PeriMEANOpause

[gcvmom]

What is up with THIS?!

I must be in the thick of it. (Close the thread NOW if this is too much information).

When I nursed my kids, I had hot flashes whenever I was overdue for a feeding. Weird, huh? And my medications would often make me break out in a sweat. So you'd think I'd be used to stuff like this. Well let me tell you, those little heat waves were NOTHING compared to what I've started getting hit with over the past six months or so. It's very sporadic so far, but DANG!

And can we talk cramps here?

When I was younger, I had them but they were tolerable. And after I had my kids, I was never really bothered by them. But this past year? And the past six months? OUCH! Last month, I had one day that hit me HARD. I was trying to trim a hedge in my back yard and I could barely stand up it was that bad. I tried to tough it out and kept lopping away at the bush, but I COULDN'T! I'm not used to being waylaid by my body. Tonight is another one of those nights. I though when things started a few days ago it was going to be an easy breezy week. But suddenly this evening I'm feeling down for the count.

Even husband notices that I am parTICularly snippy lately. Of course, anyone who's followed the drama in my life of late would understand that I have plenty of cause to be snippy, but I guess this is an extra helping I've laid on him lately. I really don't know what to say to him. Sorry?

Please tell me this is a normal start to the end of the monthly business! I don't want something new to worry about.

 

[Hound dog]

Yup sounds like you've passed out of peri and went on into menopause mah dear.

My hot flashes got husband 1 bout of pneumonia and 2 bouts of bronchitis.............. I swear dead of winter and 10 degrees out one would hit me and I'd open the window wide. I call it the internal furnace. Heat flash my fanny. I felt like someone lit my insides on fire!
Yep menstrual cramps, which were never wonderful to begin with doubled me over and made my legs hurt so bad walking was something I avoided. PMS bad enough to believe I'd become possessed. If that wasn't enough.......when it wasn't that time of the month if something ticked me off, irritated me or whatever.......there was no doubt because it came pouring out of my mouth on it's own accord. (this has never gone away by the way lol) Oh.......had a really big problem with heavy flow as well during that time of the month so stay prepared. Cycles became unpredictable too, forget watching the calendar it had a mind of it's own. ugh

Compared to most women, menopause for me was short. It lasted about a year with the actual symptoms, thank goodness.

 

[susiestar]

Oh, yeah. Not sure about peri or meanopause because I got mine surgically. It is NOT a fun process for anyone in the house.

If you have any of the 7th Heaven series on dvd, they have a good episode or two about when Annie goes into menopause/perimenopause. It is humorous, but it also is one of the better depictions of the range of things that we endure while going through menopause/perimenopause. I just looked it up and it is on the sixth season, episode 1 ("Changes" - http://www.tv.com/7th-heaven/changes/episode/57711/summary.html ). The website has a synopsis and some quotes. Watching it might make you feel a bit less alone. I really like the quote about it. She tells her husband about it and he says he is there for her and they are in it together. She says she is in it alone - her body, her changes, etc... Just a good quote for how I felt and how other women I know felt sometimes.

Your doctor can help. Hormones are an option, but so are other things. There are quite a few herbs that can be helpful with symptoms. The doctor may also be able to help with the cramps, etc... I used a very small dose of xanax (1/2 of a .5 tablet) to help with the irritability and anxiety that came with it. My entire family was amazed at how effective it was. It didn't make me stoned or overly happy, but I didn't snap at everything and I felt I was in a lot more control of myself and my reactions. My doctor started me on it for PMS as we checked things out prior to the hysterectomy and it was great with that also. Your doctor may suggest another anti-anxiety medication but whatever is suggested can be a HUGE help with the irritability. I was upset with any/everything - esp myself as I didn't WANT to snap that way and I even irritated myself.

I hope this helps you feel more like this is "normal" and can be helped. You sure don't need any more stress or problems right now.

 

[Marguerite]

I had a fairly easy time of it with menopause, apart from a bout of very heavy periods for a while that nearly had me referred for a hysterectomy. Then I got the breast cancer which turned out to be hormone receptive. So they give me what I call me "anti-hormone pills" and I've slammed back into menopause - from the other side. Talk about hot flashes - husband calls them power surges. I call them "tropical moments".

