Dry mouth and vile metallic taste

[Unusualusernames]

The last few months or so I've developed this vile metallic taste and my mouth feels like sandpaper.

I know im in peri menopause because I've been diagnosed with vaginal atrophy (which is grim) and just as that's under control now this. I have other symptoms (terrible anxiety, slightly shortened cycles and severe PMs lasting 2 out of 4 weeks.

I have really bad health anxiety so please don't tell me a list of things it could be (believe me I will have googled them) and I am going to call the GP on Monday because im at my wits end. I know about ruling out diabetes etc.

I just wondered if anyone has experienced this in peri menopause/ menopause and is there anything that you've found worked?

So far I've tried drinking loads of water, dry mouth toothpaste (tastes vile and makes it seem worse).

I've done several covid tests and I don't have Covid. I'm pretty sure I haven't had covid either.

Any advice/support would be really appreciated. This is really getting me down now 🙏

Hi OP, I too had a metallic taste during menopause. I don't think I ever found a 'cure' for it but sucking mints helped. It eventually went away as time went on.

Yes horrendous dry mouth, aargh no matter how much water I drink!! And the metallic taste too. I went into menopause 5 years ago after treatment for breast cancer. Still suffering the effects, oh and vaginal atrophy - that’s a bloody misery

I didnt realise a dry mouth was part of it all, i get this too

Hi @barbrahunter thanks for replying. Can I ask how long it lasted? It's absolutely awful and dare I say akin to or possibly worse than the dry vagina

Hi @MissyB1 I'm so sorry to hear what you went through and that you're still enduring symptoms. I can't imagine how hard that must be. I really hope you manage to find some comfort 💐

@ssd hi there, sorry to hear you have this too. I've been furiously googling (which I'm not meant to do according to the CBT therapist I had for health anxiety) and it's definitely a symptom. I just so wish there was something that could relieve it, it's really getting me down.
Bloody menopause

Do you sleep with your mouth open? I had bad hay fever the other week and slept with the fan on and my gob wide open. Felt like someone had shoved a loofah down my throat!
I drank lots of warm green tea with added honey.

Try this mouthwash.

@Suzi888 I'm pretty sure I do sleep with my mouth open. I have to wear a mouth guard because I grind my teeth and had an awful problem with TMJ a few years back. My partner says I snore. That probably makes it worse but I've always done this so I don't think that's the cause.

@JaneJeffer thank you I will try that if I can find it. I'm so desperate I'll try pretty much anything.

I hope you get some relief, I’m 43 and I know my hay fever caused it, but it’s still there to a degree. I didn’t realise it was a symptom of peri too. What about HRT? I’m thinking of asking my GP about it.

Hormones?

I had this symptom in pregnancy (and dreamt all the time that I was drinking ink from a wineglass. )

I think it's really common in early pregnancy.

Nausea is common in menopause, so horrible mouth taste might be too.

@Suzi888 I'd honestly try anything. It's really getting me down. I'm using oestrogen cream for dryness down below and that has really helped and now this.
My mum has 5 sisters and annoyingly they all seem to have sailed through menopause

@notagermannoun yeah I can't say I feel nauseous at all. I used to feel loads and I was sure it was hormones but I had something called h pylori which thankfully I had treatment for.

I've had health anxiety really badly for the past 6 years which makes me really focus on physical symptoms. It's crap

Yep, had a metallic taste, it's getting better now. Chewing minty gum helped. Lasted a couple of years on and off.

It might be adrenaline? It's known to produce a bitter metallic taste and going through the menopause is pretty damn stressful!

@Unusualusernames, i use vagifem pessary, helps with dryness down below. I also have health anxiety really really bad. Its really the only thing in my life that stops me being really happy. Ive also had cbt, and private and nhs counselling. I dont feel anything has made a difference. Im constantly looking and checking for symptoms. Id do anything to get better and stop being so terrified by any small change or pain. Its awful.

@Unusualusernames, you said youve had HA really bad for 6 years. Did something happen then? I feel ive always worried about my health but it got worse when i lost my mum. The worrying over her health has sort of passed onto me.

@ssd I'm so sorry you also have health anxiety. It's absolutely the worst.

My dad died suddenly from heart failure aged 36 when I was 7. He just left the house for work one day and never came back. I was ok until my daughter was and literally the day after I started obsessing about dying. It's been pretty unmanageable for the past 6 years. I started having constant headaches (which seem better now touch wood). I was convinced I had a brain tumour and started having panic attacks. I virtually never don't think I have some kind of illness, usually cancer. I've been diagnosed with a genetic heart condition called which killed my dad and I know that your risk of heart failure increases with this condition for women when oestrogen increases. I take medication and I'm meant to eat healthily but lockdown and anxiety have made it so hard.

I've had two lots of CBT. The first one was useless, the second was slightly useful but barely touched the surface tbh.

I feel like my anxiety is definitely affected by perimopause. I'm using estriol for vaginal dryness and I've lots of other symptoms. I've noticed certain times of the month my anxiety is off the scale. I just feel like such a failure. My anxiety has stopped me from doing so many things in life and I feel like I'm a crap mum because of it. I really worry about passing it on to my daughter.

I've fallen back into googling a lot lately which is really stupid and unhealthy but it's so hard not to. I try not to go to the doctor. Ironically im so anxious if I go too much they will not believe me when im seriously ill. If you mention anxiety they just try to fob you off with medication.

In hindsight I wonder if all of this stuff is menopause related. My Nan on my dads side, who I seem to take after in terms of the age I started my period and looks wise had a really early menopause.

@Thecrisplover thanks that's quite reassuring to know. Did you ever get to the bottom of what caused it?

I should say the risk of heart failure increases when oestrogen decreases. It's called FH. Very annoying if you have health anxiety

No, I've just assumed it's another symptom. I went to the dentist when I first noticed it to check it wasn't some sort of infection.

I just spoke to a not very nice loc doctor who ordered some tests, managed to convince me I have a horrible condition and specifically said that the menopause doesn't cause dry mouth. I'm really pissed off because I know for a fact it does.
I recently watched a documentary where it said GPS have a half hour OPTIONAL e-module on menopause. I don't get how he can't know this when it seems like it's common knowledge. I'm so fed up of being anxious all the time.

@Unusualusernames Did you ever find what this was and did you ever find a cure? I too have a really strong bitter taste in my mouth that started off as a slight metallic taste. It is quite overwhelming. I have tried lots of things and had lots of blood tests. Now thinking it is the menopause with low oestrogen levels. I have a Mirena coil so have gone on HRT- oestrogen only to see if it helps. Early days yet.