Anxiety/Crippling sense of doom

[TheClitterati]

I'm nearly 53, and not really any peri/meno symptoms yet.

Apart from occassionally (and today) I get an overwhelming sense of doom and despair, almost takes my breath away. I feel like I can't cope with very basic stuff - like I'm on the verge of a nervous breakdown. I can only go slow and do one thing at a time - not great when WFH with 2 kids.

I don't know how long this feeling will last - hopefully not long. Or where it comes from. Usually I bubble along feeling relatively OK with the world.

Could this be hormonal fluctuations and part of peri-menopause?

Or possibly its just covid/lockdown/crazy world reaction?

Worst thing about feeling like this is even trying to think about it/unpick it feels too much.

Could this be hormonal fluctuations and part of peri-menopause?

It definitely could be, and was for me. It was my first symptom of peri when I was 43. Absolute crushing anxiety that I had never had before in my life. Other symptoms started very shortly thereafter. HRT took it all away almost instantly. A total lifesaver.

This is a really good article....

www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/well-good/teach-me/113666670/perimenopause-lead-up-to-menopause-very-uncomfortable-and-poorly-understood

Thank you for the interesting article. I've just started a new GP have only been there once and they were really not great so I definitely asked to see someone else next time. I don't know what to do really.

I think I need to do a lot more reading around HRT

Gp's are useless. I went private and it's worth every penny.

Who did you see @Aquamarine1029?

Funny enough I am feeling more "normal" again today.

I'm a bit younger with peri-menopause symptoms I think, not been able to get to GP, but, and this seems to be based around cycle, I lost it a couple of months ago, not in a wild way was sad and paranoid.

I got into such a state that I convinced myself the family would clearly be happier without me, luckily I have a patient, caring DH who knows it wasn't the "real" me. I really couldn't find any motivation to even make the kids lunch, j mean I did but it was almost an out of body experience.

I have been taking supplements this month, so woman plus vitamins, vit d&calcium, omega fish oils and evening primrose and seem much more settled for the time being.

I never thought my hormones could affect me in a way I couldn't snap out if it, never really gave before, but it seems they can. I'm sure lockdown didn't help.

On the positive side seems to have increased libido as well. Makes no sense.

These were some of my first symptoms and this really wasn’t what I was like. I tried a a counsellor and CBT first to try and solve it and when I finally made it to Gp I burst into tears and thought I’ll try anything ! It worked for me - I think I need to up the amount I take a little as sometimes
Es still get like this but in the main much better. It’s a horrible feeling when you dont know when this is going to hit you. Good luck

I think I am peri menopausal just waiting to have blood tests ! I feel awful too

I lost it a couple of months ago, not in a wild way was sad and paranoid. This is me, sad and paranoid.

I've heard allusions to how the menopause makes you feel, all the guff about 'loss of confidence' that gets lumped in with worrying about losing your femininity or whatever, but now I think I get it. I feel out of context, unloved. Very weirdly paranoid in a way that even I can recognise is nuts. Combined with my brain going haywire (think of all those moments when you put something down and can't find it again but to the power of 100), loss of confidence describes it pretty well.

Mine is an ongoing sense of feeling physically unwell/ flu like symptoms and a feeling of impending doom around the time of my period. I feel unbearably hot and queasy with dizzy, aching eyes.

Only realised it could be menopause this morning as decided at 1am it must be Covid 19 so I should get tested. Only I have been tested twice already since lockdown, both negative, so don’t want to go again. Then this morning realised it could be menopause related and When I checked both previous tests would tie in with my cycle so would make sense....

The feelings are awful though so you have my full sympathies.

I'm with you, OP. 41, and absolutely crushed by anxiety, changes in usual PMT symptoms, sweats just before period, complete personalty transplant, snippy, listless and feel totally lost. My GP won't test nor prescribe HRT as I still have regular periods.
I honestly feel like I'm on the brink of a breakdown but then my period starts and the fog lifts.......only to slide back down again after ovulation. Currently getting about 7 days a month where I actually feel like me.
Wish I could switch off my hormones.

Same. Dreadful anxiety from nowhere floored me. Coupled with insomnia, painful joints. I have a lovely GP who was very kind and took time, but still gave me ADs.
A year on the anxiety had settled but the tiredness was really upsetting. Dr ran more blood tests and wanted to investigate for ME and fibromyalgia.

