Is there any way in which the menopause CAN'T make you feel like shit?

[FatherFintanFay]

The latest thing that's happened to me is terrible indigestion that can be brought on just by drinking sodding water. I've read that the drop in hormones can also reduce the amount of bile you produce, so it's harder and takes longer to digest anything. I'm not even going to go into the constipation, suffice to say it's very distressing to someone who was once well-known for having to have a 2pm poo every day.

Does anyone else have rubbish menopause symptoms that they never expected?

How can a decent diet reverse hormonal changes

Also I have a great diet and do plenty of exercise thanks.

Having menopause symptoms isn't a sign of an unhealthy lifestyle.

My mum was an overweight alcoholic and had no menopause symptoms at all.

Maybe that's the answer.

There's loads of evidence that diet can help regulate hormones back at ya and that exercise helps symptoms by producing helpful hormones and promoting better sleep.

I think there's some evidence that soy can help, but its impossible for a 'decent diet' to reverse menopause, which is what you'd have to do to alleviate symptoms.

Obviously eating well and exercising is good at any age. Afaik diet and exercise don't help women with period issues, so not sure why they'd help with menopause.

Diet and exercise do help period issues hugely, there are loads of books even if the medical profession hasn't caught on, but GPs tend to know very little about nutrition as it doesn't form any part of their training. I practically eliminated PMT in my early 40s by cutting out sugar, just at the time when the "accepted" view is that it will get worse until menopause.

If the symptoms were all purely as a result of menopause and unavoidable everyone would get the same.

I can’t take HRT because of my medical history, so have had to rely on years of trial and error to help ease my symptoms.

Main things that have helped are sage tablets for hot flushes - they take a few weeks to kick in but once they do, they work well for me. Every now and then I think I’ll stop them (haven’t had a period for over 5 years) but within a couple of weeks the flushes/night sweats return so it’s easier to just carry on with them.

Exercise, though I really really don’t enjoy it, helps enormously with low mood and mood swings. Even just a 20 minute Rosemary Conley (!) dvd workout every day makes a big difference.

Alcohol - sadly I’ve pretty much given up, which was a big lifestyle change for me 😕

Menopause helps strengthen my brittle nails and hair.

Cutting right back on sugar helped with my weight, mood swings, flushes and general aches and pains. Not surprising, given its inflammatory effects in the body, but annoying when all I want to do is eat chocolate and cake!

God, I sound gorgeous, don’t I? 😂

Overall, for me it’s been a fairly radical lifestyle change. Little tweaks here and there gradually became my new ‘normal’ and the benefits of sticking to that, hard though it is sometimes, outweighs the misery of all the symptoms it counteracts.

MenoPACE, not menopause, for brittle hair and nails 🙄

My GP prescribed HRT but due to the shortages I am now on my 3rd prescription and one which isn't best suited to my risk factor based on my family health record. It's all strokes, blood clots and heart attacks. As a result I have decided not to take it.

I was experiencing some really debilitating symptoms. Horrendous night sweats, where I woke up every morning soaking wet, pyjamas and bedding, and broken sleep as a result. I reckon I was only getting 4-5 hours sleep every night, plus disturbing my husband. And then there was the hot flushes. Endless ones every day. It was relentless.

On the recommendation of a friend I started taking Evening Primrose Oil and Menomin (Krill Oil) about 6 months ago. It made a small difference. She also recommended Red Clover, which I opted not to take as the reviews I read were 50/50 - it works/it doesn't work.

Over the last 4 weeks my symptoms have become almost unbearable so I have tried everything possible.

Red Clover & Black Cohosh - I have no idea which one works, or if it works in combination with each other or anything else but I have not had a hot flush since I started taking either. This is incredible as I have been suffering with multiple hot flushes every day. I cannot express how amazing it is to not have hot flushes anymore.

Likewise, night sweats. I don't have them anymore. I don't wake up anymore in wet pyjamas in wet bedding.

And anxiety. Horrible anxiety. This was a really big problem for me. I used to wake up at silly o'clock with a hideous knot in my chest, worrying about shit I really didn't understand why I was worrying about it. I used to put the TV on to distract me from the stuff that was going on in my head.

But. CBD Oil. That has stopped it. It is fucking brilliant. Just the 5% stuff from Holland & Barrett. My anxiety knot has gone. I am calm. I am me again.

