Menopause Matters Forum
General Discussion => New Members => Topic started by: Funny_tern on July 23, 2019, 06:45:48 AM
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Hello everybody and thank you for letting me join the group! I'm 54 and peri-menopausal and thought I was getting away with few effects until 4 weeks ago when the hot flushes hit with a vengeance, followed swiftly by severe joint aches.
I'd really like to get some pointers on where to look for dietary advice, the various books out there have such mixed reviews. I know that different things work for each of us but does anybody have a particular recommendation?
Many thanks :)
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Hello and welcome! 😊
I think there are so many books out there and I'm sure they all say round about the same thing.
Have you ever taken or thinking to take hrt?
I'm seeing it through the natural way and can recommend Marilyn Glenville's book on natural solutions to the menopause. It has all the different stages and what the best supplements are inc diet etc..
X
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Hi Jari, I'm hoping to see it through naturally but will explore hrt if that fails! I will take a look at that book, thank you very much!
X
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Ok funny_tern :)
I would say, hrt is a quick fix. I panicked when I first started getting hot flushes and rushed onto hrt, without giving it much thought. I just wanted the hot flushes to go.
They did go, but, I then got all sorts of other horrible anxiety and breathing problems. I had to come off it immediately and only took it for 2.5 months. The hot flushes did come back, but they have been getting less and less over the course of the last year.
Doing it naturally is not easy, but, I think in the long run it's better to get it over with now.
Do bear in mind ( which is something I didn't) that hrt just raises your naturally declining hormones. To get that balance right is months and years of trial and error, hence the other side effects it can bring. When you come off the hrt, you will be faced with the same symptoms to start all over with. Hrt also causes fibroids to grow. So, my point is, it doesn't come without problems.
Everyone is different and some will have many years of symptoms, others don't. If you take hrt, you won't know if you were one who would have naturally only had a couple of years to deal with..
Doing it naturally isn't easy, but, from my experience, the flushes started off quite intense and they have become less and less over the last months..
Keep posted how you get on! X
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My perimenopause journey started with digestive problems - notably, bad acid reflux. That triggered bad health anxiety - actually, if I'm honest, they went had in hand and each one fuelled the other. I found a low acid diet helped me to keep on top of digestive issues and weight gain - both of which seem common to perimenopausal women.
To answer your question specifically - Dr Koufman.
I don't take HRT and have tried most of the natural supplements. The best “cocktail†of these for me is starflower oil (sore boobs), iron (heavy periods) and magnesium (mental well being). I sometimes take a multivitamin too.
For my anxiety, I find a mixture of CBT and exercise and distraction is best.
That's my worst symptom, by far.
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Thank you all for your replies, it looks like I'm at the start of the journey but this is a great forum to get help and inspiration :)
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Menopause: the last monthly period: is natural. But it can throw up some nasty surprises!
As oestrogen levels drop the body may become dry: inside and out - skin, eyes, deep in the ears, throat, vagina - 4 me it is insteps. When I take off the socks at the end of the day they ITCH!!! [insteps, not socks ;)].
As oestrogen levels drop the muscles may become lax = aches and pains. It stands to reason then that hiatus hernia may become a problem which leads to reflux, heartburn - when I take my evening meds too close to bed-time then I get reflux instantly. I find two chewed 'rennies' helpful.
Hormone Replacement Therapy can be useful. If symptoms are unbearable then it is worth trying appropriate treatments though this can be Trial and Error as hormones continue to dip and rise.
Browse round. Make notes. :welcomemm: Despite common thoughts, stopping HRT does not cause symptoms to return unless the hormones are still falling. HRT can see a woman through awful symptoms and if they do stop they may find that they feel better with no hormonal fluctuations at all.
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Hi CKLD, that's interesting about acid reflux. I've had a hiatus hernia for a few years so already on medication, but I have noticed it's been flaring up a bit more lately. I hadn't connected it......... so many things to think about 🤔xx
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Because the muscles may become lax that valve: which probably has a medical name ::) : that stops food returning becomes relaxed = reflux. It's awful when that acidic fluid flows back :-X. I chew two small 'Rennies' which usually sorts it.
What medication was prescribed because some can do more harm than good if taken long term! I drink milk of magnesia :pills: from a spoon sometimes an hour B4 meals if it's back ground
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Good morning Funny_tern
:welcomemm:
There's always someone on here to offer advice and support.
Good luck on the journey.
Lanzalover x
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Good morning Lanzalover 8) yes it's lovely to see all of the help and support being given here. I have a cunning plan for my hot flushes this morning in this heat, will be standing in the fruit and veg aisle in the supermarket to chill! :)
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Hope you enjoyed your morning Funny_tern
Lanzalover x
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Hiatus hernia - from the BUPA web-site
Expert reviewer, Mr Stephen Pollard, Consultant Surgeon
Next review due April 2021
A hiatus hernia is when the top part of your stomach slides upwards into your chest. It's a very common condition, affecting nearly a third of people over 50. You don't necessarily need any treatment for a hiatus hernia if it isn't causing you any problems.
If you do have symptoms, the main one is heartburn. Most people can ease the symptoms of a hiatus hernia by making lifestyle changes and, if this isn't enough, by taking medicines. Some people need surgery to repair a hiatus hernia.
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Thanks CKLD, life style changes didn't help, heartburn doesn't describe the agony (i never understood why people went to A&E with indigestion until it felt like I had a sword running through my chest for hours at a time!) and I was literally throwing up acid. For now I'll stick wth my meds....
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Thank you Lanzalover, it was certainly cooler in the veggie aisle 🤣 x
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I hate that reflux when acid comes back :-X. And the pain under my jaw and into the breast bone, usually in the early hours. I have to sit up to relieve symptoms whilst chewing a 'Rennie'.
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Me too CLKD. >:(
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Sometimes it's background >:(
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You know what? Is that what the pain in my breast bone is when I get acid indigestion?
I've just made the connection....there was me thinking it was the start of a heart attack when in the car earlier! 🤭 came home, had some gaviscon, it went away!
Sometimes these things are staring us in the face and we don't connect the dots! ::)
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My symptoms go all over. Background reflux like acid is going to burn it's way back up. If I wake in the night it's in my lower jaw, into my temples, behind the breast bone - I have to remind myself that it ain't killed me yet so ins't a heart attack!
Sitting up now trying to burp :-\ which I can't do. My burb reflex never developed so when I do it makes me jump ;D. Sometimes letting wind go downwards and out helps indigestion.
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Hi 👋 new on this site . Thank goodness my Dr gave me this web site !! Im 59 periods stopped at 50 , I thought brilliant 😊 that's done ✅ I went to GP saying I felt exhausted , like clawing through mud ...foggy brain ....anxious 😳 do you think it's menopause ? She asked !
I was so shocked 😨 I thought (stupidly!) that once period stopped that was it over with . So many symptoms , all menopause . Just so pleased to have found you all !! I'm not alone , together we can get through this !👍😊
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Welcome - Sic many of us thought end of periods end of ::) but the natural menopause can throw up some awful symptoms :-\
Browse round. Make notes ;)