Is this the start of the peri-menopause? TMI Warning.

[ScarahStratton]

Normally I have nice, light, regular periods. No cramping, no pain or bloating (I know, I've been incredibly fortunate).

This month I am having the period from hell. Very heavy, feel like I've put on 2 stone in as many days, and absolutely horrific cramps that nothing is shifting.

I've spent hours in a steaming hot bath today, and just want to crawl into bed with a big mug of tea and LittleDog to cuddle.

I'm 44.

Hello, may I pop in with my symptoms and ask if you think I qualify to join you?

Am 42 and periods have been over the place (literally on occasion ) for about a year now. Completely irregular - can be anything from 2wks to 6wks apart.

One month ridiculously light and will last 2 or 3 days. The next month flooding, literally.

Huge clots - awful and hugely embarrassing if you go to the loo to change, don't notice that a stray clot is clinging to your trousers and you smear it all over the white plastic chair you are sitting on in a packed conference! Oh the shame...

Huge, over the top, temper tantrums and shaking with rage at the most stupid things (dh needs to hide the knives). Weepy ALL the time - cannot watch those dancing shows on the telly as they render me hysterical. Cannot sing along to the radio in the car as end up sobbing.

Agony boobs.

BUT no heat, and strangely my libido has returned with a vengeance!

What do you think? Do you think this is peri-menopause?

Oh yy the peri is upon you

Wait till you get the dreams about Geronimo taking you as his white squaw

Lugholes - I take tranexamic acid for blood clots. I put up with them for ages (including shame on a plane incident when strapped in for landing) without realising there were things that could be done. Or some docs also
recommend mirena coil.

The clotting problem hasn't disappeared completely but is much more manageable.

oh thank you nanna and mardy! So I'm not going mad and imagining it all? Feel too young for all this

Nanna, I am having rather x-rated dreams lately... Honestly my hormones are like a teen's at the moment! Dh can't believe his luck...

Right, will get myself down the docs and get tranexamic acid. Thanks for that mardy.

Evening

Today's embarrassing moments have so far been -

Having to re-write this post three times to get it to make sense.

Putting the electric kettle on the hob and then coming back to it cursing it for not boiling. Luckily, I didn't light the gas.

Putting milk in the detergent drawer of the washer instead of Comfort.

Putting the dry washing back into the washing machine forgetting that it was already clean because it was sat on top of the dryer to be folded, I forgot and washed it again.

Twenty five, no, wait, twenty six hot flashes.

Walking into three separate rooms and forgetting WTAF I went in there for.

Repeating myself to DH about the same thing on more than one occasion.

Not making it to the toilet in time and wetting myself a little

Does anyone else walk around in a daze trying to remember stuff? Even though only seconds ago, you knew what was on your mind?

Has anyone's appetite changed? Or anything else with food? I've been craving sweet stuff, and normally I'm a cheese addict (hence the NN!)

Good evening everyone.

Nice to meet all the newbies like me too. Had to type that instead of using names coz can't cope with more than one at a time

As for changing in apetites mouse like you, I used to be a savoury girl and never entertained sweet stuff really until a couple of months ago, now I'm forever dipping in the naughty cupboard and stuffing mini milky ways etc. in my gob

I actually managed to get home in one piece tonight without losing anything! and am very impressed with myself BUT as from yesterday I'm either snapping, growling, simpering or stoney silent. DP said to me last night you've got that look of mania about you, it's that time again isn't it, umm yep but the only thing is I never know when the blood will flow these days this could go on for 3 weeks!!!

If only I were having dreams about being Geronimo's white squaw. Perhaps my missing libido is having them in its new abode down the back of the sofa. If it ever comes out I will ask it.

Hi - oh god, a lot of this sounds awfully familiar. FFS I am supposed to be making a new start without X and a new career to boot. In fact, I am just going to be a lump of vague but raging hormones . My kids are still little so I am permanently knackered anyway. Have made a GP appointment but not sure what she can do for me.

Nice to hear I am not alone though!

sorry to gate crash but does anyone know if having tubes tied can cause perimenopause?
I had mine tied after having dd which was 2 and a half years ago. She was bf until recently but have only had about 3 periods in that time. The last was very weird with several days of just spotting then full on tummy griping awfulness and ended lasting about 10 days all up!!!
I have been prone to weight gain for the first time ever in my life and am both tired and forgetful. I am 39 so could it be peri?

Definitely not a gatecrash yawning if you want to join thread to wonder if your symptoms could be the Peri ! That's what most people have wandered on here for !
Sorry you've had some horrible symptoms. I'd think from those and your NN you could well be right !
But I don't specifically whether having tubes tied can make it all happen earlier.
Perhaps someone else will be along in a mo with a more informed opinion on that.

Good grief, never connected my brain melting with the peri. Have four dds and go through all their names to get to the right one. Often I can't be bothered and just stay with the first name that comes to mind.

NO concentration. Constantly walk to rooms to get things then have forgotten what it was by the time I am there. Go to the shop to buy something, buy loads of other stuff and get home to find I don't have the thing I wanted.

