Why do I always feel so awful after my period

[Cherryblossom200]

Hi all,

I'm 48 and peri. I have always felt a bit rubbish a few days after my period ends until I ovulate - even in my 20's/30's. Now I'm peri I feel dreadful, unreal anxiety, feeling depressed, paranoid the whole lot. It's beyond awful. I'm on HRT, oestrogel and Ultrogestan. I upped the dose of oestrogel and made no difference (3 pumps) if anything I think it made me feel worse.

About mid-way through my cycle (if you want to call it that now!) or around the time I ovulate - I feel AMAZING! Content, happy about life and just really good. This is how I always want to feel. I feel great until I have my period, just chilled and really good.

Looking at the period cycle, it looks like progesterone is low the first half and I think this is the bit which makes me feel better. When it's higher than oestrogen. But I don't know how to replicate that?! If I felt like this always I'd be so happy!

Any ideas?! 💡

Many thanks!

Low iron after period maybe?

I don't think so. I have very light periods..

I think it's low progesterone..but I don't know how to raise it!

Agh I have this. For me it's def the hormone thing but also low iron.

I have no solution. But solidarity. It's dreadful!

I don't understand it, I've tried upping my oestrogen levels and it's not helped. I've just had over a week or so of feeling like a nervous wreck and it's exhausting, especially knowing it's my hormones.

I've bought some natural progesterone and will see if that helps. I don't know what else to try really.

Oh what did you buy?

Do you have the Utrogestan 14 days on then 14 days off? My GP recently told me I could change to having it daily but I’m older so that may be why. Just wondered if that might help keep it consistent.

I use it daily with no adverse side effects.

I've just done a bit of research and come across something called Postmenstrual syndrome, it's less common and the normal PMS symptoms before your period. All the symptoms I have l, and apparently they get worse in the menopause which would explain what's happening with me.

There isn't a great deal I can find about finding treatment, other than eating well and exercising- all which I do already. But I do think more progesterone is a key thing to helping so I'm going to try that. Along with iron and B6 tablets.

The natural progesterone I've bought is called vigority. But you can buy similar off Amazon.

Hi @Cherryblossom200 are you taking utrogestan daily but still having periods. Continuous HRT is for when you are post menopausal and not had a period for 12 months or more? you should be taking it cyclical for 12-14 days a month. Is there a reason you are on it continuously??

I get this sometimes. My understanding of what happens in a normal menstrual cycle is: Day 1: Bleeding starts. Day 3(ish): progesterone still low, oestrogen starts to rise dramatically. Day 14: egg released, oestrogen drops dramatically. Release of the egg sparks a rise in progesterone. Day 28: progesterone drops dramatically, triggering...Day 1 and bleeding starting.

My theory is that what is happening in peri is that the day 3 oestrogen rise our body is waiting for doesn't happen, and that HRT isn't compensating for that 🤔

My doctor and a gynaecologist told me to take it every day and it's worked amazingly. No break through bleeding or anything. My problem is I don't have enough of it!

Crackdown you could be right about the lack of oestrogen after my period.

So what's the solution 😬😬

If it was me, seeing as you're on Oestrogel, I would experiment with another pump or 2 on those post period days.

I have been known to cut a patch in half to see if +50% the dose had any effect when I have been feeling grotty, to see if what I really needed was more oestrogen. I'm now on the Evorel 100 patches (they start you on 50), and the post menstrual slump hasn't been so bad recently.

Ok I'll try that! I thought it was the low progesterone which was the issue as I felt so sad and anxious.

I was taking 3 pumps and still feeling bad 😬

@Cherryblossom200 You've described my life perfectly. I had two lovely weeks, then two weeks of hell every month from my twenties. I only activily tried to address it when I realised life could be better after anxiety free pregnancies. My GP kept suggesting antidepressants, which irritated me because I knew it wasn't depression. But after everything else failed I decided to try it. I take 100mg Sertraline daily and it has literally changed my life. All the symptoms have gone. It's wonderful.

I was wondering if maybe I should look at an antidepressant because what I'm going through isn't normal, it's beyond menopausal symptoms. And I've suffered for so many years. I literally hate my periods.

Do you take it all the time? Do you have any side effects? That's what worries me 😬

I take it every day. No side effects. It has genuinely changed my life dramatically. I told my GP I'd have to wrestle her to the floor if she ever took it off me. 'Life changing' actually doesn't even begin to say how transformative it has been. I feel sad about all the time I lost.

You do need to give it time though and step up the dosage slowly. My brain had fireworks going off all night when I started it, and I might have stopped had I not been warned that it takes time to adjust your it.

It's the sickness that worries me 😬 I work full time and the thought that it would make me too ill to work is a concern!

@Cherryblossom200 hi OP I realise this is an old post but I wondered how you were getting on now. I'm in the pits of my post period slump which not many people seem to understand. It's hit harder this month than it has for a while.