Are any supplements worth buying or just waste of money?

[CrumblyMumbly]

I'm 47 and grudgingly having to admit I may be peri-menopausal. My last few cycles have been 38, 21 and 17 days and are really heavy and painful. It's the 'rage' that is really getting me down. No hot flushes as yet. I have a 19 month old dd and I don't want her to look back on her childhood thinking Mummy was always grumpy and stressed out:( I visited Holland and Barrett yesterday for advice and was practically sold half of the shop! I bought some Agnus Castus and Starflower Oil for starters. Can anybody recommend anything else please that my help. I'd rather not go down the HRT route just yet. Thanks.

may help not my help! Add brain fog to list!

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I'd say that what you're taking sounds like a good place to start. Have you been to the dr's yet for any hormone tests?

Starflower oil is a more potent form of evening primrose oil so will help with the pmt, do you also take a decent b vitamin complex? Also with a dd that small are you making sure that you get a bit of time out for you to chill out?

The dr can give you something (mefanamic acid perhaps) to help with the painful heavy periods too.

Thanks. I haven't been to the doctors yet - thought they'd just send me away to 'get on with it'. Not been that helpful in the past emoticon! Taking multivitamin but not a b complex so that could be something to change. Chill out time is tricky - dp works long hours, dm can't really cope with mad toddler at her age so grab bits here and there but usually there are boring jobs to be done so not exactly relaxing. Thanks for info.

you might like to try Menopace which my gynae thinks is good. from Boots etc.

Thanks I'll check it out.

Hi,
I was having very heavy periods too last year (soaking both tampon and pad within an hour or 2). I started Angus castus, which within one cycle considerably lessened the flow, the next cycle was very light indeed then the next was non existent. I came off it as it seemed so powerful and the periods came back. I found I just needed 1 tab (from Holland And Barrat) a day to keep a "normal" lightish and painfree period.
Things then changed again as I started having hot flushes, I switched to Flash fighters from H&B which contains angus castus, black cohosh etc, to start with this helped a lot , then my periods seem to have stopped since Feb and the hot flushes got much worse. The flash fighters havent been working for the last few months so have now started HRT as I get hot flushes day and night 45 mins apart. I would love to find a natural alternative which stops the hot flushes though.

Hi jomojomum,

That's interesting. The Agnus castus seems to have worked for me too re periods. May do as you say and go down to one a day especially as they're bloomin expensive! H&B were very keen on me taking soya isoflavones and changing to soya milk. I haven't done so as I'm not having hot flushes (yet) - may be something for you to try? Hope something works for you.

Don't know if it is related but I am 48 and have been drinking soya milks for several years all the time no more dairy and I haven't had one hot flush!

I have been taking menopace for about 2 weeks thanks to advice on here. It is definately helping with the hot flushes, which are my main problem. I had endometrial ablation last year and that stopped my periods so don't know if it would help with that.

Also consider your Vit D levels, I saw this on another thread and I've had dreadful PMS and am Vit D deficient so there seems to be a link. The GP can prescribe Mefanamic acid which can reduce bleeding. I don't think you need to put up with these symptoms, life is tough enough without PMS