..to think that I actually might die from exhaustion?

[Wahooooooo]

Bloody fucking bastard peri-menopausal insomnia and all the bloody sweating. Am on HRT (4 pumps of oestrogel per day) which has helped the worst of the night sweats but the insomnia, OMG the insomnia.

I can’t help thinking if men had to live this bloody half life of existing on snatches of sleep and permanently exhausted it would be addressed more sympathetically and supportively (and quickly). I’m honestly more tired now than I was when dc were newborns (not underestimating that tiredness btw, I’m with you fellow sleep-deprived sisters - at least you have a scrumptious baby to look at in the morning. I’ve got the reflection of a fat bag lady, ungrateful teenagers and endless chores).

Anyway I don’t care what you vipers say. I know I ANBU to say I might die of exhaustion and I’ll fight anyone who says otherwise

Zzzzzzzz.

@Theunamedcat

Have you tried melatonin for sleep issues? I use it occasionally and it works well for me

Many like myself find that antihistamine brings sleep. I take piriton to good effect. Also I am on codeine for severe pain at night. Sleep deprivation is as you are finding appalling and dangerous to general health.

I’m with you. Awake since 2:30 this morning and yesterday woke at 4. This is despite a bedroom fan and HRT. Just eaten f a bar of chocolate but even that hasn’t helped..,

@worriedandannoyed amitriptyline is used for pain, sleep disturbance and low mood.

Can I ask if you drink, like not rolling around wrecked drinking but even just a couple of glass of wine or G&T? I found that the biggest factor in sleep vs no sleep when I was menopausal. I do appreciate it's often unwelcome news especially when parenting ungrateful teenagers! The days I have no alcohol I sleep fine, a few days in a row it's incredible, I sleep so well. The days I partake in even a couple equals shite sleep.

Try a sleep aid, an antihistamine type. Phenergan is good, you can buy online. It contains Promethazine 25mg per tablet.

Avomine, which you can buy on ebay, sold for travel sickness, is also Promethazine 25mg.

Take two before going to bed.

If it doesn't work it won't hurt you, but I have heard good reports about the sedative effect of Promethazine.

@NameChangeNameShange

Can I ask if you drink, like not rolling around wrecked drinking but even just a couple of glass of wine or G&T? I found that the biggest factor in sleep vs no sleep when I was menopausal. I do appreciate it's often unwelcome news especially when parenting ungrateful teenagers! The days I have no alcohol I sleep fine, a few days in a row it's incredible, I sleep so well. The days I partake in even a couple equals shite sleep.

I rarely drink and my sleep is shit all the time. I wish there was such an easy solution!

Jesus fuck being a woman is a real head fuck. I've had horrible periods and other issues since teens. I'll probably be menopausal soon. Can't even take magnesium as it gives me the runs.

Sorry you're having to deal with insomnia. I take a very mild sleeping tablet sometimes.

Every sympathy with you and fellow sufferers
I'm now 46 and have been having sweats, exhaustion for a while. The sleep deprivation is a killer.
I had a hysterectomy when I was 41 and was told within 5 years I would go through the change and it's horrible.
Whilst I can't offer much advice I'm totally understanding of how awful the symptoms are.
Hope you get some sleep soon

@Plumtree391

Try a sleep aid, an antihistamine type. Phenergan is good, you can buy online. It contains Promethazine 25mg per tablet.

Avomine, which you can buy on ebay, sold for travel sickness, is also Promethazine 25mg.

Take two before going to bed.

If it doesn't work it won't hurt you, but I have heard good reports about the sedative effect of Promethazine.

These things are great in the short term but not a long term solution as the effects tend to wear off after a week or two.

My sympathies - 43 here and going through similar. I’ve always been a shite sleeper but in the last couple of months I have outdone myself! Taking ages to fall asleep, waking up every 3 hours or even within 1 hour of sleeping, needing to pee. It is hellish.

This week I was so sleep deprived (2 nights running) I finally decided to see the doctor to get something to make me sleep because the lack of sleep was giving me nausea and stomach pains and the runs. I felt like I was having panic attacks all the time.

Anyway the doctor prescribed me a short course of a low dose SSRI that has a mild sedative effect and is non-addictive. I made an appointment with a CBT therapist too. I want to knock this escalation in insomnia on the head because I am so drained from crawling through each work day on 3-4 hours sleep a night - at best. It’s hellish.

I so identify with these symptoms too - the sweats, panicky feeling, weird adrenaline rushes for no reason… Awful. If it is perimenopause then I’m screwed because I have about 10 more years of this BS to go

@Wahooooooo

I've got the Mirena Coil fitted so I think that's supposed to cover the rest of the hormonal imbalance but maybe it doesn't? I think I need to go back to my GP and chat it through with her. If only I could find the time/energy!

God no @Wahooooooo. Mirena only has 52mg of progesterone in the whole damn thing. It releases 20 MICROgrams a day, which is why it’s safer for people who can’t take too many hormones. But on HRT myself, and I’m taking something like 100 MILLIgrams progesterone a day for half the month. Or the whole month. Fuck, I can’t remember. Another part of menopause. And progesterone is actually a sleep hormone, apparently. I read that somewhere but fuck if I remember where.

