Perimenopause sux

[kittyriot]

Anyone want to moan with me?? It’s been a full week and I’m still bleeding like day two and I want to do surgery on myself to remove my uterus. I’m eating ibuprofen like candy and it’s barely scratching the surface of the pain.

My gynaecologist said let’s start HRT which got me all excited and hopeful but said nothing about my malfunctioning uterus. So I’m hoping he can handle the rage at my next appointment.

[kayc]

Ugh I’m sorry. I can’t do any hormones due to some neuro issues but I had a uterine ablation a few months ago and OMG SO MUCH BETTER. I still have PMS in terms of crankiness, headaches, and boob soreness, but little tiny cramps for a few hours and then spotting for a few days and that’s it. But yeah. My periods were so bad before it that I would just sit on the toilet bc it wasn’t worth putting on a pad to soak through it in minutes. I hope the doc can help you.

[AmyG]

Jul 2, 2024 16:21:44 GMT -6 kayc said:

Ugh I’m sorry. I can’t do any hormones due to some neuro issues but I had a uterine ablation a few months ago and OMG SO MUCH BETTER. I still have PMS in terms of crankiness, headaches, and boob soreness, but little tiny cramps for a few hours and then spotting for a few days and that’s it. But yeah. My periods were so bad before it that I would just sit on the toilet bc it wasn’t worth putting on a pad to soak through it in minutes. I hope the doc can help you.

My mom and sisters were like that with soooo much bleeding thru perimenopause
so I decided with dr to just keep my mirena iud in, since it stopped me periods normally
and see how it did thru menopause and it worked! 
but yeah and ablation would be a good thought if they won't do hysterectomy

[kittyriot]

kayc, my GP was talking ablation, but gynaecologist is suggesting HRT and properly treating my endometriosis first before anything invasive. I wish I hadn’t let his enthusiasm encourage me, I wish I had been firmer in my desire for either an ablation or a hysterectomy

[kayc]

Jul 2, 2024 16:36:03 GMT -6 kittyriot said:

kayc, my GP was talking ablation, but gynaecologist is suggesting HRT and properly treating my endometriosis first before anything invasive. I wish I hadn’t let his enthusiasm encourage me, I wish I had been firmer in my desire for either an ablation or a hysterectomy

Ugh I really hope they can help. It’s miserable. It was a bit of work to get the ablation (needed an ultrasound, bloodwork, uterine biopsy first) but I’d do it again in a heartbeat.

[bellatrixgotlost]

I'm almost 7 years into this and so ready to be done.

[McBenny]

My doctor said I'm not even in perimenopause and it could be another 2 to 5 years. Lol

I'm leaning towards an ablation.

[gallagher]

Jul 2, 2024 22:49:00 GMT -6 McBenny said:

My doctor said I'm not even in perimenopause and it could be another 2 to 5 years. Lol

I'm leaning towards an ablation.

It's honestly the best thing I ever did for myself. I would bleed for 9 days minimum with 4 of those days being Niagara falls. I was dizzy, fatigued constantly from the blood loss. I had the ablation 2 summers ago and my period is nonexistent. Sometimes I notice tender boobs and I assume it's "happening" but my god, it's such a wonderful way to live. I recommend it to everyone.

[angelashly]

Jul 3, 2024 5:56:16 GMT -6 gallagher said:

Jul 2, 2024 22:49:00 GMT -6 McBenny said:

My doctor said I'm not even in perimenopause and it could be another 2 to 5 years. Lol

I'm leaning towards an ablation.

It's honestly the best thing I ever did for myself. I would bleed for 9 days minimum with 4 of those days being Niagara falls. I was dizzy, fatigued constantly from the blood loss. I had the ablation 2 summers ago and my period is nonexistent. Sometimes I notice tender boobs and I assume it's "happening" but my god, it's such a wonderful way to live. I recommend it to everyone.

This is basically what everyone I know who has experience has said

[zoeylucy]

AmyG, I have the same plan to just keep Mirena for the duration. I’m hoping it works.

[STP]

If you can do an ablation, I’d pick that over HRT personally. I worry a bit about the suspected increased cancer risks, though they’re up for debate.