A friend of mine posted the Caitlin Moran piece that was in the times recently and it was absolutely spot on. Friend had started HRT w d it was a game changer. I went back to a different doctor and asked for HRT. I started to see a difference in energy and mood within 7-10 days. It’s been about 3 weeks now and I am feeling more normal. Which makes me realise just how awful I was feeling.

Still on the ADs as I’m slightly nervous to come off them.

I have got oestrogen patches as I have a merina coil (that does the progesterone part). I have no idea if I would still have periods as have had the merina for 13 years. I’m overweight, that seemed to be the only point of concern. So working on that.

I have a prescription waiting for me, collecting tomorrow, for combination patches

Had telephone consultation with GP, she is lovely firm but fair, so will see what is at pharmacy tomorrow.

I am torn between wanting to just stick them on there and then and researching in the hope if I resume jogging I can out-exercise the hot flushes and low mood.

SSRIs were mentioned as well but I asked if this is, as it surely is, hormonal that HRT hopefully will readjust things. But who knows I am baby steps here.

This month as soon as cycle finished I had this wave almost that ran from the too of my head almost cooling that I could feel the hormonal craziness disperse from my mind/body. Very odd.

I got into such a state that I convinced myself the family would clearly be happier without me

I completely recognise this feeling. I've just come out the other end of a particularly bad hormonal episode, the pmt is more like pmdd. So I had a tel consultation with my gp and she prescribed Evorel Sequi patches. Just picked them up today so yet to try them. Going by other threads I might have to bin the side effects leaflet without reading it!

I had anxiety, palpitations, kept waking up for no reason couldn't get back to sleep, dr tried beta blockers first then 6 months ago gave me Evorel 25 and within 2 days I slept perfectly and felt normal again. I'm 47

@MissSmiley.. the doc prescribed me beta blockers for palpitations and I refused to take them as it turned out to be ectopic beats that I have. I was only ever going to take them if I really had no choice. The last few nights I woke with pounding heart and then finally managed to get back to sleep. Now I've got Evorel Sequi patches but haven't started them yet. I haven't taken anything for 10 years so tbh am really nervous. I'm 48. Glad you are getting some relief from your symptoms btw

@BooseysMom

I got into such a state that I convinced myself the family would clearly be happier without me

I completely recognise this feeling. I've just come out the other end of a particularly bad hormonal episode, the pmt is more like pmdd. So I had a tel consultation with my gp and she prescribed Evorel Sequi patches. Just picked them up today so yet to try them. Going by other threads I might have to bin the side effects leaflet without reading it!

I picked up patches today have to wait for beginning of cycle to slap on but fingers crossed they help me get out of this slump

@frozendaisy.. that wave you experienced was odd! The different symptoms you get never fail to amaze and annoy me. I get an annoying vibration down below at various times of the month! Hope the patches calm things down for you.

Yep hoping patches improve something, if not I might look into antidepressants as the only thing that seems to help my overactive mind at the moment is alcohol, but that's not the solution.

frozendaisy

Same here with the alcohol! I don't drink much..barely half a glass of wine a night, but it's the only thing that helps with anxiety.
Good luck x

I had a merina coil fitted a 7 weeks ago and began to have anxiety (crushing anxiety) and panic attacks daily, as well as brain fog and nausea!
I read that the merina can cause this especially if your sensitive to medications etc which I definitely am! So I had it out on Monday and felt instant relief and yesterday was even better but today feel a bit anxious and off again, and started to bleed heavily! Has anyone else been through this and got through it? Did you start to feel good again after a certain period of time? Please positive messages only from a girl who is so worried right now that this won’t go away 🙏

Just checking back a year later to say I've found a solution - I've been sea swimming all through the winter and it keeps my peri symptoms in check very very well. (I've only had the plummeting mood once and it was a month where I hadn't been swimming much for various reasons. I got back to regular swims PDQ.)

Of course that has meant swimming in 6 degree water in February, but its a blissful 15 degrees now which feels comparitively tropical.

So if you have somewhere outdoors to swim and get cold give it a go - its helped me immeasureably.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-47159652