I remember the sweats when breastfeeding. difficult child 3 was a summer baby and I used to carry a cloth nappy everywhere, I used it to mop myself up. Then I would lie the towel under difficult child 3's face when I put him to bed (to catch any overflow from that overloaded stomach) and he got to smell the combination of milk and sweat, and became fixated on the feel of towelling.

Marg

 

[PatriotsGirl]

My PMS has gotten sooo bad I am praying for menapause. They have also been all over the place and I am only 37. My mom went through it early so I hope I do, too! These cramps are horrendous!!!!!! The only thing I have not gotten yet is the hot flashes....and if I didn't have the side effects from prozac my butt would be right back on it....

 

[HaoZi]

Yep menstrual cramps, which were never wonderful to begin with doubled me over and made my legs hurt so bad walking was something I avoided. PMS bad enough to believe I'd become possessed.

That was me in my teens and why I went on birth control, along with a long cycle and extremely heavy flow for 10 days. Hasn't been so bad since I had kiddo, but it's gradually working it's way back up to that. The things I have to look forward to. Yay.

 

[TerryJ2]

Sounds like me.
I seem to be over the worst of it, especially with-the killer cramps.
Still get cramps every 90 days or so but nothing like b4.
Still get snippy.
And still get MAJOR hot flashes.
My kids joke that they're going to engrave, "Is it hot in here?" on my headstone.

I am so sorry you're going through this.
by the way, you can go online and do a search for herbal hot/cold packs that you can wear around your neck like a scarf. You run them under water and they turn cold. You can chose from different fabrics so they look like part of your outfit.

 

[Mom2oddson]

In one of Christine Northrup's books she states that during a womens perimenopausal years she will be more opinionated than ever before in her life and that she will speak her mind. ...This part, I've found to be true. And use it as an excuse when I'm having a rather %itchy day.

Other than that, my internal furnace is on the fritz. I'm either freezing and putting on layers and layers of clothes or I'm roasting so hot that I'm sitting in front of the fan with the windows open in the middle of winter. Seems I only have a few hours of the day where things are in balance.

 

[gcvmom]

Well, I guess it's nice to have company in my misery and know that this is not so out of the ordinary.

My poor mother didn't finish menopause until she was in her late 50's. I sure hope I don't have another 10 years of this to look forward to! Then again, she never had hot flashes either, so maybe this bodes well for me and my body will wrap things up in short order. I can dream anyway, can't I?

 

[timer lady]

Yup, Chicken Lady, sounds like your in the throes of whatever they call it. I was determined to be thru menopause before the tweedles hit puberty. Mostly I succeeded - I was done by 49; I'm now 54 & loving life with-o periods.

However, I was determined & not a little stressed (AND our family has a hx of early menopause ).

This too shall pass.

 

[KTMom91]

So glad to see I'm not alone!

I have the occasional hot flash, not the cramping (fortunately), no logic to my cycles, and APPARENTLY I'm horrendously cranky...according to Hubby. He's developed this really dangerous habit, whenever I snap at him in a particular way, of singing in a sweet little tone..."Must be starting!" One of these days...he'll think starting.

 

[TerryJ2]

Lol!~

 

[Star*]

