HOT FLUSHES...

[slowandfrumpy]

Hello.
Periods stopped suddenly last September, and I've had three since then, and nothing for the last four months.
But, oh my goodness, the flushes are in full force. I feel as if I am permanately hot, and then on top of that I have extra hot flushes throughout the day - at least one an hour - and then a nighttime of waves of heat. I don't sweat a lot, but I've never been a very sweaty person. Although one of my daughters gave me a kiss today and told me my face was all sweaty, so maybe I'm becoming a sweaty person.

Is this normal? Or a lot? It feels like a lot to me.

[GenghisCalm]

Sorry, but that is exactly how I felt before HRT.

I read about hot flushes but I never read anywhere that it was like being boiled from the inside out.

[slowandfrumpy]

Genghis: please can you tell me some more about what HRT did for you.
It's 5am. I am now normally awake two hours in the night too hot to sleep.
Before this year, I was a champion sleeper.

[PollyPerky]

A good place to start is the website Menopause Matters - owned by a consultant gynae who is chairperson of the British Menopause Society.
Loads of info on the menu there and a large section on HRT under 'Treatments' on the menu.

//www.menopausematters.co.uk

Read as much as you can inc the new NICE menopause guidelines (all online, links on this forum if you search) and decide what route you want to go down.

I went onto HRT 8 years ago due to insomnia and hourly hot flushes. I still wake a couple of times during the night, often, but it's a lot better than before HRT.

[pinkieandperkie]

slow the same thing happened to me earlier. My DS was leaving for work and kissed me on the face and asked why I was so hot and sweaty. Fun isn't it

[girlandboy]

Me too! My last period was only 3 months ago, though they're a bit all over the place.
I've just come out of Tesco looking like a Belisha Beacon

It creeps up my arms first before zipping across my chest, neck and face. I've just started (2 days ago) taking a supplement of Black Cohosh to see if it makes a difference. Time will tell if it works, but I'm hating this hot weather!

[slowandfrumpy]

Re black cohosh
I took it and a few weeks later developed this terrible itch and rash on my hands
The doctor thought it might be scabies and then I said it reminded me of obstetric cholestasis which is a liver condition I had when pregnant. She asked me if I was taking black cohosh and when I said yes told me to stop immeadiately as it is in some cases associated with liver disease and failure! I stopped (and didn't do any scabies cream) and a few days later it had died down and gone. So beware!!!!!

[PollyPerky]

The RCOG has produced a patient leaflet on alternatives to HRT- you can find it through Mr Google. I have linked to it many times on this forum too. The risks and efficacy of many herbal treatments are shown.

[gingergeranium]

This might seem a silly question but does paracetamol help a hot flush?

I've been wondering about peri for a while and felt extremely hot this morning. But paracetamol really helped.

Or I'm fighting off a virus. Again.

[gingergeranium]

(Sorry for hijacking)

[PollyPerky]

well, that's a new one!

No idea! It ought to reduce a temperature, but you can't live off paracetamol- too dangerous. You can only take 8 max in 24 hrs and if you were to use them day i, day out, you'd end up with liver damage possibly.

[BIWI]

I found Boots Menolieve very helpful, but it does contain Black Cohosh, so you need to be aware of that.

The other thing that helped massively - which I discovered quite coincidentally - was cutting right back on carbs (sugar/alcohol) as well as caffeine.