Depression and menopause

[pinkflamingo22]

I've had a really tough 6 months in a very highly stressful job and put down all my anxiety, depression, irritability to that.... but for some reason it just hit me it might be menopause. I'm 47 so don't know why I didn;t think of this before. I've been on fluoxetine for 10 plus years and normally it just keeps me 'normal', every attempt to stop using it has been horrific. My depression is getting really bad, crying all the time at work and I'm worried if I carry on I will top myself or lose my job.... I will try to speak to my GP, they may spare me 30 seconds of their time via telephone if i'm lucky... anyone else worsened depression and menopause?

You need HRT. This is in the NICE menopause guidance. Online- you can google and read it all.

The other thing is there has been a lot of discussion about long term use of ADs lately and in most cases they are not recommended, because the idea is to look at underlying causes and try talking therapies.

Obviously if you are under a psych's care I don't want to contradict them but if this is purely a repeat scrpt and you have not had specialist advice and a recent assessment, you ought to push for that.

You may even find that HRT mitigates the need for ADs and that it's been low hormones for all these years.

Are your periods normal at the moment and what makes you think it might be menopause?

If your depression is due to hormonal imbalance, maybe you need hrt. If you have clinical depression you will need psychotherapy or meds or both.

Hi OP I'm in the same boat.I normally get depressed this time of year however GP thinks I'm in perimenopause as I'm almost 53.I was recommended to take ADs as DM had ovarian cancer and the ones I've been prescribed have a side effect of reducing flushes!
I was told I can also wait to get a new mirena coil and estrogen patches.I have until November to wait anyway so I can decide which is best.
I just admit I have been feeling fearful and exhausted which isn't like me at all.You are not alone.

I'm peri menopausal and suffered with anxiety, I'm now on hrt and feel so much better.

@whatisforteamum Confused by your post. Why did your GP decide HRT was not good for you because of your mum's OC? The risks of OC are tiny with HRT and there is still some debate if it increases risks at all. I have never heard of anyone being refused it because of one case of family history.And why have the offered the Mirena and patches in 2 months time? It sounds very confusing. Mirena + patch is HRT!

peri menopausal at 47 & suffered horrible horrible anxiety & some mild depression, both of which I have never had before & had put down to having an extremely stressful work time.

Have been taking hrt for approx 2 months now & both have gone completely & really feel like i'm getting me back

That is good to know dementor😊
.Jingle the mirena can't be done for a few weeks due to go being booked up.She has given me a prescription for patches but told me not to use them until mirena is replaced which I can only imagine will prevent bleeding perhaps.
The ovarian cancer risk is small however seeing mum so very ill twice as she is stage 4 I'm sure you can appreciate she wanted to make it clear citropram would lift my mood and help with anxiety without the risks of hrt.
I'm sure I will take the small risk that is slightly higher with my family history of i will feel better and reduce risk of osteoporosis.

I'm really sorry to hear about your Mum.

Are they going to offer you annual scans to check your ovaries? Do they think it is hereditary (not all cancer is by any means.) If the NHS won't offer this you can pay for private scans.

Your GP should only withhold HRT as a first line of treatment if they think you have the gene for OC- has this been mentioned? Tested?

I think a menopause expert would allow you to use patches now...there is no risk in using estrogen only for a few weeks- and one type of HRT (TRidestra) is estrogen only for 10 weeks then 2 weeks of progestogen.

I and other women I know use HRT on a long cycle which means estrogen-only for anything from 4 to 8 weeks (under guidance.)
There is no risk in using patches for a few weeks on their own. (I'm a health writer and talk to meno experts a lot.)

However, hope you get on okay.

Thanks for the reply.DM just got negative gene testing which is great.She wasn't going to tell us but DH was there when she took the call.
They told her the cancer stops with her...She is over weight.
However there is a higher risk of a mum or sis has it so I will remain vigilant.
So perhaps I can use the patches when I get chance to collect them then?She just said wait for the coil change as it is 2 years overdue.
I look forward to feeling more like my usual positive self.😊.I have tried to all the healthy things I can in the last few years too.

Thanks for replies. Unforunately the gp's I see just keep the script going, there is no counselling locally on nhs. I've tried to come off AD's several times with Gp 'support', both been ok for few weeks then suicidal. Can't risk it. I will speak to gp re HRT
My pmt was so bad this time nearly every day I told my workplace to fuck off and walk out... it scares me.