Perimenopause is bloody awful

[ToxicChristmas]

I'm 42 and perimenopausal.
It's miserable -or I'm miserable, one or the other. Anxiety is off the charts, achy joints, weight gain around the stomach (despite no changes to a healthy diet and exercise). Changes to smell and taste, awful periods, migraines, vaginal dryness.
I'm absolutely sick of it already.
Can't get a GP appointment for love nor money, the over the phone one the doctor couldn't have given less of a shit. Just normal women's life apparently.
Even after thinking I knew what was coming, it's much worse than I imagined.
How are others coping? Any tips or changes you made that helped?

Excuse me?

Go to a private clinic. It is absolutely worth it.

I started privately, then the prescription was sent to my DR. At no point did they refuse to sign it, although I’ve had telephone reviews and had to purchase a blood pressure machine at home (worth every penny of under £20)

so worst case is private doctor/menopause clinic.

and @boomermama whatever!

Honestly just jog on if the thread doesn’t resonate.

Strong women don’t tear each other down when they need support.

Surely the fact that women seek help now instead of meekly shutting up and suffering is a step forward rather than back. There's nothing weak about taking control of your body so you don't feel like shit while you carry out "running rings around men".
I haven't seen one person here say they've given up on life because of peri. I feel like shit but I still run a successful business working 70 plus hours a week. I'd just rather I had an option to not feel like shit while doing so. How that's "weak" is beyond me.
And my mum is 65. She had great opportunities, she wasn't born in the dark ages 😂.

love all this I am peri shit .
You women are putting us back 50 years .
We are weak /peri /we need special treatment .
Fuck that !We are strong women -we can run rings round men -we have opportunities our mothers could never have dreamed of and we need to stop being victims of hormones !
We are the lucky generation !

Good grief. Attitudes like this are what is setting us back 50 years. It’s not mind over matter for many women and we now have HRT and other supplements/diet changes, that can enable us to balance the hormones that can make us feel physically and mentally like shite.

We are strong, capable and have more equality and opportunities than previous generations. However, if you are up multiple times a night with dripping wet bedding and nightclothes, sore joints, severe fatigue, mood changes, flooding and painful periods - it’s a hell of a lot easier to be strong, capable and fully take full advantage of the opportunities we have, if we can sleep and not be totally screwed by major hormonal changes . Maybe we should have done and stop using pain relief through childbirth and abolish maternity leave, so we can get back to taking advantage of the opportunities we have, without skipping a beat. I mean that’s what previous generations used to do.

We are strong, capable and have more equality and opportunities than previous generations. However, if you are up multiple times a night with dripping wet bedding and nightclothes, sore joints, severe fatigue, mood changes, flooding and painful periods - it’s a hell of a lot easier to be strong, capable and fully take full advantage of the opportunities we have, if we can sleep and not be totally screwed by major hormonal changes . Maybe we should have done and stop using pain relief through childbirth and abolish maternity leave, so we can get back to taking advantage of the opportunities we have, without skipping a beat. I mean that’s what previous generations used to do.

Sorry -I didn't realise we were the first generation of women to experience this.
My grandmothers had 6 children each -worked till 70 and died at 90 and I hope to do some without having work "making adjustments "

I am SICK of it. Literally fucking sick of it. I would think I was seriously ill or losing my mind if it wasn’t for threads like this on mumsnet.
I feel sorry for generations before us that didn’t have this and it wasn’t talked about.
Thank you OP 💐

And . . . WHY CANT WE FIND AN ACTUAL CURE WITH NO SIDE EFFECTS FFS? I am fed up of ‘try this, give it six months it might work’ <rage>

Cure -cure for getting old

I feel sorry for the women that went through this and had to shut the fuck up about it.
I can’t run rings around men 🙄 it’s not a level playing field when I go to work to do the same job as a man when I have been awake all night sweating and having panic attacks due to my hormones.

No. A cure for the symptoms of menopause.
Do you think any man would put up with so many symptoms that cause problems every day?
We would have a better cure than pills or treatments with so many side effects.