Went to fill the car with petrol at the 'cards only' pump last week. I specifically chose that one as I couldn't be bothered to walk to the kiosk. Got out, stuck the hose in the car and nothing came out. Waited for ages and ages pointedly glaring at the kiosk staff so they would activate the pump. After ages I got mad, jumped in the car and drove to another pump as decided that one was broken. Realised at the next pump I hadn't put my bank card in at the first one. Which was why no petrol came out. Bloke at the next pump had seen it all and was having a right laugh

Do you think we should all have some sort of homing device fitted so if found wandering around the house looking for what it is we've forgotten, we can be found?

Seriously, I have never felt so stupid and embarrassed in my life, as I have in recent months following episodes of complete mind blanks.

I've even gone shopping with a list ON MY HAND and STILL forgotten things from it.

I think this thread is going to be a fabulous place for us all to come and feel safe, IYSWIM, that we're not alone in this female mind fuckery that causes hormental attacks!

Well, as long as we can remember what it is that we can here for

Morning all xx

Good thinking! I've sometimes decided to drive somewhere and ended up at our office or the girls' dance school instead of where I was meant to be going. I suspect there is an evil peri gremlin that takes over the car.

I think a homing device is a necessity!

Now what was I going to do?

I haven´t gone to the wrong place yet, but I frequently walk only from one room to another, & when I get there I can´t remember what I went there for

Question: if I really am peri-menopausal, will it do me any harm to ignore it and stay in denial for a while?

Serious question! It's just that I do have many of the symptoms listed over this thread, but I can cope, of sorts. Do I really need to get hormone levels tested or whatever? What difference would it make? And it's just one more thing to deal with, isn't it?

Fwiw, I'm 43, am having crazy gushing heavy periods unlike any I previously had, cycle length is shorter and more random.

Please tell me to ignore this for at least another 5 years!

If you can handle it...then go with the flow

You can get help for the gushy period...but you don't have to if you feel it's under your control so to speak

What help is there for gushy periods? Sorry, I've not read the whole thread.

Dear Maryz,

Am just thinking surely the end (of all this hassle) is surely in sight for you.
Lovely to hear about your 3 DDCs ( sorry to hear about your painful experience of infertility )
I feel they almost !! make the whole thing worth putting up with for 40 odd years

Wow Mary what a wonderful surprise your baby Nature sure has it's good bits for sure.

My GP has given me Tranexamic Acid for my slaughtered pig periods and they work well. Mine are prescribed 4 times a day over 4 days per cycle...quite a lot so they work. I don't want the Mirena and she offered me that first...so she gave me these.

Couple with my massive clotty bleeds,and often 17 day cycles and the urine frequency (which btw are all Peri symptoms too),she sent me for a scan as she suspected fibroids. The scan showed no fibroids but early muscle changes for fibroids so I have an appt for the Gynae guys in Feb so see what they say.

Incidently I am day 66 and no period (hoorah) but I know I am going to pay soon.

BTW Good question I thought FannyPriceless - in that if you're pretty sure you have some peri symptoms do you have to do anything about it/ tell your GP ?

I would think answer has to be that it's a natural stage in life and so if you are not overly troubled by symptoms/ worried about them or their possible cause - if you're coping well in other words, then surely just carry on ... and maybe talk with friends (like on here ) and just be a bit kind to yourself !

Maryz, Fanny - I went to the GP six months ago about my increasingly random and hideously heavy periods. We tried Cerazette first, which is a mini-pill; I was warned it might cause "break-through bleeding" - ha! More-or-less contant period, you mean. And I put weight on.

Mirena would have given me the same result, apparently, as it is progesterone-only too. Bugger that.

Then she suggested Mercilon, which is a regular pill. Aaaahhhh! Perfect. I have now been on it for three months, and I feel I have returned to normality - the flooding and clotting has stopped and I am not remotely moody. It just seems to "suit" me.

The only thing it didn't bring back was my libido, so I read with interest about the possibility of it returning with a vengeance at some point (Geronimo!!). But I fear DH will have given up all hope by then.

maryz dd1, dd2 and I all synch our periods. Is a week of pure, shrieking, tantrumming, sobbing hell. Dd3 is 13 this year and her hormones are all over the place so is sure to join the madness soon.

I think dh may consider moving into the garage during totm. It may be safer for him.

Cointreau don't give up hope of your libido returning. Is a complete miracle in my case! Just wondering how long it will last...

Oh and I think I must be giving off rampant vibes or something - have never been chatted up so much by random blokes in my entire life! Get followed around every time I go to the supermarket. Happened in B&Q this afternoon! Sales assistant pounced on me (not literally thank goodness) the second I walked in the store, insisted on getting the things I wanted and carrying them to the checkout for me even though I didn't ask and was well able to do it myself. Was like a lapdog. Dd1 was laughing her head off behind him.

Then some random bloke approached my mum at a funeral we were at on Thur and asked if I was married and said I was a 'lovely looking girl'. Am honestly no different to how I was before and never used to get any attention. Ever! Bit unnerving.

Weird peri symptom? Anyone else had this?

They probably think you remimd them of their mum and are trying to look after you