Doctors and Menopause

Women's health
1

Hi Ladies!

I was just wondering, since there are probably millions of us out there going through this process how anew get the doctors to see that these symptoms are for real and that this is real medical case? If we have all of these symptoms in common and many others and we're all expressing this to our doctors then why can't they see that we need help in this area? All they want to do is give us AD's or BC. A lot of us at this time in our lives are sensitive to the side effects of these medicines and they cause more problems than what we already have. When are the medical professionals going to wake up and take notice of what we are saying? We need help in other ways besides medicine. Sometimes just a little reassurance that we are not alone and offer more therapeutic ways of coping with all of this.

2

Absolutely agree!

3

I feel really sorry for those who are going through this who do not know that it is peri and menopause causing these symptoms.

No doctor ever suggested that any of my symptoms could be peri related. I didn't really know what peri was until I had the menopause. I wasn't expecting to get any symptoms until menopause had actually happened!

So I was just googling each symptom and getting no where. Like many women on these sites I was convinced I had something terrible.

When I found this and other meno sites. I just started googling my symptom followed by menopause.

I was shocked to discover most of the searches came back with a menopause site or forum.

The doctors must know that women with this or that problem and in the right age bracket are probably in perimenopause. My GP is a lady a few years older than myself so she must have known but never said anything.

I think it's because they are quite reluctant to prescribe HRT unless you are suffering from the classic hot flushes and night sweats.

During my reading I came across the association with depression. I had this from early peri and kept telling the doctors I have nothing to be depressed about.

Thankfully it's lifted so much already after about 8 weeks on HRT. But I am really angry. I have been this way since 2005 reaching the peak of it around 2009. So I feel 10 years of my life have been wasted and I keep wondering what could have been. There have been points during it all that me and my husband have argued and screamed at each other him accusing me of being a hypochondriac and me telling him he doesn't even know me. Divorce has been on the cards several times(We got together in 2001 married in 2002).

I'm now just hoping this is all going to go away. There are some things HRT hasn't improved so far but they are not dragging me down like they were because I'm so much happier and relaxed (I didn't realise just how awfully anxious and on edge I had become until it began to disappear during the first few weeks of HRT).

As I'm only 8 weeks in there is still time for more improvement. I have bad insomnia and I'm hoping that will get better this is probably my longest standing symptom it came on a few years before the depression so I have my fingers crossed it will go just it may take a bit longer.

What can you do though? This is what I am doing whenever I have some spare time. Writing on this forum so hopefully helping others so that they know they're not alone and hoping that if any of them feel the way I did and stumble upon this they can elect to try HRT.

I would have tried arsenic if I thought it would have helped!

4

I totally agree...

5

Hi,

This is kind of off topic but how do you start a new discussion? I am going crazy everyday with all of my different symptoms. Yesterday I had a blood vessel burst in my left eye. Got so scared. Checked my blood pressure from home, slightly elevated from anxiety and a painful ovarisn cyst I have on left ovary. Anyway now I think I have endometriosis and I would really like to start a new discussion on that topic for more information. I will be 49 in April and my periods have gotten more painful in the last two years. I just don't bleed very much though. Anyway God Bless. Thanks for any extra info you can help with. Like you I'm trying to get through this naturally, just so very hard sometimes.

Debbie

6

Hi ZigAngie,

I'm at my wits end with all of this. I will be 49 in April and like you I feel like perimenopause has taken so much of my life away. I don't even recognize myself at all anymore. I have been trying to get through this with supplements, acupuncture and etc but I just keep missing out on life. Anxiety and panic is so so bad. I'm really interested in HRT. Sounds like it's helping you. My GP has only offered Premarin and my OBGYN has only offered the NUVARING. Where did you go for HRT? What did they give you? Any help would be greatly greatly appreciated. I feel so depressed about losing years of my life to this.

But I have so much anxiety and panic I'm barely alive.

Debbie

7

To start your own discussion you can scroll down to the bottom of this discussion and there should be a green tab that says "start your own discussion."

8

OK the GP gave me premarin in the first place and somewhere in the foggy brain a light came on and I really don't know who told me, if I had read about it or where it came from but I just knew it was horse urine. I googled it it's just so unethical I threw it straight in the bin.

At that time I thought it was the only type you could get.

I was reading another menopause forum and read about livial (tibolone) which is synthetic. I just went and asked my GP if I could try that one especially as it has some testosterone in it as well and I was suffering bad with not low libido but no libido whatsoever.

After 2 weeks on it my libido did improve a bit but at 3 weeks into it I suffered some horrible breathing problem. At first I was told to carry on taking it by one doctor (I had several emergency appointments) then to stop immediately by the next one I saw.

I'm really not sure if this was the livial that was the problem or if it was unrelated. I was horribly unwell from April till August. With breathing difficulties and swelling ankles and abdomen.

After a lot of tests x ray etc. The consultant thinks it may have been some sort of virus.

Well I wasn't going to try livial again just in case.

Then on another site I read about Professor John Studd and found that he recommends Oestrogel and Utrogestan. The estrogen part is absorbed through your skin so missing the liver and digestive system and they are plant based and bio identical, also available on the NHS.

I just went and saw my GP told her about what I'd read and could I please try that one.

She said "oh professor studd? I'm surprised he's still practising, he was the menopause guru when I was training. "

Of the HRT she said oh yes this is much more natural."

I did want to ask why then I had been offered premarin but had already read somewhere that that is what you will probably be offered if you just go and ask for HRT.

She won't however prescribe testosterone off licence which is annoying as I love it and have to buy my own. I'm not sure if a different GP at my practice would do.

I am considering an appointment with a private clinic.

Hope this helps and hope I haven't written anything that will need to be moderated.

Emis Moderator comment: I have removed product/company names as we do not allow repeated posting of these in the forums. If users wish to exchange these details please use the Private Message service.

http://patient.uservoice.com/knowledgebase/articles/398331-private-messages

9

My lengthy reply has been moderated. Just ask your GP if you can try a plant based HRT.

10

I'm like you, I didn't know all of these symptoms were associated with menopause. I had never even heard of perimenopause until I found this forum. I had only heard about the heat flashes and mood swings but no one ever told me that your body can go through all of these hellish symptoms. I did just like you, I googled my symptoms and this forum popped up. I tell you it has been a tremendous blessing. I really started to think I had some terrible illness. The women on here have been so supportive.