You say this.........like it's a bad thing. I mean - first of all - if I have cramps that bad, and I did/do/can. could..will - step back - leamme alone.....you must be this tall to annoy this person - you're not? You! Leave me alone or die! mwhahaha....what? Shut up! Go lay down...no you! Yes you.....smart person that you are - go crawl in a hole. No not you - YOU. YES you......jerk wad, jack wagon......Yeah you with the ridiculous mullet haircult - yeah I said HAIR cult......MY GAWDDDDDDD is that still a style or is it an anti style now? ISH...WOW - and your girlfriend? WOW - WOW.....can I just say WOW....spandex and a tank top with shorts at her age? PFT//////PFFBBBBBBBBBBTTTTTTFFFFFFFFF....ttt. snort. Yeah honey and the dyed orange streak in your hair matches all the extra special third row eye liner you gooped on - but thats okay by me cause I think it goes GRrrrrrrrrrreat with that Pebbles Flintstone hair doo you got going on there with Billy Ray Not so Serious --------Blech....and what's up with the woman over there in produce? HONEST TO PETE - can she pack anymore into that spandex mini skirt before a button come flyin' off and pops out an eye - probably will be MY eye - Know what I mean? and I bet she won't have insurance. (EXHALE HARD) and does anyone ever keep their kids quiet anymore and STOP RATTLING THAT FREAKING POTATO CHIP BAG WOMAN MY WORD - how many times to you have to twist and crumble and twist and twist that dang )(#*%)(#* bag just put that stupid chip bag in your cart and buy it - (urge to rush over and rip it out of her hands and throw it IN her cart and tell her to STOP playing with the paper is OVER.WHELMING.) AND THEN? And then we have SKUFFY the wonder teen who could NOT.......COULD NOT pick up her slippers if her life depended on it - so she slugs along in the grocery store in her pajamas and scuffs her slippers as if her feet were magnetically drawn to the floor and makes that awful fssssssssssssssssssssskuf.....fffffffffffffffffskufffffffffff noise and pops her. gum. OMG.......at this point? I am on PMS, USS Minnow pause OVERLOAD and just want to SLAP everyone - which like I said is not necessarily a BAD thing because by now? I've nearly forgotton ALL ABOUT MY CRAMPS ......and oh crud - i just remembered my cramps - so I run to aisle 3 where i rip open a box or twelve of MIDOL extreme (I'm sure they make that) with my teeth - and uncap or uncork a bottle of muskatel or Mad-Dog 20/20 and down 2 capsules as I watch Pebbles and Billy Ray kiss and cuddle down the dog food aisle - HOW appropriate......I mean it.....she's grabbin him.....he's grabbin her and I can't think of any more romantic place to do THAT than over a 50 lb bag of tidy cat. GOOD GRIEF.......how long does this last?

 

[DammitJanet]

I dont have a clue about menopause because I had a hysterectomy. I had it when I was 42...(back in 2004) gosh that sounds like so long ago now! I will be 49 this coming Monday and I dont have a clue if I am over it or not. How would I know? I am always moody, my thermostat is broken anyway, and I cant have periods...lol.

 

[Star*]

again - Janet - you say that like it's a BAD thing.........

I'm always moody - could be - YOU SHOULD RESPECT MY SPACE #)_%)(*#%........I'm a strongly opinionated woman with a lot of feelings. BACK THE HECK UP.

My thermostat is broken......could be......I'm less expensive that the models that have thermostats and cost billions to run.......I'm E fficient.....

I can't have periods.........Well hells bells I just can' think of a single thing that .....I mean it's .............what in the world would make you want........Oh (slaps head) of course - you WANT that expense every month......(shssesh) well then just go buy them. You can do crafts with them .....I guess.

 

[DammitJanet]

Oh I dont want them. The reason I got rid of them was the 19 day period I had where I soaked through extra super tampons AND overnight pads every 45 minutes for 19 days straight. I was coming home from Houston on a plane and sat in the back row next to the bathroom, sat on a towel and still managed to soak through it and stain their seat. Had to change clothes as soon as I got to RDU airport and Tony took me straight to our hospital as soon as we got to Lumberton. I was so embarrassed. doctor gave me some medication that stopped the flow and sent me to the gyn and they set up the hysterectomy for the following month. I had 3 softball sized fibroids that were causing it.

 

[Marguerite]

Janet, that sounds like my experience when I went to see Fiddler on the Roof with Topol in Sydney. I found if I sat still and didn't move, it bought me an extra two minutes before it flooded through; by the time it flooded through then, I was standing and rushing to the disabled loo where I was able to strip from the waist down, wash everything and use the hand dryer to blow-dry everything. I blessed the fact I'd worn a dark red thick knitted skirt with a loosely knitted black wool cape over everything. I didn't look wet even though I didn't have time to dry my clothes. I also had a pile of "supplies" in my handbag, of course in the loo with me. I managed to keep the problem secret from others in the party, but I was glad to change out of my wet clothes when we got home - when of course it was time to change again, everything flooded once more. husband had discreetly sat me on a towel in the car, I was the last one out, smiling and waving to our friends as we dropped each of them off home first.

When it is as bad as that, anaemia is inevitable. Gotta do something.

Marg