I’m not a candidate bc my c/s uterine scars are too thick. I was depressed when they found that bc it’s so miserable. I don’t know why we can’t just remove the damn thing , I have literally no use for it.

[rvasc]

Jul 3, 2024 6:16:53 GMT -6 zoeylucy said:

AmyG, I have the same plan to just keep Mirena for the duration. I’m hoping it works.

My gyn suggested this but told me to schedule it for fall because sometimes you bleed for a few weeks after insertion and she wanted me to be past pool season. But she said I could get one now and one in 5 years and maybe “skate right into menopause with as few symptoms as possible.”

[willow]

An ablation is absolutely life changing, for sure. I had mine almost 3 years ago. It solved the bleeding heavily and painfully part for me (I spotted for 3-4 days each month). Unfortunately it didn’t fix my pelvic pain that came with a vengeance to the point that I was unable to work sitting upright in a chair so I had a full hysterectomy (kept ovaries) almost 3 weeks ago. I’m having admittedly a less than ideal recovery but once this is all over I can’t wait for permanent relief. I hope your doctors listen to you and what you may want with more permanent solutions.

[jaygee]

Ugh it’s so awful. I was dealing with the heavy and painful periods for years and all they would offer was low dose birth control. I didn’t want to take it for various reasons but the impact to my life was just becoming too much. So about two years ago I caved. It made a huge difference and I was grateful. However, I stopped having periods in the last six months so I decided to go off it so I could get all my levels tested in a few months. I wanted to know if I was actually in menopause already as I’ve always suspected I would be an early goer. Well the hormone crash I experienced was horrendous. It contributed to a huge anxiety flare and a depressive episode. And now I have so many symptoms (hot flashes, urinary incontinence, brain fog, fatigue that is debilitating). And still no period, so I think I’m there. I’m so unhappy with this situation.

I got a FSH level about two weeks after stopping the birth control that indicates I’m post menopausal (although my doctor is not committing to that). My plan is to follow up with my doctor and also go to a menopause specific clinic (Midi - anyone have experience with them). I need to get all my hormone levels tested - estrogen, etc. And from my friends that have walked this path they say different docs will give different advice and plans so you kind of have to weigh the options and try different things. Which sucks. It feels like medicine is behind in this area (shocking, I know…it’s just a “woman thing” 🙄). It also feels like you have to advocate for yourself. My doctor who I like very much and have been with for years seems to think I’m too young for this (45) which is starting to frustrate me.

So I would say don’t try to just push through, get doctors help and see what the options are.

[jaygee]

A friend recommended the book The New Menopause by Dr Mary Claire Haver but I haven’t started it yet so I have no idea if it’s good. I know she’s made the rounds on the grifters podcasts (Mel Robbins and Huberman) so I’m a bit skeptical.

[hugsfordrugs]

I stayed on the pill until my 51st birthday (which was last September). My periods were “normal” (pill normal) until I went off the pills and I haven’t had a period since (this September would be 1 year). Just another idea for those that have that option. So far I’ve breezed through menopause in comparison to a lot of women (I need to start buying lotto tickets). 

The Change by Kirsten Miller is a fun book on menopause. It’s not your typical menopause book, it’s a story about how these women gain these cool powers as they reached/are going through menopause.

[byjove]

Jul 3, 2024 8:11:07 GMT -6 jaygee said:

A friend recommended the book The New Menopause by Dr Mary Claire Haver but I haven’t started it yet so I have no idea if it’s good. I know she’s made the rounds on the grifters podcasts (Mel Robbins and Huberman) so I’m a bit skeptical.

I have this to read! I've also heard good things.

willow I had my hysterectomy (kept ovaries) 3 years ago and no regrets! I wish I had done some PT for my abdomen though. I had to do it this year for some back issues and I think it would have benefitted me sooner.

Not having a uterus anymore (thank god!), it's hard to know where I am in things, but I'm having a lot of weird, not specific issues that the doctors can't explain (heart rate/palpitations and blood sugar control) and I'm wondering if it all really boils down to this. 

