[ellied]

Apologies to those that don't need to know, look away now guys and young folks!

Anyone in the certain age or older female part of the community, can you offer any recommendations?  I have been hit like a freight train the past couple of months.  I don't trust the GPs but plan to find a well woman clinic in new year to discuss hrt etc but tend to be of the opinion that a more natural approach is best if things settle to a recognisable pattern that can be managed rather than just postponed.

There are plenty alternative options advertised, but do they work or more a placebo or postponement of the inevitable?

Females in my family tended to be sudden hysterectomy induced and/or died so can't be consulted for genetic likelihoods.  I'm out of my depth and hope there are wise women in TAS world with a more down to earth view than some urban career based opinions that don't apply to my lifestyle..

Help?  Or do I just warn everyone to avoid me for a few years??

[SallyintNorth]

I did it with nothing except a good diet and evening primrose, and if I had my time over I'd get more help.  T'other side of it you're into a time of life when you start to slow down, so I'd prolong the fitter and more energetic times as long as possible.

So I can't advise on the conventional or alternative therapies, but I can certainly say that with hindsight, I wouldn't be frightened to try some.  My Mum had HRT and kept on with it for far too long - like decades - and ended up with breast cancer to deal with.  I'm sure that's the main reason I didn't seek help from the GP fr myself, but it's silly really - 5 years HRT when you need it is a completely different kettle of fish to 20. 

Sending a virtual {{{hug}}} and some flowers 

[Rosemary]

I guess I haven't been too badly hit. I had one two week period about four years ago and that was that finished. I've had hot flushes - not desperately bad but decided to take HRT which stopped them from the first pill. I've probably got two years left to take them - of my five. So don't knwo what will happen then.

Not sure if anything else iis affected. I'm grumpy but I don't think I'm grumpier than I was before. 

[ellied]

Ah that's a good point Sally.  I have an ovarian lump growing, currently thought benign but recommended for removal next year as it might not be or might not stay so if left to grow/mutate further.  I need to check with the gynae consultant if hrt is too high risk.. 

It was discovered when the gp thought I had menopause summer before last and blood test proved wrong.  That and uterine polyps which were removed surgically last September got my periods normalish again.  But the flushes, sweats and hypersensitivity is just since early this November and I've always had PTSD and anxiety but triggers are getting worse again and I am so prone to tears it's embarrassing?  Not to mention sleep issues waking up, duvet off, mind in turmoil,duvet on, bathroom, toss some more, sleep, overheat, duvet off..  Saving on heating tho and the hot water bottle is redundant this year!

Rosemary I'm grumpy too, normally that is, but I don't like to think what I might be like in full flow with the rest going on?.

[Bionic]

ellied, you have my sympathy.
Pre menopause days I never had any problems monthly, no changes in mood, no pains, no difference. I expected the menopause to sort of pass me by in the same way but that was not to be.
The worst thing for me were the hot flushes. Any time day or night. They had no disregard for me wanting to sleep, speaking in a meeting, shopping. They just happened and its probably the worst thing I have ever had to deal with.
Because I have had a breast lump removed I wasn't able to go onto HRT but if I had had the chance I would have taken it in a flash.
I tried rubbing in a cream which sort of worked but then it could have been the placebo affect. I tried evening primrose and some other things but they didn't help. The doctor then put me on blood pressure tables which have apparently been known to have an affect. They did work for a while.
I hope you are able to find something that works for you

[Buffy the eggs layer]

If you google pre menopause or peri menopause there are about 50 recognised symptoms from feelings of anxiety, being emotional or overwhelmed, muscle tensions, loss of confidence etc asside from the physical symptoms and all these start before your periods stop.


Blood tests are often inconclusive as oestrogen levels fluctuate dramatically during this phase so will not necessarily show a reduced level of hormone. Mine didn't.



Some types of anti depressant can make some symptoms more manageable. Mine really hit hard this year and I found Menoserene and Black cohosh from healthspan have really helped. I was only experiencing night sweats not hot flushes but my main distress came from the dramatic change in my emotional well being. Sweating I can deal with but feeling like I had a personality transplant was terrible.


Many people swear by the vegetable oestrogens which are more expensive than supplements but others claim that these oestrogens are not the same as natural human ones and can not make a difference. The reason that I dont think the health supplements that I take have a placebo effect is because if that was the case then the antidepressants that the gp prescribed should have worked on the same basis but they didnt.


To be honest though, if your symptoms are alleviated by taking something as a result of a placebo effect it's still preferable to suffering. I found it very isolating but found the menopause fb groups really helpful. Feel free to pm me for more info Ellie.

