hi everyone, the last year has been worst year of my life. I started having symptoms in my late 30s. fatigue, anxiety like I never had before, insomnia. I got sick at 37 the day before my period started that left me with loss of appetite, off balance, sensitive to sound. i eventually felt better but never the same. I would wake up in the morning with flu like symptoms, diarrhea, watery red eyes and burning in my arms. went on birth control and felt a little better. but then on my 40th bday weekend i got really sick with nausea and fatigue and since then I.ve been pretty much debilitated. I had morning nausea for months, lost 40 lbs, gastritis and started having tons of Neuro symptoms with tingling, burning, numbness, even stinging. the adrenal surges and depression have been horrific. My skins changed, much thinner. my face is red, have malasma. my whole body is hot all the time now. have burning, stinging on my tonge, arms, hands and now legs. the scariest part is not being able to stand for long without feeling weird, dizzy and getting more hot with brain fog. them when I do sit down i have an overall feeling of malaise and just being ill. just from mopping the floor and vacuuming I can wake up the next day feeling dreadful with the burning, stinging, weakness and feeling unwell. it's ruined my life. thank God I work from home or i don't know what I'd do. I have 3 children, one grown who lives with me b.c of all this and 2 in high school. I.ve been to every doctor possible with no real answers so I know it has to be hormones but I still can't believe it. I.m almost 3 mos on BHRT and it's helped some but not nearly enough to stop the suffering and constant discomfort. I've never been this scared or suicidal in my life. I.m in the US but feel i relate more to the posts here. I.m so scared I won't get better or make it until I do. hugs to everyone out there suffering like this. i don't understand any of it :(
Hi Lkl2019,
We note from a recent post which you have made to our forum that you may be experiencing thoughts around self-harm. If we have misinterpreted your comments then we apologise for contacting you directly. But if you are having such thoughts then please note that you are not alone in this, and there are people out there that can help.
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Yes i am in the same boat as you are. Everything you described is the exact same thing i am doing.! I absolutely hate this! I have been up since 4:30am with nausea and a rolling gut, i cant eat. I forced a little food in yesterday but then i fought back vomit the whole day, i dont have the energy to repeat that today. Also last night i suddenly felt dizzy and like i would faint for about 2 hours, my legs felt like they didnt want to move when i walked it was scary. But you arent alone, I feel like im at the end if my rope too. I have no life anymore, i cant eat or go anywhere to do anything, i look like a skeleton from all the weight ive lost. I want to take zoloft to numb my feelings but it makes my nausea 100xs worse! I feel trapped
i'm in tears reading your post , i just want to come and hug you. i have been going through many of the debilitating symptoms for 8 yrs now and have some very dark times BUT you mustn't give up as good days will come and your life is very precious. keep posting on this site, believe me its a life saver.
Your not alone we all get through this as best we can by talking and sharing how we feel. i too feel very strange when i stand a while but im getting used to it and you will.
we're all here for you and know how your feeling.
may i ask have you a husband/ partner and children or are you alone?
sending you a comforting hug x
what type and how much hrt are you using??
Hi dear
Ur Not alone my dear.
me too suffering alot from long time .. My peri started at late 30 ..i have lots of symptoms too..suffering alot ..left my job because of off balance issues....home bound from 1 year ....donot want to meet anyone. Head pressure, dizziness ,fatigue, leg pain , migranes headaches, weakness , mood swings , body pain, tremors and list goes on and on.....every day new problem.......Its Harmones effect ..😭😭
Life is very Precious dear..This phase of life will end soon..Be Positive ...Better days on the way ....Take care of ur self..have healthy food and lots of water
Hang is there my dear friend this difficult phase will end one day and u will be urself again .
Its long dark tunnel but yes it has bright light too on other end ...Believe in God ..We will cross this tunnel and new fantastic life waiting for all of us .
when hormones will settle in body ..u start feeling better...how long it take no one knows as we all r unique...we too suffering ..and waiting for better days.
I pray for all of us . May God give all of us power to overcome this tought phase of life.
Take care
Yes, all my symptoms. Have you been tested for viruses like reactivated EbV? Lyme Disease? Have your periods started to change? Since my periods started skipping my symptoms aren't as severe but still suffer every day with various symptoms. Other women have been like us and have gotten better once in full menopause, so please hold on to hope that we will too. I'm in FL, where are you?