[bearfootzcontinued]

byjove, that's where I'm at too. The uterus was evicted a few years ago but I think the ovaries might be preparing for retirement. Hormones were checked last year but while there was some change the doc said she couldn't confirm perimenopause. The past few months I've noticed more things that make me think it's arrived - heat surges, mood swings, trouble concentrating, trouble staying asleep but then getting sleepy in the afternoon.

I've been debating if I need to try to cut out caffeine and start exercising but I don't want to do anything too drastic yet.

[dc2london]

I tried going on BCP to manage the absolute fuquery that is peri the platypus, and the BCP made me vomit. I hate it .

[kittyriot]

Jul 3, 2024 8:11:07 GMT -6 jaygee said:

A friend recommended the book The New Menopause by Dr Mary Claire Haver but I haven’t started it yet so I have no idea if it’s good. I know she’s made the rounds on the grifters podcasts (Mel Robbins and Huberman) so I’m a bit skeptical.

I’m listening to her book right now.

I don’t question her intelligence but there is a heavy slant to HRT, but she does acknowledge it’s something that everyone should make an informed decision about and if their doctor give them a hard time about chatting options, then they should find a new dr (….significant laughter up here in Canada where finding dr’s can take several years)…

It is heartbreaking to hear how many different takes dr’s give - even in this thread.

I’m on bc right now, but my dr’s are all about taking me off it (almost 43), because of the increased risk of stroke.

But HRT, my gynaecologist barely mentioned the increased cancer risk (I was already well
Informed of this so I wasn’t hugely fussed, but still barely mentioned it).

[George]

Jul 3, 2024 9:08:32 GMT -6 hugsfordrugs said:

I stayed on the pill until my 51st birthday (which was last September). My periods were “normal” (pill normal) until I went off the pills and I haven’t had a period since (this September would be 1 year). Just another idea for those that have that option. So far I’ve breezed through menopause in comparison to a lot of women (I need to start buying lotto tickets). 

The Change by Kirsten Miller is a fun book on menopause. It’s not your typical menopause book, it’s a story about how these women gain these cool powers as they reached/are going through menopause.

I’m just here to say I loved The Change - it’s a wonderful book! I’m so worried that going off the pill is going to let my awful periods come back at 40 and I don’t think I can deal with those again.

[jaygee]

Jul 3, 2024 18:19:17 GMT -6 kittyriot said:

Jul 3, 2024 8:11:07 GMT -6 jaygee said:

A friend recommended the book The New Menopause by Dr Mary Claire Haver but I haven’t started it yet so I have no idea if it’s good. I know she’s made the rounds on the grifters podcasts (Mel Robbins and Huberman) so I’m a bit skeptical.

I’m listening to her book right now.

I don’t question her intelligence but there is a heavy slant to HRT, but she does acknowledge it’s something that everyone should make an informed decision about and if their doctor give them a hard time about chatting options, then they should find a new dr (….significant laughter up here in Canada where finding dr’s can take several years)…

It is heartbreaking to hear how many different takes dr’s give - even in this thread.

I’m on bc right now, but my dr’s are all about taking me off it (almost 43), because of the increased risk of stroke.

But HRT, my gynaecologist barely mentioned the increased cancer risk (I was already well
Informed of this so I wasn’t hugely fussed, but still barely mentioned it).

I’m not naive enough to think that medicine is an exact science. But when I think of how many great options we would have to all of this if it happened to men, I get big angry.

[GhoatMonket]

Jul 3, 2024 16:18:32 GMT -6 dc2london said:

I tried going on BCP to manage the absolute fuquery that is peri the platypus, and the BCP made me vomit. I hate it .

It took me a couple pills and having to go to continuous, but it's a nice solution - when it works.

[tallb]

I've followed Mary Clare hover on Instagram for a few years and I do appreciate how she's raising awareness and starting to normalize the discussion about it a bit. Granted I also have contributed real issues she's mentioned to peri symptoms (turns out I had an actual ear infection, ha).


My ob has put me back on the pill and my body did not respond well, so I stopped that, but did start some meds for anxiety, which has helped.

I saw a meme that the makers of inside out 2 need to make another one for peri menopause to explain what is happening since they covered puberty.