Sorry that was longer than I realised....

I realised today that I have lost my sex drive forever, I thought it had gone due to a combination of menopause and being a very long term relationship , but I bumped into a chap today who I had always fancied from afar, (actually could have ripped his clothes off type of fancying) and I literally felt nothing, literally I felt dead inside, it was horrible, the thought of never feeling how I used to feel is utterly depressing.

Sarcelle I'm very interested to hear about the turmeric that you take. Can you tell me more please ie what format is it in etc. Thanks. **

Yeah I'd like my sex drive back.

When the menopause started my mindset changed and I really don’t take any shit of anyone and have stopped caring about other people’s opinion of me. I guess I thought you know what I’ve now got all these crap symptoms to deal with but I don’t have to deal with any other shit others give me. That’s been the one positive

Ive had a '10 year & 2 x 4 year stints on HRT ' menopause - came off HRT 16 months ago, managed to tolerate the sweats (I think they were a bit less severe than before). I was aware over the last year that my mood was somehow lower, everything a bit 'meh' - until a few weeks ago when it suddenly lifted and lo and behold - the sweats have all but stopped! I think I'm there! Woo hoo!

To those with insomnia, have you tried Sominex? Not the herbal ones but ones you have to get from the pharmacy? Sorry I have not RTFT but I take one with a glass of wine and I sleep well. Not recommended I know but otherwise I would be on my knees. I am off work tomorrow by the way so I am still up!

Having been awake from 4am yet again I'm prepared to give it a go! Can you but it over the counter?

Once you hit 50 (my personal opinion) you need to look at what you are eating and how much you eat and make sure you lower your calorie intake

I've found that since I was 29, and had DD1 and more so since I turned 40. I'm 45 and take desogestel and never know whether any symptoms are my endometriosis, peri-menopause or proper menopause. Insomnia I've had on and off all my life so it's nothing new at all to wake up in the night, and I've always needed a wee in the night even as a kid. Recently I've been getting food stuck in my throat, which is bloody unpleasant, but unfortunately doesn't stop me eating.

Boots Sleepease are very good in moderation if I need to break a cycle of night waking. Minimising alcohol, caffeine and late heavy meals are also key for me, plus regular yoga and Headspace meditations, plus a good winding down to bedtime routine, and going to bed and getting up at the same time. I don't always do myself a favour on several counts in respect of the above, though.

I can cope with everything else but the heat. I run at about 20° hotter than everyone else. I've never liked the heat but this is something else, I'm sitting in work and everyone else is wearing cardigans and I have the window open and a fan on. It's insane.

I take over the counter phenergan for insomnia, wonderful stuff. It's a sleepy antihistamine .

So MANY symptoms!! I have leg cramps, feel like I'm wading through quicksand some days, feel hot frequently, forgetful, put on even more weight. However, getting older has also mellowed me, although that could be the anti anxiety medication I take. Everyone goes through it differently. Good luck with your transition through it all.

I've been on HRT for 4 years and can I please warn everyone who gets prescribed it for osteoporosis about the dangers of the alendronic acid (bisphosphonate) that often gets prescribed alongside it with calcium tablets.

They tell you to make sure your dental work is up to date before starting alendronic acid - however it is only being discovered now that it can take 15 - 18 YEARS to leave your system, rendering your jaw bone vulnerable to cracking during dental work. Root canals are dangerous and dental implants become an absolute no-no. Any work of this kind could lead to cracking and necrosis of the jaw.

I have just had to spend £2k on 2 teeth which had infected root canals because the NHS wouldn't touch them, nor would any eastern European clinic. I had xrays and a consultation in London from one of these practices and they didn't want my money, basically they sent me away.

The NHS only offered extraction in hospital, which my dentist said was also not 100% safe.

As if menopause wasn't shit enough already without this to think about.

Also can I reccomend this website www.menopausematters.co.uk

A huge amount of info on here and it's set up by doctors and nurses . HRT, supplement info etc

I think the thing that's surprised me the most is the aches and pains. I feel ancient. Probably linked to weight gain, which has also been dramatic. I've tried menopace, no effect. GP useless. I'm waiting until I can afford to see a private consultant. In the meantime yoga and Pilates are helping me feel human again.