To think GP's don't give a shit about menopause

[GentrifiedLDN]

I never realised how hard menopause would hit. For those who haven't been hit this time of their life yet, it fucking sucks ladies - No one and i mean NO ONE tells you how fucking awful this is and how no one gives a shit

I have visited the GP four times now to try and get help, and all they want to do is medicate each individual symptom without addressing the hormone imbalance.

GP seem more concerned about the potential (imo small) risks of HRT than the fact there is a suicidal woman sat in front of them and will fuck you off out the door with a pamphlet about local talking services that take three years to get an appointment at

Anxiety is absolutely awful, it is so bad I have even considered ending it all, as I can NOT live like this much longer

It took my sister four years to get given HRT and feel better.

I am going to have to go private. I can't take this anymore.

Clearly varies from GP to GP. Mine is fabulous - I was in bits last year, she gave me a bunch of choices including HRT and then booked me in for a couple of weeks later when I had managed to have a good think - and she gave me options. She is also the GP that relentlessly investigated and got to the bottom of my anemia which ended up with a rare blood cancer diagnosis.

GPs do not seem to care in general, and knowledge is very scant about the menstrual cycle, contraception and menopause. Shockingly so.

I had a lovely GP but after he retired, no one else seems to care. Treat the symptoms but not the underlying cause seems to be the GPs mantra these days.

The mini pill helped me deal with menopausal symptoms, I was in an awful way before then. I also run, drinks loads of water and have a very healthy diet - it didnt make a difference to the levels of hormones in my body 🙄

I am glad you had an easy ride of it...

One could say that posting this, leaves many women (who aren't so fortunate) woefully underprepared - not everyone has it easy, and not everyone will

However, I feel that most people will realise this is a post by me about my own journey - I haven't intended to imply that all women will go down the same journey as me. I honestly hope they don't as this is horrendous

Menopause hit me like a train.
Anxiety, sweats, sleeplessness, joint ache, brain fog the list goes on.

HRT has been a miracle.

My GP has been amazing (after offering me the obligatory anti depressants...firm no I want HRT thanks)

@Eve223 Free with this months Red is a how to age happily supplement It includes a section on menopause. In that section is a very interesting piece about gut health and how it can be affected by menopause. This is how ive been affected Having to go loo more often no matter what i eat Apparently many women notice pain bloating loose bowel and increased urgency get worse in perimenopause and menopause. Particularly if you used to get these symptoms as part of PMS or during your period. Drop in oestrogen causes the tummy problems

Im not passing any blood and im not losing weight Ive put weight on though because shitting out everything i eat not long after eating means im hungry again.

I’ve been having lots of symptoms and I thought I was type 2 diabetic(44) - nurse so always thinking worse case so off I went to drs and had a chat, dr knows me well and is lovely. Did bloods. Bloods and symptoms strongly suggest menopause so he offered hrt let me have a think about it chat to mum etc and read up but is happy to answer questions when I go back tomorrow, so no problem with my gp and knowing the other gp in that practise I am lucky they’re really nice and want to help. I don’t know if hrt will help but it can’t make anything worse I hope..

Yes I remember that my mental health got so bad that I seriously considered putting myself in a psychiatric hospital, I recall talking about it with my partner at the time.

im on the mini pill Im 50 and have no idea whether my periods have stopped due to being on the pill or the menopause

I hear that. I really do - I feel at that stage

How did you overcome this, please?

Have you a link to any studies on hormonal medications and the menopause or are you just basing it on your own experience?
I never took any hormonal medications prior to HRT but I've had quite a lot of symptoms.

The problem is the NHS doesn’t understand that you can be peri/menopausal and still have regular periods. Anxiety/brain fog/fatigue/low mood are ALL early symptoms and many GPs simply aren’t trained to understand this.

I had a huge fight to get HRT aged 44. I was being given scans for joint pain ffs - I couldn’t open water bottles. Once I got HRT - new woman.

It’s outrageous.

Thank you @Pollyputhekettleon - I wasn't sure I could do that
I remember watching the Davina programmes with DH & even he said that it was like watching a show about me!
And everything's got worse since then.
It's great that many women are getting good treatment, but awful that this isn't the case for what seems like so many more.

@WeirdBarbie - you could be describing me with the joint pain!
I'm even more resolved now!

