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[fiorinda]

Hi ladies,

it's kind of difficult to know if symptoms are peri/menopause related or not isn't it? I don't mean hot flushes or dry skin. I've got a load of smaller or less obvious (to me anyway) types of things going on and I don't know if they are caused by the peri or not. I'd really appreciate your thoughts and experiences:

Stuffed up nose - I first noticed this a couple of months ago - my nose feels snotty and blocked all the time, and often bleeds a bit when I blow it.

Constant urge to pee - no problems with bladder control, I just actually seem to be producing an increased amount of urine and needing to pee more often.

Joint stiffness - when I've been sitting for a while and then get up, I'm hobbling about like I'm 100 years old!

Nails - I've noticed recently that my nails are MUCH nicer than they've ever been - I'm pretty sure this isn't a symptom!! They seem stronger and aren't breaking - could just be the sunshine I suppose!

Sleepiness - I actually fell asleep at my desk at work yesterday afternoon - dreaming and everything - sitting upright. I'm tired by the time I'm ready to leave for work in the morning. I'm sleeping fine, so it's not that.

Hunger - not every day, but often, I am ravanous almost all the time! For example, this morning I had half a banana, a peach, 3 dsp of muesli, one of ground almonds, one of gound flax seeds and a huge dollop of low fat plain yoghurt for my breakfast at 7.30, and I was starving with my stomach growling by about 9.45. I had a low fat fruit yoghurt and a banana for my morning break at 10.30 and was ravenous again by lunch time at 1!! Afternoons are much easier.

Thanks! x

[cox1058]

Hi there - although I guess these symptoms could be associated withbother things, yes, I have them all too. Coupled with lots of others - anxiety, panic attacks, nausea, headaches, loss of concentration, forgetfulness, bloating, irritability,  mood swings, tearfulness, dry skin, thinning hai, tiredness, insomnia.........the list is endless and I dont like this 'change' at all! I am just so glad to be able to share things on here as I have no friends myself who seem to be suffering x

[cox1058]

Other things .......

[fiorinda]

I think 'bother things' was pretty appropriate! 

Yes also to the nausea and the bloating - the anxiety/panic attacks have eased off - they seem to go hand in hand with the hot flushes, so I get the same feeling you get when you realise you forgot to do something really important or you're about to get busted for something you really shouldn't have done, and it's followed a minute or so later by the hot flush. But I'm not having them at the moment - they come and go. My hair is fine still. I sleep like a baby probably 98% of the time.

Have you even got the improved nails, cox1058? I'd have imagined my nails would be WORSE, not better. x

[Taz2]

I think that a peri-menopause symptom is that we suddenly start noticing things that haven't really bothered us before - like over-thinking and over-feeling everything all of a sudden!

The anxious feeling just before a hot flush starts is really common. It's caused by a rise in adrenaline which is also what leads your heart rate to increase just before or during a flush. You can also feel as if you suddenly need to go to the loo and slightly sick - again the adrenaline effect.

Taz x

[Hurdity]

Hi fiorinda

It's difficult to work out what's what once we start peri-menopause - as Taz says you start noticing everything.

So things like joint stiffness and bladder problems are signs of menopause.

However if you have symptoms such as increased need to pee and producing more urine ( are you more thirsty and drinking more?), increased hunger, and tiredness, these can be signs of undiagnosed diabetes (usually Type 2 if later in life I think) or pre-diabetes which develops slowly and can remained undetected for years. This can be particularly a problem for those who are overweight.

Does the tiredness occur especially after meals - because that is a possible sign?

I suggest you go along to the doc and ask for a blood test, with these symptoms, and then you will hopefully be able to work out what are menopausal and can be ignored, lived with or treated accordingly, and what aren't.

Having said that - you don't sound as though you are eating very much. If I had that for my breakfast at 7.30 I would be ravenous by mid-morning and hungry by lunchtime! There was discussion on another thread about low blood sugar and I need more food in the mornings to keep hunger at bay and my blood sugar levels up. I have a very large bowl of muesli and oats, with berries and natural yogurt for breakfast and sometimes an egg as well and a medium lunch - and I am not overweight. I think this has changed as I have got older eg when younger I could manage on a couple of slices of toast for brek and last until lunchtime. However you know your own body so if this has happened recently maybe it is worth looking into.

Hope this helps and keep us posted!

Hurdity x

PS I meant to put these links but posted before I remembered:
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/pre-diabetes.html
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/type2-diabetes-symptoms.html

[Taz2]

My doc says I'm not eating enough which is why I've put on weight. It's difficult to eat more though. I have a small slice of wholegrain toast for breakfast plus two cups of tea then a rich tea biccy at 10.30 (school breaktime) a sandwich made with two small slices of wholegrain bread and salad, a yoghurt and an apple for lunch. I'm hungry when I get in from school so I have a banana and a milky cup of coffee as my husband doesn't get until around 8 and it seems ages to wait to eat! Evening meal is something ordinary like grilled chops, spuds and veggies or salad, or casserole etc. I don't have puddings. A do like a small glass of wine some evenings. I don't eat crisps or cake or icecream or butter or cheese or cream or anything that seems to be that fattening. I reckon I just don't move enough!

Taz x

[fiorinda]

Not eating enough and that's why you have put on weight Taz2?! That doesn't seem to make sense!! Oh if only!!

I think I eat quite a lot - though I seldom eat large portions of anything and I don't eat lots of carbs without protein alongside because I KNOW that makes me hungry really quickly. The kind of breakfast I described above has generally been sufficient to see me through to mid-morning without me getting so hungry my stomach is growling - it's just recently I've been so much more hungry. But the afternoons are fine, and I tend to eat quite salady lunches. I always crave sugary things in the afternoons though, but I reckon that's just a stupid habit! I've not noticed increased thirst. I have to make myself drink water, it's a bit of a chore. The frequent peeing comes and goes too, today it was much better.

I know I need to lose some weight - my BMI is 29 I think - and my GP said losing some would maybe help with symptoms because eostrogen is stored in fat cells, or something. I'm wavering back and forth on rejoining WeightWatchers though I loathe and detest the whole concept of dieting and particularly of companies charging us for the priviledge, but I do find that tracking focusses me, and just keeping a food diary doesn't work for me.

It's all very confusing isn't it? I've even had 2 periods in the last 2 months (exactly 4 weeks apart) after having none for 6 months, although they were extremely light and short. I do hate not knowing what's going on with my own body!