I have been having symptoms since the age of 40

[Mummysgogetter]

Hi Everyone,

I have been getting symptoms of perimenopause for the last five years. I am now 45. I went to my GP about HRT when my symptoms got bad (mostly the lack of sleep issues) and bleeding between periods, short cycles and they did a blood test on me and told me that my FSH levels are completely normal, therefore they wouldn't prescribe me HRT. The GP put me on Amitriptyline 20 mg to increase to 30 mg as needed.
My sleep has mostly improved with 20 mg but just this past six months it has got worse again and my cycles are all over the place - sometimes coming after only 14 days and then others not for 37 days. I have contacted my GP and she is going to do blood tests again; however, I am aware that after 45 they can just prescribe for you going on your symptoms, without the need for blood tests. I also have bad bloating, brain fog where I cannot remember words and bad irritation.

My question is, did anyone find that their sleep improved with HRT?

Yes, sleep improved almost immediately. Even on the lowest dose of oestrogen.

I would be asking why the GP wants blood tests given you are 45, have irregular periods and else exactly is it going to be?

Hi Anna,

That's reassuring. I am just preparing myself in case they refuse me again though :-( I think she wanted to do blood tests because I mentioned facial hair, and she wanted to rule out the possibility that I have an oestrogen/testosterone imbalance.

Yes, I had a coil fitted and I sleep for 8hrs a night for the first time since before I had children.

A good example, today I had day surgery which I was v anxious about. Yet I could hardly wake myself up when my alarm went off. Pre HRT id have just been up for hours waiting to go into hospital!

Oh god that's such a red herring. I am a v healthy weight (as in no PCOS) and still started growing a spiky neck and chin beard in my late 30s!

I thought everyone got a spiky chin!

Anyway, you can ask for a free androgen test to check your testosterone.

Unfortunately, many GPs know very little about menopause (that's putting it politely.)

An FSH reading is not always accurate.
To have any chance of being accurate, you have to have 2 tests, on 2 consecutive months, between Days 2-5 of your cycle.

And even then it's not always accurate.

I had an FSH test (not for menopause) at 51 and it said I was post meno. My consultant said all that proved was they were inaccurate as I wasn't post- meno for another 2 years.

Yes you will possibly sleep better on ami as it's a sedative in low doses.
But it won't sort out the underlying cause or your other symptoms.

You don't need blood tests at 45.

At your age if it walks like a duck, sounds like a duck and looks like a duck...you know the rest!

thanks for your help everyone. I just hope that I don’t have to fight (figuratively)with the GP to bloody well get it as it’s intimidating and the last thing I need. I suppose I could always pay £50 and get my HRT from Boots if they refuse to prescribe it, but it shouldn’t have to be that way!

Is the mirena coil a possibility, under the remit of contraception ? I'm wondering too whether you can email the practice manager asking them to put in writing the current policy on prescibing HRT for women over 45.

Thanks. I’m definitely not going to let it go if they don’t want to prescribe. I can’t carry on like this. I asked the phlebotomist what she was testing for this morning and she said thyroid, hormones, inflammation and basically a full panel of bloods.

At 45 they should be diagnosing peri-menopause based on symptoms not blood tests! ok, they might check bloods for the other things like thyroid, vitamin deficiencies, but not to diagnose peri.

Hello everyone,

just to update you - GP has just called and said that my FSH levels are high and they’re going to prescribe me HRT. He asked what preparation I would like and I said gel because I read something somewhere that this would be the best ? Hopefully I haven’t got this wrong.

really hope this will sort my sleep out!!