How are you supposed to know if menopausal after hysterectomy!

[Menora]

I know this will probably be blood tests but how often? Do I have to demand these?

I kept my ovaries but everything came out including Fallopian tubes

I had zoladex in December another in March and had the surgery 4 weeks ago. So I didn’t have any periods between January and last month. I have no breast tenderness to go by either as to whether I ovulate, no clue whether my ovaries will ever restart after zoladex and surgery

Has anyone had regular bloods after hysterectomy? What is the normal protocol with detecting menopause? I am 40

I thought that you are in menopause after a hysterectomy as you can't have periods as a period is the releasing of blood lining that has gathered in womb in case you get pg?

The menopause is the one day, one year after your last period, so technically that will be the day you are officially in menopause. But I guess for you, you already are as you can't have a period?

Yes I believe it is immediately after a full hysterectomy (not had one and not medical though so may be wrong)

No I still have ovaries but that’s all I have
2019 they still had follicles
But since Xmas 2020 I have been in a chemically induced temporary menopause

I don’t know if my ovaries still work though naturally on their own

I just can’t bleed as I have no womb

A total hysterectomy is your womb and cervix
A Salpingo-oophorectomy is the extra part of the ovaries
He took out my tubes but left ovaries

My Mum kept her ovaries as did her friend but they and everyone I know was told that a hysterectomy, whether ovaries are kept or not, results in menopause immediately. As pp says Menopause literally starts when you've had your last period. Removing the womb makes periods impossible so you are in menopause now.

You don't go looking for the menopause, it comes looking for you with a large brick in it's hand.
You will know. Mine took me by surprise.

I will have to find out because this is the only reason I the ovaries were left in as I am only 40.

The temp menopause was just to stop bleeding it wasn’t meant to be long term

@Shehasadiamondinthesky

So I have had my ovaries shut down by an implant - but I didn’t take the HRT (livial) as I was stupid and thought it was fine 😐

I have horrendous night sweats, dry hair, am exhausted etc and this implant should have worn off by now (12 weeks I had it 7th March)

I just don’t know how I will know if I should or should not take HRT 😂

@Menora

I will have to find out because this is the only reason I the ovaries were left in as I am only 40.

The temp menopause was just to stop bleeding it wasn’t meant to be long term

OP I understood it the same as you, maybe menopause arrives a little earlier, but you are still ovulating until then. This is the whole point of leaving in the ovaries!

Menopause is surely lack of ovulation, not bleeding?

Hopefully @JinglingHellsBells will be along soon to clarify. She knows what's what.

I still have my ovaries after a hysterectomy 5 years ago and I’m not in menopause yet. I’m 50.

@Menora

I will have to find out because this is the only reason I the ovaries were left in as I am only 40.

The temp menopause was just to stop bleeding it wasn’t meant to be long term

But stopping bleeding (ie period) is menopause.

A period is the shedding of the line of the womb. If you don't have a womb, you can't have a period. If you no longer have periods this is the very definition of menopause.

My surgeon left my ovaries in so I specifically wouldn’t go into menopause.

I kept my ovaries after my hysterectomy and I'm not in menopause. I had a scan of my ovaries recently and they are still releasing eggs. So although I don’t technically have periods, I do still have a menstrual cycle. I’ll know when I’m in menopause when I start to have symptoms such as hot flushes.

I had a hysterectomy at 33 and was left with just my right ovary. Everything has been fine up until 18 months ago when hot sweats started and my hair was thinning . I'm 50.

The doc did blood tests and I got a message "confirmed, menopause".

So that's how I know. The sweats are still ongoing and the brain fog is legendary. I can't take HRT for other reasons but I've just started on Clonidine to alleviate my worst symptoms.

[quote Menora]@Shehasadiamondinthesky

So I have had my ovaries shut down by an implant - but I didn’t take the HRT (livial) as I was stupid and thought it was fine 😐

I have horrendous night sweats, dry hair, am exhausted etc and this implant should have worn off by now (12 weeks I had it 7th March)

I just don’t know how I will know if I should or should not take HRT 😂[/quote]
Thats what I had and it went on and on for 10 years, everytime I came off HRT it came back. I'm 60 and still on it or I can't cope at work.

Just to clear it up, menopause is no ovulation and basically failed ovaries.

You don’t bleed in menopause because your ovaries don’t send an egg down, tell your womb to thicken, shed etc. You can still technically be fertile and have active eggs with no womb, you just don’t have a lining to shed - it would if it could it’s just not physically possible

They don’t take out ovaries in younger women unless it’s for cancer/preventative. My womb was in a bad way which is why I had to have it. I’m aware my ovaries might fail now though

But without bleeding I will have less ways to tell what’s going on, what is chemical etc. I will have to ask for some tests.

