GP says I am not in peri, can anyone relate to these symptoms?

[RhodaCamel]

I am 47 and for the last year or two I have been feeling pants! I asked my gp if I could be perimenopause but he said because I have regular periods and no regular hot flashes then I can’t be in perimenopause and just prescribed me antidepressants (which I haven’t taken yet).
Now, I appreciate that I may not be in peri but I wonder if any of you ladies can relate to the symptoms which are currently controlling my life and frankly making me down right miserable. These are the things are suffer from on an all too regular basis:-

Major, all consuming anxiety this is a huge problem which never used to bother me so much until the last 2 years.
Very heavy periods (I have uterine polyps) and aura migraine on 3rd day of period
Massive increase in my IBS symptoms (have had it for 20 years but nothing like this) lots of indigestion, acid, gurgling, growling, excessive wind, bloating and all worse in the last two weeks of cycle) all gastroenterologist tests have come back clear.
I don’t sleep well, wake up lots during the night, I just can’t sleep deeply enough
Knackered (see above!)
Skin tags keep popping up especially on neck area
Dry, itchy skin
Headachy at times but not a full headache is that makes any sense?
Absolutely no libido at all
Terrible PMS which I never used to suffer from.
And all in all, blooming depressed (Re all above!!)

I’ve recently changed from that gp to a new practise but the new gp basically says the same as the original one!

Can anyone relate to these. Wonder if this is all hormone related or am I just going insane??

I have decided I am going to try and see someone privately. I’m am in the north Essex/Suffolk area if anyone can recommend a good specialist.

I will Jingling.

There needs to be a lot more clarity here and not least, to save you and others with experience, from repeating themselves over and over, every week trying to help other women and to get the guidelines across.

It needs to be there so it can be printed out and presented to GP's.

I agree @BillieEilish

sometimes it feels like a full time job posting here and I know I could stop- in fact maybe I should- but I can't bear to see women suffer and not be aware of correct treatment.

I have tiredness I just can't get over, aching joints, bones and muscles (all increasingly painful) , dry skin, sleep issues, digestive issues (terrible wind), weight gain (can't stop eating).. 49, still regular periods but shorter, lighter.. No hot flushes but often get night sweats.. Does this sound like peri at all?

Yes, absolutely, read the NICE guidelines (already posted up thread) and all other info/shared symptoms on this thread. Print out info, go and see your doctor and get HRT asap!

Do not get fobbed off with anti depressants.

49 is quite normal to be going through this and you have to protect your bones and heart. (I'm 49 too) But peri was at 43.

My biggest shocker was digestive issues and anxiety. Hideous! I hope you get treatment soon. Never had a hot flush personally.

@BillieEilish can I ask what digestive issues you had? I think I have a lot of these symptoms (also sub clinical hypothyroidism) but have also been having terrible gastritis since December.

Hi Ella Of course, I had horrific digestive issues, which I have posted about before.

I was told I drank too much wine
I actually can no longer tolerate wine, onions, tomatoes (All happened at menopause, not peri, at 45) No issues at all previously. Nothing.

At one point I couldn't drink water unless sip by sip, it was horrific.

I am on HRT and omazeropole (when it flares up), but is thankfully now in control, more or less, since the HRT.

I can only suggest eating little and often? I take some herbal thing from the pharmacy also. Helps a bit I think, a chalky tablet (I'm in Spain but think it's like those ones you can buy in UK)

My main concern was my teeth as I developed terrible gastric reflux. The acid definitely affected them I think. Also, lots of wind

Hope you get it sorted HRT is your answer I think.

Thank you, thank you for this thread-although I’m sorry you’re going through it.

I’ve got similar symptoms at age 47. I didn’t realise digestive issues were related-I’ve hot those too.

I’m petrified of getting cancer if I take HRT as I’ve had cancer in the past. I’m going to see an oncologist about it. I’m frightened I’ll lose my job and my family if I don’t do something as I’m so cross and moody.

Does anyone know about HRT and cancer? I never got on with any type of hormonal birth control so maybe HRT won’t suit me anyway.

@PhonicTheHedgehog I watched a bbc documentary about the menopause which did have a bit in it about hrt and cancer. They said that the base rate for women getting breast cancer was 23/1000. Hrt increases the risk by 2. Drinking too much increases it by 5 and being overweight increased it by a lot. Apologies if I’ve got the numbers wrong. It was an interesting watch - it was Mariella Frostrup presenting.

Can I cheer you up with a positive story? I am early 40s and went to my GP to get my Mirena coil removed as I felt it was affecting my mood. GP said it might be perimenopause and it was worth trying the mini pill first to stabilise my hormone levels. Only just started so too soon to say if it will help, but great that I have a GP who is knowledgeable about menopause and willing to treat it.

Thanks Bumfuzzled I’ll see if I can find that programme.

I’m 43, a gay woman who has never been on the pill or had children and I have had normal periods for my whole life. In the last 2 years I’ve experienced a massive change in myself and periods, heavy to the extreme, as in have to work from home and flooding through clothes. Night sweats, lethargy, weight gain, emotions all over the place and generally feeling crap.
I went back and forth to the docs and was told to monitor everything and come back if I was still having problems and they would think about antidepressants, which I knew I wasn’t depressed.
After much pestering they did some blood tests and found out I was anaemic, unsurprisingly! After a months worth of iron tablets I had so much more energy and felt a bit more like me. However they still wouldn’t do anything about my other symptoms.
In the end I wrote it all down, dates, timings etc and took it to the docs. She was like ‘wow’, I asked for a scan and they found I had fibroids and endometrial polyps, both very common in women in their 40’s and 50’s due to hormone changes. I’ve had a small op in January to remove them, a month later I currently have no symptoms, I’m still anaemic atm, and I know it’s early days after my op, so I don’t know the final outcome but I feel so much better already. I know I have the menopause to come in a few years time and I’m guessing it’ll be much the same of what I’ve already been through, but Please persevere ladies. You know in yourself when you don’t feel right. So keep talking to your doctors, your friends and family. I was surprised how many people had been or were going through something similar when I spoke about it.

Wise words zedus