What symptom of meno really surprised you?

[menopausalfart]

I've had most symptoms associated with perimenopause, including some really nasty ones.
The symptom that surprised me the most was the memory loss. If I don't do something the moment it enters my brain, it's gone.
I've been taking HRT, vitamins, collagen, and I exercise regularly. This symptom, along with anxiety, has stubbornly persisted.

Absolutely this. It’s quite sobering when you realise just how patriarchal our health service still is & how unaware even female doctors seem to be aware of this. Designed primarily for men & why awareness of (or even belief in) so many women’s health issues just doesn’t even exist. And why time & time again we have to couch our symptoms, distress & ability to function through the the male gaze & the impact it will be having on a man instead of ourselves. Testosterone continues to be prescribed only for a male partner’s benefit & not for its role in women’s hormonal health. Endometriosis an inconvenient but normal part of having a womb & autism only possible in boys. Yes things are changing but you’re absolutely right, it’s truly shocking how pervasive & ingrained it still is in menopausal & women’s health care.

It's a double edged sword.

Someone (who will remain nameless) wrote a GP guide to HRT. (Maybe this was before your experience?)

The downside is it's very basic. It simply suggests transdermal estrogen and micronised progesterone as the default prescription.

Some GPs 'branch out' and offer patches but on the whole, my impression from threads here , is that most GPs are limited in their knowledge, so if one type doesn't suit a woman, they're not up to speed with all the options.

I've lost count of the threads here where women are not getting on with Utrogestan, yet when I started on it I was 'warned' very clearly that it was love/ hate and I could swap to something else.

The other issue is that because it's 2 products (not a box of patches or tablets) many GPs aren't explaining how to use the tablets - because most women are not having regular cycles, so starting mid-cycle is not realistic.

I don't think it's right to blame 'men' per se because there are in fact more female GPs than male.

Meno and HRT training is available by the BMS as CPD and it's very cheap /easy to access. Most of the top meno consultants/gynaecologists in the UK are men and they're very committed to helping women.

@JinglingSpringbells No, I was given the advice you said about Utrogestan - my problem was I was not really in a fit state to get myself to make follow-up appointments. (Actually the progesterone knocked me for 6 - a different thread though.) What I needed at that time of life was a helper to navigate me through it. I firmly believe this was part peri-menopause and part long-standing depression. When I finally had to go in for another reason, I asked to be put on antidepressants and they got me to a functional state.

@ScaredSceptic That feeling of joy/motivation ls crippling. HRT takes the edge off, but hasn't erased it completely.

@Lynjo My daughter has DS. I hope that by the time she hits meno, there will be more understanding, education, and support for those who are unable to advocate for themselves. I'm so happy there are people like you out there doing this vital work.

The fact that I’m late 50’s and still bleeding - in fact every day - despite having a mirena coil. And yes I have had all of the investigations and tests. Sick of it

^ this. Plus insomnia, anxiety and rage. Oh and “Thickening of the middle” (and pretty much everywhere else).

Yes! I continously lose things! Every year I lose the Easter eggs I buy for the family and DH always finds them in a hiding place I forgot all about!! 😆

Phantosmia, when it first happened I was searching all over the house to find the smell, it was like someone had spilled pineapple juice?! I’ve had many variations on it since, some quite pleasant, some less so. That, and dry eyes! Many other symptoms but these two were ones I wasn’t aware of.

Omg I didn’t realise this was a meno symptom - yes driven mad by mild smell of burning - checked everything, wires appliances, boiler etc even bought extra carbon monoxide monitors just in case!

Crippling suicidal depression is something I experienced, obviously I can't be sure its was menopause related, but it got a lot better when I started HRT. And I am nearly back to normal regarding mood now I have antidepressants as well.

I'm also disappointed by just how much of my personality was dependent on hormones, where's my bravery? my creativity? shrivelled up along with my ovaries it seems.

I got a lot of physical symptoms, but it was the psychological ones that really affected my life.

I wasn't expecting ADHD! turns out the insane hormone fluctuations ramped up my ADHD symptoms and previously unrecognised / unknown coping strategies no longer worked and I thought I was losing it

My other big beefs are constant pins and needles and brain fog. The latter was so bad before I started HRT that I had been to the GP thinking I had early onset dementia.

Snap! I no longer drive at all. The thought of driving anywhere made me physically sick!

@Nellieinthebarn turns out we're all a bag of chemicals/hormones and big changes in them are a big challenge. It's not about not being brave.
Glad to hear you are feeling better now.

@LittleMy77 turns out that extra hit to executive functioning/processing is a right pain.

@HannahDefoesSpringFling i think Nellieinthebarn meant that she used to feel brave and creative, but the change in hormones means those parts of her personality have gone.

Nosebleeds.

@YSL, yes another meno symptom. I had a MRI as my dad died at 62 from a brain tumour and it can be a symptom, thankfully all was fine. Just good old meno symptoms 😑

Forgetting simple words. I couldn't even remember the word "rotten" earlier. I went through mouldy, damp, when actually all I wanted was to say rotten wood.

I have been PLAGUED my itchy ears. I had no idea it was a peri symptom. I have felt MAD with the itching.

@Piggywaspushed The only time I've had a spontaneous nosebleed was when I was a few weeks pregnant with my first. Had no idea they could be hormone-related.

@Nellieinthebarn - not meno, but still hormones: a confidently laid-back, cheery, cope-with-anything friend of mine needed a thyroidectomy. After the operation and before the levothyroxine had kicked in, her husband found her dithering in the bedroom, on the verge of tears, pleading "Does my bum look big in this?" They looked at each other and both said "I can't believe I/you said that!"

That was the day two people learned about the power of hormones. It's so strange, isn't it? Massive behavioural, cognitive and emotional changes, so effectively a change in personality, but still the same person inside. It's difficult to know how to adjust.

I know this is going to sound stupid but the "wrong word, can't think of the right one" has plagued me for quite a bit of my adult life. Whay works for me is to let the wrong word out. I say "I want to say xxx but I know thats not right" and as if by magic, most of the time I can then say the right word.

The ENT consultant just shrugged and gynaecologists seem flummoxed but I never ever had them before and the minute I come off HRT they come back with a vengeance.

Does anyone else get itchy toes?

@Gingerwarthog I get hot toes. It's like they're on fire.