practice and was about to change surgeries until I tried the only one I hadn't seen and she was so much better informed and understanding.
And then I found out she has a special interest in menopause.
So I would say you should definitely book to see the doc or nurse practitioner with interest in women's health in your practice Seeing the right person can make all the difference.
I have used anti depressants in the past and wouldn't wish to appear either pro or anti it's an individual choice but i will share out of interest that both my psychiatrist and the GP i saw most recently believe my current depression and anxiety are hormone related and that this needs to be balanced with HRt
Of course, not everyone can or wants to take Hrt. But if you CAN and you WANT to then please don't let that clueless GP put you off.
Maybe someone on here will be able to quote you the exact NICE guidelines around anti depressants and menopause, but my understanding is that AD'S are not recommended as a first line treatment in menopausal symptoms and that women should be offered Hrt first as long as there are no contra indications.
Im glad you found the forum.
Best wishes and let us know how you get on.
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Hi Ellen May
:welcomemm: from me too.
How frustrating for you!
Your doctor is right that blood tests are inconclusive re menopause although whether they should be taken or not does depend on your age. If you are missing periods (cycle length varies by more than a week), over 45 and getting symptoms, then you are peri-menopausal (notwithstanding other health issues that might need to be investigated). As such as Tc says the NICE Guidelines are that HRT should be offered as the first line of trearment, NOT anti-depressants - which are - guess what - for people who are depressed ( or unable to take HRT due to breast cancer treatments or other contra-indications)!
If you are under 45 and especially if under 40 and having irregular periods then a couple of blood tests are advised and HRT should be taken until the average age of menopause - 51/52.
If you are still having completely regular periods then you are not yet peri-menopausal according to the medical definition, and HRT may well not be the answer - although hormones do begin to go awry in the last stage before peri - and some women do start to get flushes and sweats - and find a low dose HRT can help. Unfortunately at this last stage before peri - some women get much worsening pms which can be difficult to treat - although if under 50 there are some combi-contraceptive pills designed for this stage that can help control your cycle and reduce pms.
It's great that she has referred you to a menopause clinic though but poor that she does not have the knowledge herself either to treat you and know where the clinics are!!! The basic info is not that specialist after all and rather a lot of women will be going through it at some point! If she is saying no to HRT while having periods then this is completely wrong - if they are irregular.
In the meantime here is an article about peri-menopause which you might find interesting https://www.menopausematters.co.uk/magazine/pdf/Article%20-%20Perils%20of%20the%20Perimenopause.pdf .
Also as Tc says and you suggested - find out from the receptionist if the doctor who speciliases in women's helath understands menopause and is sympathetic to taking HRT if indicated - and then take it from there.
Let us know about your cycle and good luck with your appointment - when it comes through - wherever you decide to go.
Hurdity x
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Hi Ellen May. Welcome to this life saving forum. You are not alone and not a nut job!
Just a tip which I am sure you will do but write a list of questions for your meeting. I finally went to a Meno clinic yesterday (NHS) but felt a bit like a rabbit in the headlights after all the form filling and questions. When she said ' any questions' I just sat there then kicked myslef on the way home!
Do make use of GP call back services too for anything you are worried or not sure about. I find in Peri the worrying over ' is this normal' is the worst. Now I often just ask for a GP same day phone back and usually have my fears put right without a formal (weeks waiting time) meeting.
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Thank you all so much for taking the time to reply and offering valuable information.
I am 50 and for about a year my cycle was very erratic, however for the last 5 months it has been every 28 days on the dot. They are heavy for a day or so and then light for a couple and then stop.
Does it mean that because they are regular I am not perimenopausal? I seem to have so many other symptoms though so if not menopause what could it be? I have palpitations, aching muscles, nausea, occasional hot flushes at night, stomach pains, sleep disturbance etc etc. One lovely gp I saw said that she thought it probably was the menopause as my symptoms didn't seem to join together to be anything else. Sadly though she has retired now.
I have had my letter for booking in at the hospital and the gp has actually referred me to the gynae clinic at our local hospital. Do you think it is worth going or should I push for the menopause clinic?
Sorry to be asking so many questions....
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Hi Ellen, and welcome
If I were you, I'd push for the meno clinic....gynae departments are ok, but at least with the clinic you'd have a ‘meno specialist' xx
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Hi Ellen and welcome to our happy band!
I'm with the others - if your GP can't be bothered just bypass her until the prescription stage and go to the meno clinic. There may be someone in the gynae department that can help you because the meno stuff does come as part of their overall department but some are more specialised than others. If there is a specialist clinic and you could find a sensible GP in women's health in your practice to ensure you get to the right place - go for it - it cuts out dealing with "stupid people". ;)v oops
Sorry....you will find a fair few people on here who do not hold GP's in very high esteem to put it midly when it comes to meno - some of the things they come out with are just outrageous as TC will testify. >:(
ask as many questions as you want - there is always someone around to answer :welcomemm:
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Terrible isn't it that many doctors are so dismissive of menopause symptoms and not any help in dealing with it. They must come across so many of us and treating us correctly would be better all round.
I think a lot of mine is health anxiety which I seem to have developed over the last year or so, but also not knowing if any symptom is menopause or not. I suppose the two are interlinked but it's hard to separate them.
I have found a private clinic near us so will ring there and see what the cost is as may be easier than trying to get my gp to refer me to the nhs one.