Menopause or dementia?

[Noeuf]

I’m definitely peri (periods/flushes/tiredness) but yesterday and today something happened while driving which was really scary. Yesterday I was on a familiar (as in weekly) road and I just had this real panic of where was it / where was i and eventually I came to the end and realised I turned right etc. This morning I was driving the kid to school and only at the last minute realised I should turn right not left.
Normal? Or sinister? Google doesn’t help - being easily disorientated in familiar places is a bad sign apparently.
This isn’t normal for me , I’m really good at direction and knowing my way around.

Weirdly, I’ve just listened to a pod cast about testosterone dropping in peri-menopause. The doctor was talking about women diagnosed with dementia type symptoms and when tested for lack of testosterone and then being treated for low levels, their symptoms went away.

Podcast was Inside my Wardrobe with Pipa Gordon - Testosterone is not just for boys.

I overshot a turning twice yesterday, today I had to double check I was in the right lane, mind just blank. In my home town. Lockdowns have affected my driving confidence too

@Noeuf try not panic, it's not dementia but thought I'd mention a friends experience that she had a few years...

she was late 30's at the time and had very similar symptoms to you, feeling lost for a moment in familiar places... anyway a few months later after some tests recommended by her GP it turned out she had a blocked artery and needed stents fitted.., she's slim and fit but it can happen to anyone and gives similar symptoms of vascular dementia as it's to do with lack of oxygen to the brain if they it's not noticeable at the time ... she's been fine since btw...

it's probably not that and just simply peri in your case but it's worth ruling it out if your symptoms continue or get worse...

Brain fog is often mistaken for dementia by miserable and frightened women- don’t worry. Drs are used to seeing fit, sane patients coming in announcing they’ve gone senile at 50. NICE guidance mentions it as an example of how debilitating and scary meno can be.

I have had this experience. Walking to town and suddenly odd sensation of about to turn the wrong way.
Really disconcerting!
In the shops the other day kept turning into different aisles and forgetting what I was buying.
Changing sentences because forgotten a word.
Forgetting names [though always been a bit like this].
It is like worst ditsy parts of me have been amplified.
3rd day of HRT today. I am desperate to feel more sane again...

Just popping in to say that if the reason you haven’t wanted HRT is because of “Health Risks”, most of these have been thoroughly debunked.
Oestrogen replacement in particular is now considered to be preventative treatment for many cancers, it improves vascular (heart, arterial and vein health) and as a result is also known to reduce several forms of dementia. It helps prevent osteoporosis, some forms of diabetes and kidney disease and improves emotional and cognitive well-being. From an aging point of view, oestrogen supplementation may end up saving the NHS more money than virtually any other single form of treatment.

city thank you what a scary time for your friend.
I think I’ve been waiting for a reason to ask about HRT - it’s been grim but manageable so far so I felt I should be ‘really bad’ for HRT.
But I’m worried by this and if it can be put down to brain fog menopause that would be a relief.
Sort of glad to hear similar stories and thank you for the update on HRT and health risks.

Derealization is a state of mind where you feel disconnected from your surroundings, and people and objects seem unreal. This altered experience
I had this,happened to me three times followed by panic attacks during the early stage of perimenopause. It's a horrible dreadful scary feeling.

I personally believe that brain fog comes from poor quality sleep linked with the changes in hormones. Even when sleeping through the night, we get less deep sleep and don't regenerate physically and mentally. We often don't dream as much which is the time to strengthen memories. All this linked with physical anxiety.

Interesting. I don’t sleep as dh snores horrendously. I feel so ill with lack of sleep anyway.

@Noeuf

Interesting. I don’t sleep as dh snores horrendously. I feel so ill with lack of sleep anyway.

Buy ear plugs if you don't have a spare room.

yes I have tried that.

@Noeuf

yes I have tried that.

What spare room or ear plugs?

Ear plugs , spare room doesn’t exist sadly as full of children! I think it doesn’t help to not sleep but it does sound like HRT may help generally?