Fluoxetine (Prozac) prescribed for hot flushes

[flyingant]

Hello,

Can anyone tell me if it is normal to prescribe Fluoxetine for hot flushes or not? I don't live in the UK and I'm concerned about the medical advice I'm receiving.

I have been having irregular and often very long periods for a few years, as well as intense hot flushes. I have been taking the contraceptive pill on-and-off to mitigate these symptoms.

My gynaecologist insists I am too young for menopause (mid-forties). She has told me to just carry on taking the pill to try to control the bleeding and has prescribed Fluoxetine for the hot flushes.

This just doesn't seem right. She hasn't said anything about investigating the cause of the problems and I've not said anything about anything to do with depression.

Has anyone experienced similar?

.

I'm currently reading Menopausing by Davina McCall and she would definitely disagree with your doctor!

I would recommend giving it a read and you should be able to find some help and research links there.

In the UK, NICE emphatically states that ADs are not to be prescribed for menopause symptoms (it's in the NICE menopause guidance) unless there are strong medical reasons not to use HRT (such as cancer.)

Again, in the UK, for women aged 45 and over, blood tests aren't done for menopause, but women who have symptoms are given HRT for 3 months to see if it helps, then the dose and type is reviewed. (This is best practice and even here not all GPs do this.)

You need to challenge your dr, but if your country doesn't have guidance, it's going to be harder.

However, the International Menopause Society is also saying all of this too, so if you are in Europe, your dr ought to be following their guidance.

Thank you @JinglingHellsBells, that's just the sort of information I need. I'll have a look at both those organisations. I'll also buy the book recommended by @BorkledDrek 🙂