Hot flashes? All of a sudden and I’m young I think

[geekygardener]

Hi all,

not the most thrilling topic of conversation but I have searched the internet for answers and I don’t have any women in my life to ask.
I am 36. Normal in every way I’d say. Over the last couple of weeks all of a sudden I have been having what I think are hot flashes. I’m not sweating but my cheeks go bright red and feel like they are burning hot. I also feel a bit headachey with it but it’s not bad at all. It happening two to three times a day and it lasts for ages, sometimes a few hours.
The only other thing that has changed with my health is that the length between periods has become longer, in the last 3 months. I’m not on any contraception and not pregnant. My dc are tweens and mid primary age.

I have booked an appointment with the GP for a couple of weeks away. I’m not overly worried about it but it is a bit embarrassing when I’m at work and people keep pointing out that I have gone bright red just on my cheeks.

Has anyone had this happen so out of the blue and suddenly? Is this perimenopause? And possible at my age? Do I just live with it for a bit if it is? Will it get better?

thank you in advanced

Most likely peri, and no you’re not young. This stage can go on for 10+ years.

Oh gosh, I thought I was young 😆. Everything I read, even just Reddit posts, said at least 40+. Why does no one tell us about this stuff? We do have Google but no one has ever told me what to expect from perimenopause or menopause. Maybe women in families hand this information down and I missed that message as I don’t have anyone to do that?

I am 35 and am experiencing the same.

Did it start suddenly for you @Imperfectpolly? Is it just the hot cheeks or have you had other symptoms? I wonder what the doctor will do? Probably nothing

This happened to me at 35. I had awful periods for a few years previously and had blood tests to check my hormones which came back as normal. The hot flushes came on all of a sudden and my periods also stopped. Things did stabilise again on their own for a while before crashing again and at that point I was told it was POI and I started HRT.

I’m 44, perimenopausal and haven’t had any of this. Periods that can be 20 day or 60 days cycles. But not like this. The only time I had similar was actually rosacea. My face would get really red and hot and I’d just feel a bit funny/off. I developed a patch on one cheek of inflammation. It was stress related. I was eating crap and sleeping poorly and drinking too much alcohol. But things like weather or sudden temperature changes or getting upset or alcohol would trigger it.

I also had something sort of similar and it was a panic attack. I got really dizzy and my hands and arms got hot. So hot that I had to run them under cold water as felt like I was melting. It was odd because I wasn’t ‘anxious’ about anything I could put my finger on. But I just suddenly felt panicked and I thought I was having a stroke and going to die. It took about 30 minutes to start to feel better, but I felt funny for a bit after.

Never thought about it possibly being rosacea. Would I have spots with that? I don’t have any. I am stressed and eating crap so it’s possible

Ask for your thyroid to be checked. I was 40 started getting hot flushes and my periods became very light and much longer between each one. Then I got insomnia, thought I was in early menopause and saw my GP who thankfully checked my thyroid which showed it was overactive and I then got a Graves’ disease diagnosis. The symptoms are very similar to menopause.

What is your blood pressure like?

Same is happening to me and I'm also 36. My body will feel fine but my face and, weirdly, sometimes just my ears, are burning hot. My mum didn't get anywhere near menopause until her 50s so it's unlikely I'm in peri but idk what else it could be.

I would say you are young. NHS

My blood pressure is normal. I checked it yesterday when I felt hot again.

My mum started menopause mid to late 50s ! So that’s what I thought too about it being to soon.

Good shout re thyroid. This is why I’m glad I posted on here.

Fwiw my BP and thyroid is fine. Well I have an underactive thyroid but with medication my TSH (?) is currently normal.

35 is the average age of progesterone beginning to drop, so yes there's a lot of years between this and the average if 52 being when periods cease, but I think most of us up til last few years thought there were no symptoms etc til late 40s/early 50s

Some people do go through menopause early, in their 30s or even in their 20s. It's rare but it does happen. Your GP should be able to check hormone levels with a blood test.

I have had this a few times randomly and very spread out over a number of years. In my case the main link seems to be it’s when I’m very tired. However having said that it could be hormone linked as I had several episodes in the first month of my daughters life but I have also had them at other times with no obvious hormone link but nearly always when I’m very tired.

I was completely finished menopause by early 40s. Early but not that unusual apparently.

Whatever the cause of the flushes, a neck fan can make you far more comfortable. If you can find one that weighs less than 300 grams it will be comfy enough to wear for long periods. I am in medical menopause and get up to 30 flushes a day on a bad day and my fan is a lifesaver!

I think it is quite young to be experiencing the symptoms you describe, it could well be perimenopause…maybe a bit of a preview and things will resettle for a while….but it also may not be. I think I’d ask for blood tests to check no other issue needing supplementation or whatever.

Are you having night sweats etc? Start of this year I thought I was going into menopause at 30; it turned out I had glandular fever. Still not recovered fully, it's grim. Might be worth a GP trip.

OP would be young for menopause, but the normal range for menopause starts at 45 and peri can last up to 10 years, taking the normal range for peri to starting from 35.
OP, having said that do be prepared to be dismissed by your GP as 'too young for that'. I was hearing 'too young' still in my early 40s, despite listing a range of peri symptoms and with a mum who hit menopause at 45.

I started getting weird allergic reactions around 40, and I'd never previously even had hayfever. Burning cheeks, racing heart etc. Eased with antihistamines. I stopped drinking alcohol at all for 5 years as that was an instant trigger. Peri wasn't far behind that tbh. But do see your GP, I also had an underactive thyroid diagnosed at 41.

I had similar symptoms to you when I was just 38, but didn't experience the real menopause until 51. I have PCOS so when blood tests were done at 38, this showed severe hormone imbalances causing the hot flushes etc. My GP put me on the pill which I stayed on for 10 years, after which nature took it's course.

You're right to be checking in with your GP though in case it's something else entirely. In your shoes I would request blood tests to try and find out what's really going on.

All females go into peri menopause at different ages just like young girls start their periods at different ages. It does tend to have a genetic element though.

Have you got wisdom teeth? One of mine came through in my 30s and I'd feel like this, hot cheeks etc.