[willow]

Jul 3, 2024 22:03:32 GMT -6 jaygee said:

Jul 3, 2024 18:19:17 GMT -6 kittyriot said:

I’m listening to her book right now.

I don’t question her intelligence but there is a heavy slant to HRT, but she does acknowledge it’s something that everyone should make an informed decision about and if their doctor give them a hard time about chatting options, then they should find a new dr (….significant laughter up here in Canada where finding dr’s can take several years)…

It is heartbreaking to hear how many different takes dr’s give - even in this thread.

I’m on bc right now, but my dr’s are all about taking me off it (almost 43), because of the increased risk of stroke.

But HRT, my gynaecologist barely mentioned the increased cancer risk (I was already well
Informed of this so I wasn’t hugely fussed, but still barely mentioned it).

I’m not naive enough to think that medicine is an exact science. But when I think of how many great options we would have to all of this if it happened to men, I get big angry.

If men could get endometriosis, there would already be a completely pain free way to eliminate it.

[willow]

Jul 3, 2024 9:26:11 GMT -6 byjove said:

Jul 3, 2024 8:11:07 GMT -6 jaygee said:

A friend recommended the book The New Menopause by Dr Mary Claire Haver but I haven’t started it yet so I have no idea if it’s good. I know she’s made the rounds on the grifters podcasts (Mel Robbins and Huberman) so I’m a bit skeptical.

I have this to read! I've also heard good things.

willow I had my hysterectomy (kept ovaries) 3 years ago and no regrets! I wish I had done some PT for my abdomen though. I had to do it this year for some back issues and I think it would have benefitted me sooner.

Not having a uterus anymore (thank god!), it's hard to know where I am in things, but I'm having a lot of weird, not specific issues that the doctors can't explain (heart rate/palpitations and blood sugar control) and I'm wondering if it all really boils down to this. 

I know I won’t have any regrets, I’m just in the thick of it at the moment with recovery and it has been a bit rough so I am exhausted and blah. I bled a lot more than expected during surgery and now I have a large surgical hematoma that is causing a good deal of extra pain while it very slowly drains out and makes it as though I’m having a constant period too. I also had an ER visit in there too so I’m ready to feel better lol.

[McBenny]

Jul 3, 2024 8:06:34 GMT -6 jaygee said:

You probably already know this but i was told high FSH could be common after receiving hormones whether in HRT or birth control.

Some other physical conditions like arthritis can result in a higher (or lower) FSH too. 

[GhoatMonket]

Jul 5, 2024 16:17:29 GMT -6 McBenny said:

Jul 3, 2024 8:06:34 GMT -6 jaygee said:

You probably already know this but i was told high FSH could be common after receiving hormones whether in HRT or birth control.

Some other physical conditions like arthritis can result in a higher (or lower) FSH too. 

Also FSH needs to be tested on a specific cycle date (preferably day 3).

[jaygee]

Jul 5, 2024 19:17:19 GMT -6 GhoatMonket said:

Jul 5, 2024 16:17:29 GMT -6 McBenny said:

You probably already know this but i was told high FSH could be common after receiving hormones whether in HRT or birth control.

Some other physical conditions like arthritis can result in a higher (or lower) FSH too. 

Also FSH needs to be tested on a specific cycle date (preferably day 3).

Yeah this was just an emergency draw because of a medical situation I was having so we will repeat in a couple of months on the right day. My guess is it will be even higher but we will see.

[GhoatMonket]

Jul 6, 2024 6:59:21 GMT -6 jaygee said:

Jul 5, 2024 19:17:19 GMT -6 GhoatMonket said:

Also FSH needs to be tested on a specific cycle date (preferably day 3).

Yeah this was just an emergency draw because of a medical situation I was having so we will repeat in a couple of months on the right day. My guess is it will be even higher but we will see.

It's done on cycle day 3 because it goes up after that.

Making a diagnosis of that timing (2 weeks after ending BCP) is sus and I'm glad they are sending you elsewhere. You were essentially at ovulation when it is highest in a cycle and will always be considered "high" compared to a CD3 benchmark.