I just wondered what is the usual protocol as I am sure I am going to get discharged now from my consultant now I have had surgery so am I meant to have more tests? Just not sure

If you want to know if you are still ovulating then, wouldn't the ovulation strip tests tell you?

I didn’t think of that! Yes it would wouldn’t it!

And its a while ago now but my Mum was discharged to GP services. She was failed as never got offered HRT and now has terrible bone problems as a result. GPs generally are better now. If/When you are discharged, ask if you can make a routine 15 minute appointment with a GP (preferrably female) to discuss your concerns and aftercare. Hopefully though you might get a chance to ask your consultant or a registrar before you are officially discharged from their team.

I had hysterectomy in 2013 (in my mid 30s) they left the ovaries due to age. After hysterectomy I had hot flushes etc but this resolved and the only way I knew I was not in menopause is because I had a lack of menopausal symptoms /felt low for a few days every month.
I've since had a blood test (due to ongoing gynaecology issues) and my numbers showed I was definitely not in the menopause. I was told just to look out for symptoms (nobody monitors it). I'm hopefully having mine removed though (cancelled in March 2020, been waiting 97 weeks) and then I will go into immediate menopause although they treat you from day 1 after surgery at my hospital.

Another thing, when I say that she didn't get offered HRT, as she kept her ovaries I meant she didn't get offered HRT at the time she would have went into natural menopause, not immediate after the surgery.

She still suffered with PMDD/PMS symptoms into her 50s and her female relatives were still having periods into the mid/late 50s (her sister was 57!). Looking back now, she was diagnosed with anxiety and mental and physical health problems which were most likely due to cessation of ovulation but as it was in her notes that she had gone through menopause after hysterectomy the GP never put two and two together and realised this was when her ovaries would be stopping working naturally and the issues with temper, pain, night sweats, insomnia, panic attacks palpitations, swelling etc were all hormonal... not "anxiety".

Her consultant now for her terrible bone loss and pain is horrified she wasn't offered HRT. So keep an eye, fight for it and protect your bones. Lots of calcium rich foods and weight bearing exercise.

I’ve bought some test strips for now - will deffo try to sort out what is going on. Don’t want to not take HRT if I should not be, and don’t want to miss out if I should!

I looked at my bone profile blood results and it scared me a little bit as they are literally at the lower end

Is there a good supplement I can take too?

@Menora

I’ve bought some test strips for now - will deffo try to sort out what is going on. Don’t want to not take HRT if I should not be, and don’t want to miss out if I should!

I looked at my bone profile blood results and it scared me a little bit as they are literally at the lower end

Is there a good supplement I can take too?

Well, because of the family history of the women in my family I've recently started taking Calcium supplements with D and K at the same time as Magnesium. I was advised that this is the best way to take them to protect bones as they are the perfect "cocktail" when taken together. I just get mine from Holland and Barrett at the moment but will be checking out the best brands I can afford as finances improve.

Diet is really important too though. As well as dairy, tinned fish is really good as are green vegetables. I'm trying to eat more sardines,
pilchards, tinned mackerel etc. Eventually I will do some weight training to build up bone density (I'm recovering from significant ill health) but in the meantime I'm walking and doing bodyweight exercises like yoga, pilates etc. It's a really good idea to work on balance, core and pelvic floor so Pilates is pretty great for all of these. These exercises will help in the long term with falls prevention (so even if your bones aren't as strong as possible, your risk of falling in the first place is reduced) and incontinence which my Mum and all of her friends who had hysterectomies are struggling with now they are older. She's only recently been told she should also have been given help with pelvic floor exercises whilst recovering from her hysterectomy - decades after the op and this is likely why she has such problems now. You can get great apps to help with pelvic floor exercises now too.

Sorry to bang on! I'm basically my Mum's carer now and both of us are too young for things to be as bad as they are. Alot of it is due to how she was failed post hysterectomy, a lack of education and awareness or encouragement around self help and preventative steps. I'm taking steps now so I'm not in the same boat at her age and educating myself as much as I can and I'm quite passionate about trying to help other younger women so they don't end up like her and her friends.

Vitamin K2 is supposed to be protective against osteoporosis as it helps direct calcium into your bones, in high doses it's used as a treatment in Japan.

I take this along with calcium, magnesium and vitamin D for bone health.

Just to clear it up, menopause is no ovulation and basically failed ovaries. You don’t bleed in menopause because your ovaries don’t send an egg down, tell your womb to thicken, shed etc. You can still technically be fertile and have active eggs with no womb, you just don’t have a lining to shed - it would if it could it’s just not physically possible

Ah, I see, that makes sense.