Peri or depression

[Lostagain2]

I'm 44. Recently I've had episodes, lasting a few days of feeling really low, tearful, alone, dark intrusive thoughts. Anxiety so bad it makes my heart physically hurt. I don't want to see anyone or go anywhere or eat. I don't know why I feel this way or how to make it stop. I don't want it on my medical records and I know the feelings will pass eventually so I haven't seen anyone about it. I wonder if its peri menopause though. I'm generally a happy, cheerful, carefree person but I really struggle when i feel like this. Nobody knows I feel like this sometimes. I have no friends that are close enough to talk to and my family have enough going on, I don't want to add another burden. I just needed to write it all down today and maybe hear from anyone going through similar.

Although peri menopause can cause a lot of symptoms there are lots of other conditions that can mirror peri.
I would start off your conversation with GP with any physical symptoms you are feeling. You mention that the anxiety is causing actual heart pain, presumable you are having palpitations, before settling on peri they need to rule out a lot of other causes, such as thyroid dysfunction or anaemia which can cause physical symptoms alongside fatigue and lethargy.
I had palpitations that were considered hormone related but were actually a benign heart problem now treated with meds. I also have a pituitary problem which causes all kinds of problems but if I had started having problems in my 40s would have been diagnosed as peri and not fully investigated. I was diagnosed in my 20s when peri was unlikely to be the cause.
Davina McCall has recently undergone neuro surgery for brain cysts which will have been present since birth, she admitted that HRT only partly helped her symptoms. If her GP hadn’t focused on meno they may have diagnosed it much earlier.
It is possible that your contraception is no longer suiting you. Progesterone is known to cause low mood in some women. Maybe consider an alternative.

Thank you. I just assumed it may be peri due to the night sweats and insomnia I have but it's best to get checked out for other possible causes.

@Angrymum22 - you’ve clearly had a tough time with symptoms but I think the OP shouldn’t delay getting HRT; if her symptoms don’t improve within a few weeks then other causes can be investigated. As they say, if you hear hooves, look for horses not zebras.

PERSIST!

I had to for ages (44 now) and like you bloods came back within 'normal ranges etc'
FInally I am on it. I think it helps a bit, though I am not quitting my anti ds just yet !

I have, and assumed the symptoms I was experiencing were peri menopausal. I had a thyroid cyst removed in my early 50s that was accounting for some of them, but you can imagine my horror when I was diagnosed with breast cancer after 4 yrs of HRT. I had to come off HRT immediately. After surgery I felt better than I had done for a number of years. Apparently cancer fatigue is a real thing in the period before you develop the more obvious symptoms.

I’m not suggesting that this is the case for the OP but it is important to rule out all other possible causes in your 40s and 50s.
Breast cancer and thyroid problems are definitely not zebras at that age.
Having recently lost my sister to pancreatic cancer aged 56, shit happens. Her symptoms were very vague and she too had been put on HRT because the symptoms seemed to fit the menopause. It’s one of the silent killers.

All I am saying is that many women go to their GP fixated on menopause, and HRT being the answer to all their problems. I would advise to write down all the symptoms you are experiencing and start with those. Diagnosis is symptom dependent and if you leave out the ones that don’t fit the peri menopause it may lead to an incorrect diagnosis.

I'm watching this with interest op. I'm sorry you're suffering. It's so hard separating out symptoms sometimes. I've had periods of real gloom as you describe, but maybe I always have. I sat in the playground at pick up yesterday grateful that I didn't feel ill/anxious but was just so alone in my own little tunnel as everyone buzzed around me. Currently I'm going through ramping up anxiety/panic symptoms. I'm 40. Also don't want this "on my record ' but can't really articulate why, because I Iove and support someone with real panic disorder and frequently give the opposite advice! But I have made an appointment. You should too, whatever the issues we deserve to investigate what's going on. xx