[Buttermilk]

I have invested in sweat headbands to stop sweat running into my eye. I wear leggings to bed as if I sleep with my legs out the bed I get cramp in my calves and they help prevent it. Layers of clothes that are easy to take off and on and I always try to have a large cotton hanky for mopping up.

The thing that really gets me is the ability of a cuddle to set a flush off.

[Greenerlife]

Curious to know why you don't trust a GP?  At my practice, there are at least two female doctors who have given me great advice and loads of sympathy in a positive and proactive manner.  Went on to Oestrogel, which didn't suit me at all and after 6 months was advised to stop.  Certainly would say Evening Primrose has been fantastic with treatment of extremely sore breast tissue!  It is apparently, the only thing that it has been medically proven to help.  I take two every day.  I get hot flushes which are a bit weird, and they wake me up, but other than that I don't feel any more moody than usual!  Sadly, I think everybody has different reactions to aspects of menopause, and differing symptoms.   My advice would be to take advice from all sorts of sources, and go your own way!  Good luck!

[Fleecewife]

.....and look forward to the day when you are completely over it - it's great on so many levels   The only plus point for a woman growing older.

[Lesley Silvester]

I can't be much help because it wasn't so bad for me. Ok I had a few hot flushes and night sweats but nothing major. The only thing was that my periods didn't stop until I was 58.

[devonlady]

You have my every sympathy, Ellied. I was recommended by a friend some tablets from the health food shop, the name of which I can't remember but they had black cohosh and squaw root in them. It took about 6 weeks for them to start working but certainly helped with hideous and embarrassing hot flushes. The worst thing I experienced aside that was thinking I'd finished peeing and hadn't!!
The only other thing to do is bear with it.....it does pass, I promise!

[DavidandCollette]

I suffered from bad mood swings for a couple of years but my wife is much better now

[waterbuffalofarmer]

My mum is still going through the menopause. She takes sage tablets to relieve hot flushes and they do work. My mother also consulted a medical herbalist, they give you a full consultation, discuss the medications which your doctors are giving you and prescribe herbal medications which do not clash with the other medications. You do have to pay for the consultation, but it is worth it because they discuss what is going on in your life, how you're feeling, how the symptoms manifest themselves and they discuss herbal alternatives to conventional medication. Do you have a medical herbalist near you at all? I have one who lives near to my local town and she is brilliant, if you want I could give you her contact info.  There is a page on here which discusses the menopause in great detail so that may help, they also say what tablets you can take, but be careful always consult your doctor before taking any medication to make sure they do not clash with the current medication that you may be taking!
http://www.healthspan.co.uk/menopause

[Black Sheep]

There is certainly a wide variety of things suggested for treatment of menopausal symptoms. We all know that "natural" does not mean safe (or effective) but often these things are confused and played upon. The so-called division between "conventional" and "alternative" medicine is largely an illusion.

To my mind there are things that have been appropriately tested and found to be effective and acceptably safe (everything has risk) and there are things that have not. Unfortunately for people having to make decisions about their health the lack of testing of various supplements, herbal/plant derivatives and so on, leaves them in a quandary. They often have to make these decisions based on heresy of effectiveness and an almost complete lack of reliable safety information. So, for example, there have been cases of severe liver damage with black cohosh products.

This is coupled with problems such as lack of standardisation of the amounts of the putative active ingredient present in the product and even between different batches of the same product. That isn't to say that any particular remedy should be avoided, just that the information to make a risk/benefit decision is incomplete. Because "conventional" medicines have to be researched in a way that measures effectiveness and risk the picture is far more complete and people can have a better idea of what to expect on average. So whilst this still has limitations and imperfections it is a far better position to be in.

There are lots of good suggestions in the responses so far: non-drug measures and adaptations, pointers to the variety of drug treatments that may help specific problem symptoms, and avenues to explore for other remedies - my only caution being to gather sufficient information.

There is other good quality information out there on Patient UK, NHS Choices, Clinical Knowledge Summaries on options, e.g.:

http://cks.nice.org.uk/menopause#!scenario

And a good decision aid from Australia that puts the risks and benefits of HRT in perspective:

https://www.nhmrc.gov.au/_files_nhmrc/publications/attachments/wh37.pdf

Also worth noting that whilst there are people who advise on other remedies they can still only operate from the available knowledge. For example drug interaction studies have not been done for many of these products, making it very difficult to give definitive advice on whether they could clash with other medications. Again that isn't to say they should be avoided, just that this should factor in to any decision.

Hope some of that helps.

NB I work in healthcare so will have some inherent biases in my approach

[Buffy the eggs layer]

Hi Ellie,


 my sister in law was telling me about a product called a lady care magnet that has helped her symptoms. Interestingly there are allot of people who havent tried it but get very animated in their attempts to discredit it on the reviews. But equally there are many who swear by it including my SiL who incidentally is a nurse.