Anyone who didn't have a horrendous menopause experience?

[blankstares]

I'm perimenopausal at 45 and terrified of the menopause. I don't want to lose my sex drive (I love sex!), put on loads of weight, grow facial hair and have insomnia.

Is there anyone who had a mild menopause or who didn't suffer from the above? Am I destined to go through hell or are these symptoms exaggerated? I have spoken to my elderly mum but she can't remember what it was like and friends just moan about the lack of sleep and weight gain. Please reassure me it won't be that bad or there are ways of alleviating some of the symptoms! I already have terrible sleep.

Sorry for multiple posts. Got a message that said failed to post, try again.

People who say it is not hard who have posted by and large, are perimenopausal or 'haven't had a period since April'. This is is NOT menopausal.

At 43 my periods stopped. At 45 felt generally shit. At 49, just coming out of it, after hideous anxiety and just odd weird symptoms. So many symptoms.

NONE of which were hairy chins or hot flushes.

Am very slim, fit and well. This was ALL menopause.

As I said my periods stopped 7 years ago so I'm certainly not peri

Good for you thecat

I posted that mine wasn’t difficult and that was 15 years ago so most definitely finished.

Good for you Alexa

We really are all different. Have different weights etc. Glad you have not changed one jot. Very unusual. To loose ALL your hormones and remain the same is miraculous.

Me. I did become a bit grumpy but that could have been a reaction to the less than wonderful situation with my work at the time. Other than that, no symptoms whatsoever. Like a previous poster I hardly suffered any issues with my periods either

I am the same weight as I was at 25. I am tall and slim. I have a huge menopausal waist.

I have had anxiety, GERD, exhaustion, insomnia, complete change of body shape.

This happened after 4 years only. 4 years of menopause.
I am still only 48 with a young DC.

We are different. Not one hot flush, easy conception and birth, never 'hormonal' My menopause is not yours, but I expect I would look at you and know you had been through it.

I had a 24 inch waist at 18 and I still do at 57. So while I don't doubt that menopause can cause waists to thicken it's not inevitable.

I only ever got hot flushes at night and that only lasted a few months. My periods got lighter and shorter in duration until they were next to nothing and it suddenly dawned on me one day that I hadn't had one for nearly a year. About 6 months later I got some slight bleeding for 24 hours which may have been my last period. I was 51.

I put on weight, felt tired and got aches and pains, but this may have been down to hypothyroidism, which was diagnosed when I was 54. I didn't get emotional issues, mood swings or anything. I also found that the crippling migraines I'd suffered from since the age of 17 are nowhere near as frequent or as bad, and rarely make me vomit snce the menopause.

And I can't drink as much alcohol as I used to before the menopause, I'm a real lightweight these days.

I've only had about 6 periods in the last 15 months. The last 2 were just a smear of blood (not even enough to use up a liner).

Does that mean I'm peri menopausal?

If so, I'm feeling hot more often and waking up more in the night so needing to nap more in the day.

Previous to this, periods were regular as clockwork!

I would say so.

Apart from the odd hot flush and night sweats the only real symptom I had was brain fuzz. That is bloody annoying but you learn to live with it (make lists for EVERYTHING).

I have to admit a side effect of menopause I'm quite enjoying is the insomnia. I've had hypersomnia for years and to suddenly get all these extra hours is fantastic. I read or write or go online or play with the cat and stare at the night sky.

No facial hair or headaches here. But I hate being fatter and in peri-menopause I hated being tired all the time. Hot flushes have only just started - didn't get them until officially 'post menopause' (a year after last period.) They are a bit weird, but I just turn on the fan until they are over.

I was having terrible periM symptoms and tried HRT for a few months. My periods literally went to 2 weeks long with heavy bleeding and I ended up with dreadful PMS all month long. Then I read up about the Mirena, had one fitted and now a few months later I have NO periods and no PMS too. Life feels great again.

Weight gain means I need to improve my diet and up the exercise. I do have darker hair on my chin but I've bought a Philips Lumea and I am layering it all off at home.