Need help with sweating-can't take HRT

[ButtOutBobsMum]

Unfortunately due to medical reasons I can't take HRT. I seem to battling on ok with most of peri symptoms but the heat and sweating are killing me!! I can't even call them hot flushes as I'm just hot all the time!

I have two main issues. Night sweats-most nights I end up getting into the spare bed as I cannot cope with sharing with DH. But I still wake up dripping with sweat even if I'm on my own. Is there any particular bedding that might help? Already got cotton sheets and duvet cover (which is normally thrown off). I've also got a cooling blanket which is pretty good but any other suggestions would be welcome.

Second is just general sweating. Any physical activity and it's dripping off me. Emptying the dishwasher, loading the washing machine, loading shopping into or out of the car, you name it. And exercise itself is ridiculous. Im the only person who has sweat pouring out of her in a yoga class!!

Im just so fed up with it and it's a bit embarrassing too. I've tried black cohosh and sage but neither made any difference. Currently trying soya isoflavones but I haven't seen any marked difference.

Has anyone found anything that works other than HRT or am I destined to end up like the wicked witch melting into blob on the floor?! 😫

I was just coming on to say soya isoflavones as they were superb for me - took about a fortnight to properly kick in though. How long have you been taking them?

About a month. Not noticed any difference yet but I've got a 6 month supply so I'll stick with them.

Fellow sweater here - I get really bad hormonal sweats before my period.

What helps is just sleeping with a cotton sheet, and in winter, a 2 tog wool duvet and windows open. I’ll occasionally wake up a bit chilly around 4am but it’s rare. Can’t sleep with anyone else as they are too hot but DH snores horrifically anyway so we have separate bedrooms.

This might well not apply to you, but I lost weight (I had a lot to lose) and when I got my BMI under 25 the sweating stopped being a problem. Also gave up alcohol and cut down on my coffee. That may or may not have helped too.

I've got a 2.5 tog duvet but it's not wool. Do you think they make a difference?

Yes I've got a lot of weight to lose. I've gained 2 stone since I was diagnosed and I was already overweight I have started 16:8, have drastically reduced carbs and sugar and have cut out caffeine. Alcohol has been cut down but not out. I wonder whether that is the inevitable next step?

Liverpool Women's Hospital recommend a low dose of an SSRI antidepressant, usually paroxetine 10mg . Might be worth a try?

@ButtOutBobsMum Nobody had ever mentioned the sweating/menopause/overweight link to me. I discovered it by pure chance. The alcohol thing was key for my weight loss as I was drinking too much and consuming far too many alcohol calories.

It's also helped with all the aches and pains I had too. I thought they were menopause but I reckon it was weight and the booze.

Good luck with your eating plan, sounds like you're on a good track.

I already take 20mg citalopram which I believe is also recommended for sweats.

I can't have HRT for medical reasons and I take fluoxetine 20mg, an SSRI. It has really reduced my hot flushes.

I find alcohol exacerbates the hot flushes so I've cut right down and currently tee total.

Before HRT I had a few months on mirtazipine which made a big difference. I gained a lot of weight though.

@ButtOutBobsMum If a specialist has told you that you can't take HRT, have they suggested an alternative- or referred you to specialist in menopause?

Because some of the alternative options, like phytoestrogens which you are taking are not recommended for women who have had hormone-driven cancers (like breast cancer.)

The only other absolute no-nos for HRT are recent liver disease, recent blood clots , or a recent heart attack. And some forms of HRT may still be possible with those conditions, if prescribed by a specialist.

I'm only mentioning this as if you have been told that you can't use HRT, make sure that information is correct. (eg some women think they can't use hrt if they have migraine, which isn't the case.) Other women say it's because of their family history, but sometimes that's not the case either. (eg parents with strokes, or heart disease.)

If you have an health issue that means you can't use HRT the doctors who said that should refer you to someone who knows the options rather than you trying supplements etc, which may be risky too.

I’m a bit of an unusual case unfortunately! I have an agressive (but luckily benign) pituitary tumour. It’s not clear whether HRT affects the tumours behaviour so my endocrinologist has advised against anything hormone driven, including HRT or a mirena coil. I did try HRT before my tumour was discovered and was very poorly which led to scans and them finding my tumour but they suspect (not conclusive) that the hormones in the HRT caused a growth surge in the tumour.

I think from what everyone has said I need to concentrate my efforts on losing weight. I was doing this anyway but it’s an additional motivation! In the meantime if anyone has had any relief with things such as wool duvets, pillows or cooling sleepwear I’d love to hear

Yes! I was going to suggest this too. I would wake up soaked several times a night and I had the usual poly fill duvet. I recently put on bedding that is just cotton sheet, cotton quilt with cotton filler and in winter I add on a wool blanket. It has made such a difference. I still get the odd soaker, but most mornings I wake up merely sticky and that’s easy to rinse off in the shower.

So yes..avoid all synthetic bedding.

If you have excessive sweating you can also get Botox injections to paralyse some of the sweat glands which reduces sweating.

Perfect thank you! Off to look on Amazon for wool duvets 😃

I’m not sure where I’d start-I seem to sweat from every gland!

@ButtOutBobsMum Thanks for your update.

TBH if you can afford it, it might be worth seeing a menopause specialist (someone VERY specialist which would probably mean London) to discuss all of this. It's possible there is more up to date research.

Maybe rethink using phytoestrogens when you are advised not to take HRT because they mimic estrogen, albeit weakly.

I also know (from friends who have seen endocrinologists for other reasons) that different specialists think differently. ie the friend's endocrine dr didn't mention hrt for bone health whereas a gynae would. There are a lot of differing opinions in the medical profession.

Anyway, as others have said, losing weight will help because any extra effort makes everyone sweat and carrying weight just makes it worse.

I have no solution to offer but wanted to offer my sympathy as I'm in exactly the same position, except I'm taking HRT! The HRT has helped with every other menopause symptom I had except the excessive sweating. I am also very overweight so perhaps that is the key, but no matter what I do or how hard I try I cannot seem to shift the weight, it's all crept on since I was went into menopause.
I have found that sleeping without any clothes on helps a little at night, regardless of bedding types, as my body can regulate its temperature better without clothing even in winter.

You start with GP, then they can refer you. I think they do them like armpit, backs of knees, inside elbows, forehead…

Yes, I think wool makes a difference compared to other fillings - have tried both down and synthetic, but wool is better.

Thank you. I was the same with weight loss. Nothing was working! I'd tried 16:8 before but was constantly starving and then binged during my eating window. I've been reading a lot about UPF and the effects of sugar on our digestive systems and am finding that sticking to carbs that come from nature and cutting out poor quality processed foods has made a huge difference. It's early days but I've lost 8lb in two weeks and can't say I've felt hungry at all.

Thanks @JinglingSpringbells I'll definitely consider it. At the moment I'm waiting for my latest MRI results because as soon as the tumour shows any sign of change I'll have to have radiotherapy which I've been told will almost certainly damage my pituitary gland further 😢

I can appreciate it's a concern.

If you want any names at all in the future, PM me.