Talk to me about the bone crushing tiredness of menopause

[TheMarbleFaun]

I seem to be permanently knackered - never get enough sleep & I feel like every afternoon I need to take a nap - is this normal?
Are there any supplements I could try ( or any other tips) ?
For info I’m 47 and been on HRT about 3 months (Elleste duet 1mg)
Thanks in advance!

Very interesting thread. I am peri menopausal and have just finally found a sympathetic female GP. She said as I am only 44 and still having periods she wouldn't prescribe HRT, and suggested a low dose of anti depressants such as Duloxetine. I don't know how I feel about it really, but I am so fed up of the anxiety and tiredness, zero sex drive, weight gain, maybe its worth a try. Sorry no answers here, just sympathy, its truly shit.

Oh and the brain fog. Dear lord I cannot remember things or think straight for the life of me some days.

Does the brain fog go? Will my memory get any better? I'm seriously worried that I am getting dementia.

You know when you can remember that you forgot something? The 'ahhhh - now I remember you asking me that!'. I can now be told that I definitely agreed to do something at work, or had a conversation with someone, and have absolutely no idea what the hell the person is talking about.

I've got the opposite problem. Used to have early nights and an early morning. Now I do early morning to not so early mornings.

I've rtft and I'm saddened that no one can say they've managed their symptoms. I'm shattered and headachey most of the time, my joints ache and my memory for words is faltering. I"m not sleeping well because I get so hot but not dripping in sweat as I see it described. Is anyone else like that? I tried hrt for about 18 months and my sleep improved but my energy level never increased. I'm going to try dropping caffeine and alcohol to see if it helps. Taking sage tablets but they don't seem to have improved my night heat.

I’m going through this at the moment (52). Serious fatigue late afternoon. Stupid early hours waking (which I initially put down to years of shift working), flooding, general forgetfulness, anxiety, bit stabby and restless legs. Please tell me someone it will get better. Don’t want to bother my gp.

I am 43 and have a mirena coil and no periods so don’t really have any frame of reference on whether I am at all menopausal or not. But have been suffering from anxiety and depression for nearly a year and have been finding if I don’t get enough sleep (which is more than I used to have) that my mood really suffers. Am taking anti depressants and although am less anxious than I was, I’m still not great. Might talk to the GP about it when I next go to see him.

Can’t remember who mentioned dementia and forgetting words (the irony of that is making me laugh) but this. I’m heartened to hear that issues with word-finding is probably tied in to the rest of it. Although it isn’t helping that for the last 12 months I have been sleeping so much lighter and so dh’s snoring (which I’ve successfully ignored for thousands of years) is waking me up and driving me to distraction. So I’m both sleep-deprived AND peri-menopausal. Great.

Oh yes the not finding the right word! Make me feel like such an idiot at work when the person I'm speaking to (young male colleague) looks like like I'm a complete idiot!

The other day, I was mentioning a TV programme telling him that it was available on... Couldn't even think of the word Sky!

@hullaballoonie you can certainly have HRT during perimenopause - try doing some research yourself as this may be more suitable and effective for you than an antidepressant. Lots of GPs are not at all well clued up in menopause.

@snog ok thank you I'll do some reading.

@Fintintytint oh my goodness the restless legs! I never connected that to peri menopause. Well at least thanks to this thread I know I am not alone!

Ha ha hullaballonie, mine could be a circus act second to none.

@hullaballoonie your GP is completely wrong. Read NICE guidelines for menopause/HRT. They recommend starting HRT for women going through perimenopause and continuing up until natural menopause age. HRT is simply replacing the hormones your body is currently lacing up until natural menopause age.

@Wellhellothere101 thank you that is really helpful.

@hullaballoonie

It's a serious issue how GPs know so little about menopause.

I work partly in the media, as a health writer. I don't know if you partake in social media at all, but Twitter is full of tweets from medical professional / menopause experts who are fed up the the proverbial back teeth with GPs who know nothing about menopause and HRT.

There are numerous campaigns going on at the moment, all trying to get GPs up to speed with menopause and HRT.

The ignorance amongst GPs is appalling and so is the dishing out of ADs which are not effective or appropriate in most cases, for most women.

There are lots of meno experts around and one who has a really good website is Dr Louise Newson. On her site you will find info on HRT, myths about it and why ADs are not suitable (which NICE states very clearly.)

It's a disgrace that the NICE guidelines - published almost 4 yrs ago- are still not even being read by GPs.

I was so concerned about the brain fog being dementia I had a brain scan. The problem and extreme tiredness turned out to be Vitamin B12 deficiency ( and menopause). Get your bloods checked folks.

@JinglingHellsBells that's really helpful thank you. I'm just not sure what to do now though. GP said she wouldn't prescribe HRT yet and I am unsure about anti depressants. On the other hand I have been struggling for a year or so and am desperate for something to help. We do have private healthcare and I am now wondering if I should seek a private referral. So difficult.

Does anyone know if my GP is correct about HRT being unsuitable because I am still having regular periods?
Sorry to hijack thread!

hulla i was 46 and still having (have) periods, though they were becoming less clockwork regular. My first GP prescribed ADs but i asked for HRT and eventually got it.

they have really helped me - my prob is i need to keep tweaking to get it right.

No that’s totally wrong. I was given Hrt whilst I was in the same situation. If you’re having symptoms of the menopause you are eligible for Hrt. Don’t be fobbed off by doctors saying you need a blood test either as these results veer wildly by the hour in Perimenopause

@hullaballoonie I think your next step would be to ask your GP for blood tests. Read the NICE guidelines before you go as they state blood tests should be checked if women have menopausal symptoms before the age of 45. Blood tests are not recommended after this age as HRT could be started on symptoms alone.
If these blood tests show you are peri menopausal, then you should start HRT to replace the hormones your body is lacking.
I had an early menopause and started hrt age 42 despite having very few symptoms. I'll stay on it definitely until I'm 50 and we'll see how long after when I get to that age.

Oops cross post with @teta! Maybe someone more knowledgeable than me could advise 😆
I started having symptoms age 40 (irregular periods only. No other symptoms) I saw 3 GPs. First one fobbed me off and said I was too young for menopause, second one checked bloods and they were normal, third one checked bloods and they showed I was menopausal so she started hrt.
You might need to see your GP a few times to get things sorted.

I'm just checking in and am going to go back and read the thread more thoroughly. I'm 48 and certainly have been having perimenopausal symptoms, but I'm on the mini pill so rarely have periods anyway, so it's hard to tell if they've stopped. These past two weeks I've been waking once or twice a night with night sweats, I have been taking gelatinised maca powder, which has previously stopped this. I've also had a few day time hot flushes, where I've felt rubbish, lots of brain fog and a return of the dreaded dry eye symptoms. I'm contemplating going to my gp this week as I feel rubbish.

As well as the maca powder, I do take collagen, Vit D and magnesium. I eat a pretty much low carb, unprocessed food diet, I do the eating window 16 hrs fasting, 8hrs eating, as I stopped the 5:2 with the onset of perimenopause as it started to make me feel shaky. I'm reasonably healthy and fit, walking, yoga, meditation. I also can't take high dose oestrogen due to a history of migraines and dvt .

Thanks everyone. My DH has said he could come to the next appointment with me for moral support bless him. I have visions of him walking in and my GP saying oh you're the poor bugger not getting any sex! I am going to do more research and probably get a private referral, hopefully to someone who knows what they are talking about. Good luck to everyone going through this.