You have been unlucky with your GP response OP. I had booked an appt about severe headaches earlier this year that then subsided the week before my appt. I almost cancelled the appt, then thought I really should mention to my GP about the fact I can't keep awake at my desk at 2pm (thought it was anemia and had tried all sorts of iron supplements to no avail), struggling to sleep at night due to incredibly itchy skin, eczema patches that didn't respond to steroid creams, brain fog, anxiety, no libido, joint pain. I was 43 - GP straight away suggested taking some bloods. Follow up appt 3 weeks later confirmed I was in peri, she put me straight on gel and progesterone having just turned 44 with a regular though shortening cycle.
I lost a stone within weeks as my exhaustion lifted and I stopped reaching for snacks to keep me going, libido returned, anxiety gone, brain fog reduced, skin stopped itching, no more aching legs at night or restless legs. I could not believe the difference and 5 months in I am evangelical about HRT. It probably helped that my GP is female and (I would guess) late forties or early fifties so likely peri herself.
She's been great since too, ensuring I have follow up appointments to check bp hasn't gone up with the progesterone (apparently that's a risk, and as a hypertensive it's something we had to watch closely).
I was all prepared to go in and fight for HRT, can't believe how supportive the doctor was. Another GP at the surgery I have refused to deal with for years as he is a condescending, patronising prick. The quality in care even in the same surgery can vary greatly!

Good luck getting the support you need OP.

@herewegoroundthebastardbush I'm worried about this too. Sorry you're suffering so much.

I had my kids late so could soon be in peri with 2 toddlers to deal with.
Since having kids the bleeding is horrendous and my emotions are all over the place. I break down constantly and I can barely do my job. I have some of the symptoms of peri already so I can't imagine how I'll cope when it hits me fully.

My mum had a late menopause with barely any symptoms and didn't bother with HRT. But she also never suffered with her cycle or childbirth, all of which have been horrific for me.

They d not give a shit about anything.
My daughter nearly died because a Gp ignored her symptoms. Since then they have done nothing to help her mental health and actively made it worse. They're a total disgrace.

Do GPs give a toss about anything? Especially if it's to do with womens' health?

You need to print off the NICE guidelines and advocate for yourself, unfortunately,

Or use the BUPA service someone mentioned above or a private GP who specialises in menopause. But you shouldn't have to pay. A NHS GP should do their job properly. Four years to get HRT?

And the consultant above should stick to their own specialism, GPs are not meant to prescribe anti-depressives as a first line for menopause!

And people saying GPs don't know stuff. Don't they ever read the newspapers or watch TV? I glean a lot of knowledge (not just about menopause, about lots of things, this week it was about vascular dementia) from a column a GP writes in the Times. Sounds like all GPs should read it! I would have thought you'd keep some general knowledge of issues that are being discussed - sepsis and Lymes being two others that spring to mind.

Aw thanks, i'm sorry for your trouble too <3 it's so vile isn't it. I'm only 38 so don't think I'm peri - my mum is dead so I can't ask her what I can expect hereditarily, I think she had a hysterectomy quite young due to recurrent awful fibroids so not sure what effect that might have had (my elder sister also gets them).

I just want to get to a place where i know the feelings I'm feeling are my actual feelings, not some weird hormonal makebelieve that will seem like INSANITY as soon as I come on 😖It makes you doubt everything about yourself.

Hopefully if we survive menopause, there's a peaceful time on the other side! All the happiest women I know are over 50 (but then maybe that's also because they're mostly boomers :P).

Can you not read? She wasn't telling the OP to grow up she was telling another poster. She actually responded to the the comment on her reply so I'm not sure how you didn't read that bit. Strange.

@juniper111 Yes, I'm quite capable of reading thanks for your input. Clearly you are unable to however, having not read my following exchange with @Slippersandacuppatea so I'm not sure how you didn't read that bit. Strange.

I don't know what age you are but you're most likely in peri now. Depending on your age you should probably get other things ruled out, thyroid would be the most obvious alternative. Don't go on like you are waiting for it to get worse! Whatever's going on you need to get help with it.

Don't just let the flooding periods continue, particularly, or you'll find yourself iron deficient or even anaemic before you know it. You may not need or want HRT yet but the Mirena is great for heavy peri periods and there are other options too.

There is a peaceful place the other side @herewegoroundthebastardbush. Shame you needed to add that snippy little jibe about boomers, what did you hope to accomplish with that?

Agree.