Could I be peri menopausal?

[Rinkydinkypink]

I'm nearly 37. Over the last year since my dd was born my hormonal cycle has been more felt. Pmt is horrendous and over the last few days anxiety has increased. Mood has lowered significantly and then this morning I had a hot flush. Sweat dripping off me for no reason.

I've wondered if its post natal depression creeping back in because of a few changes in our lives but its uncontrollable and comes in such massive waves.

Is a visit to the doctor needed?

Yes go and see your dr.

You are too young for menopause so if it's a premature menopause you need treatment- HRT- but before then you need blood tests.

Have a look at the Daisy Network which is a support forum for prem menopause.

Thanks for your reply I've had a quick look. I've made an appointment for next week. However by then my period will have passed and hopefully it'll be the one week of every month I'm rational. If I get bloody tests surely they need to be done at my loopiest ?

I think you should ask for a series of hormone level tests, because you're right, one in isolation only tells you where they are that particular day. You'll get a better understanding of what is going on if they take a series and look for the pattern.

I'm thinking of making an emergency appointment for this afternoon but even as the day goes on I can feel my levels stabilising.

Banging headache, suddenly exhausted, muscles are relaxing and the fog is lifting. The scary anxiety is calming down.

My period started exactly 24 hours ago!!!!

They test for FSH levels on day 3 and after day 14 of your cycle- nothing to do with how you are feeling at the time.
They test for how your body is responding to oestrogen.

PMT does get worse as we get older right up the meno- which is why for some women the Pill is fine as a type of HRT during peri as it levels out hormones and stops the PMT.

Which sort of pill pinkfrocks do you know? I've been given the mini pill for heavy periods which I didn't really want, but I have to say they are beginning to work on the periods. PMT is through the roof again, which is why I've not taken the pill for 20 years. The doc said I couldn't possibly be in menopause because I (was) when I went 40. The same thing has been said to all the women in my family sigh

Plus the night sweats for 2 years now and the horrific anxiety. But they prefer to ignore/treat if I insist things as if they aren't meno, which they are.

KatharineClifton - are your periods irregular at all or has the pill almost eliminated them?

Instead of the pill you could think about a Mirena coil for your heavy periods (which also works as a contraceptive and provides the progestogen part of HRT) - and then perhaps you could start taking a low dose oestrogen patch to go with it, and then increase the dose as you get further into menopause. If early menopause runs in the family the doctors should be aware and if you are only 40 you could be heading for a premature or early menopause. You need to replace any oestrogen that is deficient until at least the average age of menopause which in UK is 51-52 to help proect your heart and bones.