I am with you on this. I’m 47 and I can’t remember the last time I had a night’s sleep. I’m lucky as I don’t work and my days are just filled with exhaustion and trying to nap. It’s awful. If I do nap I don’t stay awake long as I feel guilty that I’m trying to sleep rather than doing jobs around the house so I end up getting up. The sweating is so disgusting! I don’t even have to fall asleep properly before it starts and within minutes I can be soaked! Last Monday I went in the kitchen to do something and I thought I was going to collapse. I just had no strength and felt so tired that I could have puked. I’m on SSRI’s for depression and have been for years but they clearly don’t help the situation. I’ve also noticed that migraines that I’ve had for years are getting worse too. They now have dizziness thrown in just to make them extra shitty. I’m reluctant to go down the HRT road as there is a family history of blood clots and strokes. I’ve put a couple of pictures of my Fitbit sleep tracker on here to show how bloody daft all this is. I don’t know how I can carry on!

Totally empathise- I don’t sleep properly either, I am so used to not sleeping it seems normal now. I wake up at 2, 4 then 6am every night and I am on hrt and take supplements.
Yesterday I cleaned the house, did yoga, cooked, shopped, catered to teens and walked 10k. Did I sleep ? Nooooooo
I did take a low dose of Amitripline during lockdown and went up two dress sizes, I slept the sleep of the dead but I went very fat. So I had stop the med and am now back to square one.
We need a menopause retreat/island as life is quite difficult atm.

My name says it all!

I've been suffering from insomnia for 6 years now. Before that? Slept like a baby and never knew what sleep deprivation until I had my babies who both suffered from colic and didn't sleep through the night until they were 3.

I've been through every emotions and ultimately, insomnia is a chronic illness. It impacts every aspects of your life. You have to make changes that changes your life forever. You become half the person you were. Every day is a struggle to get through it and that becomes your challenge, day after day after day.

Yet, somehow it really doesn't kill you. I wake up every morning and somehow get on with my life, with some days a bit better than others.

Acceptance has been a real helper. I had to learn to let it go. Seeing it as a chronic illness helps a lot too. And then I tell myself that between chronically fatigued and being in constant pain, the former is very much a lesser evil. And I still hope that some say, it will be over and I'll sleep like a baby again!

Ladies, I can recommend getting some Melatonin. Melatonin decreases during peri menopause onwards contributing to the insomnia. I felt like I was on the verge of a breakdown as a result of the insomnia. GP’s won’t prescribe melatonin here so I ended up ordering some online from Europe. Worked brilliantly. If you go get some, only take for a few weeks or less and then have a break. You’re not supposed to take it continuously. I’ve started HRT now which has helped the sleep issues massively but I do still take the melatonin now and again if the sleep problems creep back in. Sending you all love and positive vibes through the menopause. It’s shit. Thank you OP for starting this thread. ❤️

I also meant to say, I bought some menopause nighties - they’re made from a fabric that wicks the sweat away. You still have the hot flushes but you don’t end up with a wet nightie as a result and the subsequent cold sensation.

low level Amitriptyline. Am on it prophylactically for migraines but, goodness, the sleep is MAGNIFICENT!
(Clinging to 49 by my little finger...)

It’s a vicious circle isn’t it. Sleep deprivation for me meant eating crap and existing on coffee during the day because I was too knackered to think about being healthy. Which in turn did nothing to help with sleep!

Adding my voice to the melatonin suggestion, I bought a slow release one and am managing to get about 6 to 7 hours a night now. HRT didn’t really do anything for my sleep pattern unfortunately.

Where can you order melatonin from @AngelinaJoliestoplip?

OP I have found magnesium glycinate really helpful. I still sometimes have nights where I'm awake from 2am, (which are a killer I know), but fewer now. I even sometimes manage to get back to sleep if I wake at 5.30am now!

Other than that, I am struggling with the progesterone part of HRT which I know can help with sleep. Maybe you are too and your dr can help?

Here you go;

www.soin-et-nature.com/en/14583-mela-sleep-melatonin-complex-govital-30-capsules.html

Aaaah, welcome my people. Right first stop magnesium and GP (belt and braces) - I didn't know that about progesterone, I thought Mirena was enough, I just had a new one which was absolute fecking agony (another thread needed about that disgrace).

I'm already on AD so that won't work. I have some melatonin (dd used to have sleep issues but fine now) so I could try that.

I've got some Kirkland Sleep aid which can help but does stop working if you take it all the time (and I need it all the time).

Please can I have a link to the wicking nightie, sounds like magic. I have a gel cooling thing I put on top of my pillow from amazon which is magic but sadly not enough to get me to sleep.

I'm so sorry so many people are also suffering, some of your descriptions really resonate. It is hellish being sleep deprived. I will let you know if anything helps!

As requested, the link to the Menopause nighties - they are pricy so good to sign up and get the 10% off.

www.becomeclothing.com/collections/anti-flush-night-dress

Sounds awful op When I'm struggling to sleep I occasionally take an antihistamine called Phenergan. I prefer it to the idea of stronger sleeping tablets as it's non-addictive.

I can still wake in the night but it helps me to go back to sleep. The drowsiness does take a while to wear off for me so I have to take it around 11 hours before I need to be fully with it. It takes a couple of hours to kick in so I have it about 8pm and then I'm fine in the morning.

@Happyhappyday

Very interesting re the low dose anti depressants.
Wish I had known that.

I use Piriton but as it was always irregular I never built up a resistance.

Just having even one excellent nights sleep every few days, kept me sane until it eventually passed.

This was very common with my friends and reduced many of us to our knees.

The combination of no sleep/FT busy career/running after kids, teens,/running a house.

Absolute nightmare.

Take the pills.

Sounds horrendous. Do you have young children? Can you at least try to rest in the day?