Please Share Your Post Menopause Symptoms and how you got better

[isitbecauseimpostmeno]

I feel like I'm losing my marbles. Since experiencing the common perimenopause symptoms (hot flushes, irregular body heat etc, i've developed another 7/8 beauties since the feels like deep depression on some days. Has anyone felt worse after they went through menopause?

I now have;
Oral Lichen Planus
light bleeds for a few days in the past 3 months
low days where NOTHING will snap me out of them
muscle aches
Heart palpitations
Lumps on my Breast
Chronic fatigue
Runny nose??

I've had a mouth Biopsy, Upped my AD dose, am taking HRT, had a mammogram, seen a cardiovascular surgeon, had my bloods done recently and am fast tracked to see a Gynecologist next week.

All that seems to show is the occasional very low Vitamin D and mildly low iron.

Has anybody had worse health after the menopause and how did you deal with it. How did you fix it, or did you just roll with it?

I just want to feel normal again 😓

Anyone?

I think if you're having light bleeds you are still peri.

I'm sorry to hear you are struggling OP. By far the worst for me has been the GSM. Systemic HRT keeps me cheerful and not hot flushes etc but vaginal atrophy is terrible and ongoing.

I think it’s amazing how well you are being cared for.
Are you on HRT?
Get your self on oestrogen pessaries as well.
Your hormones are depleting rapidly and the symptoms of this can be awful.
Once you accept this is all normal, you can address them one by one. Chat with friends and you will hear the same stories.
Once you are through the main transition, your memory is so awful, you will forget all this anyway. You will care less, your energy will return and you will be grateful to have survived!

Just seen you are on HRT. So you are already protecting a lot of your health x

I didnt have a period for nearly a day and a half and so assumed I was meno. That why I was a little taken aback.

MayI ask if you tired different types of systematic HRT? What did you settle for? How long did it take for you to feel cheerful again?

Will you keep trying to treat the. vaginal atrophy? Sounds horrid.

Testosterone cheered me right up

@isitbecauseimpostmeno my longest gap between periods was 85 days. I was convinced this was it and they were finally over.... nope. During peri menopause the timing s can really fluctuate.
Now 3 years post menopause. Arthritis is kicking in big time but ....no more periods!!

Thanks for your words, they help.

Unfortunately, I had to pay for the tests/biopsy because I felt like my life was over at times. I can stay in bed a whole weekend, sleep and feel none the better for it. Surely that's not right at my age? 😕

Are you out of it now? Do you feel alive again?

@thistimelastweek

not a day, a year and a half.

I cannot even write sense these days. ugh.

You probably need your HRT tweaking.
If you're bleeding on continuous combined HRT it is usually an imbalance between the estrogen dose and the progesterone.
What sort are you using- for each- and the dose?

Most of the symptoms you list are sorted with the right dose of HRT.
Has your doctor not suggested changes to it?

I am only just feeling human again. I still need a sleep when I get in from work, but I just accept that. I force myself to go out and be sociable, but would happily stay at home.
Testosterone can help with getting your mojo back, but just take things one step at a time.
I work with teenagers and I tell them that their hormones are through the roof and mine are non existent and we can laugh about it. Oh to have that energy again!
I am sorry you have had to pay, that doesn’t seem right.

Have you tried vaginal oestrogen? Some gynaecologists think every woman over 50 should be on it.

JinglingSpringbells - Gosh, you ladies are giving me hope again. The thought of living with these ever growing symptoms forever gave me thoughts of driving off a cliff.

Dr has not suggested much over the last 1.5 years. It was hopeless hence the private tests.

A few women I know take vaginal oestrogen and they said it was the single thing that dug them out of a depressive hole. It gave them a spring back in their step. I'm going to pester my Dr for some.

Clean living can really help as well, by that I mean no or low alcohol, eat as healthy as you can, fresh air and movement daily. Walking my dog is the highlight of my morning even if I have to do it on auto pilot getting dressed and getting out before the teens are up and before work. Lift weights get yourself stronger too. Think the worst part of my life was aged 48-51 I just felt awful I’m slowly regaining life mojo again but also in the tricky life stage of parents needing more care in their 80s and teenagers at home plus juggling work. Bit of yoga & breathing also helps along with the HRT. Keep going and you can find more balance eventually

Up your HRT

Boots online do vaginal oestrogen and you can try testerone from Superdrug GP but it didn’t do much for me so I stopped the testerone.

My iron was low so I took tablets. Taken me a bit to work out ones that work for me (half strength) but it’s had a big impact on fatigue.

@isitbecauseimpostmeno Vaginal estrogen works where it's put. It's a localised tiny dose. It doesn't help other meno symptoms. If you want to use it for dryness, frequent weeing etc, and comfortable sex, it's great.

You should have a review at 3 months, then 6 months, and ongoing if you're not feeling better.

There are loads of things you can try- different doses of estrogen, either patches, gel, tablets or spray. And at least 4 types of progesterone.

When I started HRT years ago, my excellent private consultant put me on estrogen only for 3 months to get the dose right. (That's perfectly safe for women in peri , short term,)