This is an "illness" manufactured to make us think we need "help" from drug companies run by men and you are all buying into it

😂

Sorry -I didn't realise we were the first generation of women to experience this.
*My grandmothers had 6 children each -worked till 70 and died at 90 and I hope to do some without having work "making adjustments

Thats not what I wrote. Of course we aren’t the first generation to experience this. We are the first that has had some sort of medication and advice, to help them through a natural and inevitable part of ageing process, if we need it. Childbirth is a natural process. As I said, we are the first generation with decent pain relief and intervention should it be needed. Our grandparents often had many children . Sometimes because children had died during and after birth, due to prolonged, difficult or delayed labour. I didn’t need adjustments at work and they weren’t available anyhow, but I certainly would have appreciated some HRT to make it less exhausting and difficult to get through the working week. I’m 63 and didn’t know about peri menopause. I was up at least 3 times a night, cold and dripping wet after night sweats . I had to change the sheets, get a wash and change they were so bad. This went on for over 5 years. If HRT had been available and prescribed, I’d have grabbed it like a shot.

I have been the same. I spent Easter break wanting to scream at my husband for breathing, he could nothing right, I was awful. I was crying loads, kept getting my words all mixed up and couldn't sleep.
I'm in a high pressure job and was struggling to keep ontop of things I normally found easy.
I did some research and opted to try some peri menopause stuff from Holland and Barret and it's been amazing. That alongside some evening primrose.
I missed a few days due to a work trip and quickly noticed the change. would highly recommend giving them a shot.
im not sure if im allowed to post links but jf you put peri menopause into their search it comes up.

52 and been peri for a couple of years.
I'm on the mini pill which I swear holds off a lot of symptoms. I take tesco menopause supplements which have helped with the brain fog and anxiety.
I recently cut out sugar. Wow, what a different to my mood.
Still don't really sleep and my joints really hurt but starting to feel a little more human.
I also agree. Men would not suffer the menopause.

Posting to come back to later
I also think I have adhd

May i ask about brain fog please.
I was looking at flights to day but for the life of me i could not think of the word airport.
I kept saying air landing air drop air road then 3 mins later AIRPORT came to my brain.
Cant think of the right words at the most random times.
I think im going mad.

Are you a doctor?

Direct us to your research, I’m all ears

HRT.

Honestly. Keep asking till you get it.

You will almost certainly see an improvement of symptoms very quickly.

I have asked but im only 38 so far too young so my GP says.

I'm 45yo and have noted feeling very anxious around the time of my period. I used to be suffer with anxiety in my teens but it's been fine for years so it's horrible to feel like this again.

I'm also getting a lot of headaches especially in the week leading up to my period.

Periods are heavier and I seem to flood more than I used to.

This is perimenopause isn't it? 😕

I never got on with any hormonal contraceptives, they all sent me dolally so I'd be very anxious about trying hrt.

I had a few years of agony in my hips at night had to sleep in certain positions, buy special pillows so much aching.
Then my usually bomb proof sleep went and because I have had irregular periods anyway Ididn't click until the sleep issues.
Then the intense low moods out of nowhere that would take my breath away.
Went to see the GP (a woman) and because I was 46 she just listened to my symptoms list and I said I want HRT and boom been geat for last 2 years.
All the aches and pains went away turns out I don't need a new hip.
Still fat and a few other changes but working on those.
Sleep, aches, hot sweats, mood all back to normal.
if you can get prescribed even the smallest patch to start 25 I think, it will help.
I am now on 75 slowly gone up as symptoms came back but all good.

Yes, 43 and feeling it big style over the last few weeks; insomnia, rage, hot flushes, brain fog, tiredness, my period is 3 weeks late so no idea when it will turn up, the pms and bloat is driving me insane.

Having the implant fitted tomorrow which hopefully will stop all periods for the next 3yrs so that's the first issue crossed off. I'm on sleeping pills for the insomnia, I've had a hormone blood test for HRT, waiting on results. The hot flushes are ridiculous.

My GP diagnose on symptoms and give you HRT if you want it. Job done