What do you do/are you doing to get yourself through peri?

[Snowspeckledeyelashes]

I’m 45 and naively thought that as Ive always been very slim, exercise loads, eat well, don’t drink, smoke etc, etc that I’d sail through peri and menopause. Haha!! How stupid and big headed was I? For the last year or so, I’ve felt like shit.
I have major anxiety (everyday, it’s getting worse), aches and pains (back, hips, jaw), migraines, visual disturbances, sleeplessness and wake up like I’ve slept on a cobbled street, very heavy periods (have been under gynae for last 2 years, have thickened uterine lining and my options are mirena, ablation or hysterectomy, I’m so scared I keep putting the options off).
Dh doesn’t understand and we end up having arguments over it because I’m such a grump these days.
Does anyone understand? Are you just putting up with it all or taking anything (prescription or natural?).
I suffer from terrible health anxiety and every time I think I’m going to try something I read the side effects and it puts me off, stupid I know!!

Peri hit me like a ton of bricks at 43.
Healthy, slim, good diet, no caffine or alcohol & regular exercise but literally unable to function.

HRT is the only thing that has helped.

Toddlers, SN dc & menopause are not a good combination!

I'm 49, in peri and full of brain fog, and wallowing in a morass of self doubt at the moment.

I'm contemplating separating from DP, but I don't know whether it's the menopause driving it and I should try not to make life-changing decisions while in a state of hormonally-driven cold rage, or whether this is a moment of clarity and I've finally reached the point where I am prepared to do what I should have done years ago. I have no libido at all and struggle to be in the same room as him, and my mother told me last week that my obvious unhappiness is driving people away from me.

We have kids of sixteen and five, so it would mean huge collateral damage to them and I'm really scared of making a bad decision there's no way back from because I'm not thinking clearly.

Soundofsilence, i wish i had known about perimenopause when it started at apprx 45 . I felt exactly like you, i had physical symptoms but my mental health deteriorated : anger, isolation, looking at my whole relationship, seriously thinking and planning to leave my husband of 20 years, losing good friends, anxiety , the lot. I was not the only one. This site opened my eyes and hugely reassured me. I read a lot, informed myself, decided on HRT as i felt all this wasn't me. HRT literally saved my life, i am not dramatising and you will read many comments like mine. I just read your post,i want to reassure you. Yes i am pro HRT as it has totally helped me, but there are also good stuff out there that could help you ie black cohosh, maca powder, ashwagandha (brilliant for low mood, anxiety), upping your exrercise, clean eating (ditch the sugar!!!!!!), chasterberry, lots of vitamin D AND iron (found out i was very anaemic with loss of hair). There are many more things to help, just read as much as you can, all the best

Thanks, Disco, I will do some reading. I haven't had any physical symptoms like hot flushes or sleeplessness, so I hadn't thought that I might need supplements or HRT. My GP didn't offer anything other than confirmation with a blood test that it was peri and advice to eat well and get enough rest.

Oh, I'm in this phase and it's truly horrible.

Flushes, palpitations, horrendous and debilitating memory loss and lack of concentration, zero libido, aching like a bastard, gained 23lbs in four months, terrible PMT and periods now 23 days apart instead of 29 so that's great. And the other week some pus came out of a nipple - of course I was terrified, googled it extensively, and found this thing called ectasia which means the ducts go all floppy during menopause and can get clogged. I mean WTF? Another symptom? (I am sure it's that btw and nothing worse.)

What am I doing? Planning exercise and not getting around to it. Trying to improve my diet and making half-way decent progress. Getting fatter though and hating that. Losing patience with my family and hating that too. Mourning my youth!

prune- why not think about HRT? It's possible it will sort all of that!

I just feel so unsure about it. Had bad experiences taking the pill when I was younger and had ruled out hormonal treatment of any sort!

HRT is not the Pill. The Pill is artificial hormones in large doses. HRT replaces what we'd have, with hormones identical to our own, but in a smaller dose.

HI Prune

it is worth looking at HRT. I find it much easier to get on with than the pill. Had to try a couple of different ones but the one I'm on now really helps.

Just echoing don't assume it's all peri symptoms. A lot of what is described above is for instance symptoms of vitamin B12 and or vitamin D deficiency.

The only thing that helps me with my early meno is hrt, acts like magic! ...and the forum!!!
It is precious for me! 💐
I understand day to day that the ladies here know much more in compare with some gyns!

Menopace supplements, yoga, B12 shot every other month, evening primrose oil. Cut back on sugar, no coffee Tried HRT, but after having weird hormone related migraine thing which affected my left hand side, face etc I was told to give it up.

Snowspeckledeyelashes
If your periods are still regular then you are not yet at peri - despite your symptoms. Once your cycle starts changing and the gap between them varies by at least a week then you're there. Before that pms symptoms can get much much worse as hormonal activity starts to become more variable. In your position with v heavy periods I would either go for Mirena or ablation. With Mirena you could then try a low dose oestrogen to see if it helped but I doubt you are deficient yet. Otherwise try the BCP - maybe one of those designed for peri-menopause as the oestrogen is not synthetic - and this will control bleeding, mood swings and many of your symptoms once your cycle is regulated. They're called Qlaira, and Zoely.

crazydoglady6867
I refused any HRT treatment as I am vegan and I don’t like how it is produced
Most HRT is derived from plants. Many of the old fashioned types (Premarin, Premique, Prempak) made from horse urine are getting phased out. Most HRT types contain estradiol - same as our own - made from yam or soya or other plants originally - so no worries on that score. It is the most natural way of replacing hormones.

I don't recall my last period.. months and months ago! These hot flushes are horrid, one minute I'm fine the next I'm on fire literally!! The heat isn't helping and the pending trip to Portugal isn't filling me with much joy 😆 I have started taking the black cohosh and also have the B12 energy dots (I actually think these are doing something). I have zero enthusiasm for exercise.. and the kids are off for summer so that's impacting on my normal gym fix. How long does all this last? The lovely lady in Holland and Barratt didn't feel me with much joy bless her.