Lkl2019 Not sure if your BHRT contains testosterone or not but it should. What kind are you on? Creams? Pellets really do work nice and are generally pretty effective. Also is your doctor knowledgeable about hormone replacement and what is going on with women at this stage of their life? This is the most important thing you can do is get "the right" doctor on board. I would strongly suggest a holistic doctor that does hormone replacement. Insurance does not cover holistic doctors or compounded BHRT or pellet therapy but if it brings health and happiness back in your life it is well worth the out of pocket you will pay. I can't say this loud enough! My own general doctor, who was a young female was not on board and really didn't have a clue so I moved on to a holistic and have never looked back. Many holistic doctors have left their practices as medical doctors to go into holistic. Those are the ideal ones I would suggest finding. I know the symptoms your having all too well. I am 59, full menopause, no periods in 4 years and I feel great. My symptoms started at 42 and my periods didn't stop until 55 and that's when things got worse. I'm so glad I got on hormones right away at 55. Wish I would have done it much earlier. I started on compounded creams and now on pellets. A good doctor should be checking all your labs and ck them regularly to make sure you are getting the right fit for what your body needs. Testosterone is a very important part of the mix. You shouldn't have to be suffering the way you are. You have a lot of living ahead of you and you can get your health and happiness back.
hi Lk, i am 7 years post menopause & i really didnt start getting all the charming symptoms until really about 4 years ago. i am pretty much the "the Burning Sensation Queen" - i get it everywhere! i used to think it was plunging hormones, now i am wondering if it is just another symptom of anxiety. i have or had every symptom you describe, so you are not alone - i thought it was interesting you said about your red/watery eyes...i was thinking the blepharitis was being caused by some kind of allergy either environmental, allergy or food, but maybe its just being caused by menopause! i have been to opthamologist & dermatologist & am on every steroid eye drop/antibiotic etc - ugh! my eyes are crusty in the morning & tear all day long! As for your red face, have you been diagnosed with rosacea? its very common for women to get it in menopause, i have it & also ocular rosacea - the only thing different about us is, i look at food & gain weight - i do get nauseaus from anxiety, but once that wave is over i do eat. i literally couldnt function for a year 1/2, but when the extremely achy legs kicked in in January & i feared that i would be in a walker soon, i enrolled in gentle yoga classes, water aerobic & some strength training - i must say, i still get all the symptoms, but seem to be able to cope a bit better - for me, menopause has wrecked havoc on my nervous system & my coping mechanisms flew out the window - exercise & eating well & keeping hydrated does help - good luck! try to face the anxiety instead of fighting it, remember, its only a chemical release, it will not kill you, once you take away the power, it becomes less scary -
Sister you are NOT alone. When I read your post it makes me want to cry but also very angry. We all suffer here on these boards and the world, the doctors don't realize how serious of an issue this is, because if they did, and took it seriously and cared they'd be working on better treatments. And also treat patients more respectfully. I know in the UK they at least have menopause leave so are starting to take it more seriously. But I think in the US it's still a joke ... "lady problems". Even female OBYGNs are often callous and dismissive of symptoms based on my experience. And there are those few women that brag they had no issues or didn't go through it until 60. But I think the majority of us are suffering greatly. I used to be a journalist and I am thinking of trying to pitch a story about this to a major US health magazine. People need to know about our suffering to prompt them to do something. Women are leaving their jobs or marriages because of this. This is not okay. This is not minor. This is not like what men go through yet they have viagra and plenty of help and attention. Hang in there lady! You are not alone. Come to these boards. I have never found a better support group.
Do the story!!! I live here in the US and it is a running joke. We ladies lose our jobs when we become sick from peri or menopause they just say its a mental illness and im sick of hearing it! For years i thought my husband was on my side and believed me but then the other day he just pretty much said he thinks my problems are all mental!! I wanted to die! So now i dont talk to him about how im feeling or if anything is wrong, i put on a fake face and pretend i feel great and apologize for my "mental problem"!! It isnt right!
I'm going to work on a pitch this weekend Brandy! If anyone bites I will come back to get your ladies help/stories. For the pitch I will keep everything anonymous.
I pray you can get this done and someone will listen. My fingers are crossed!
Hi I understand how you must feel..i was once in your shoes believe me when I say I was. As I sit here two years later Im no where near where I was two 1/2 years ago. I can say that I am much better..Im not 100% but no where near where I was. It does get better. I know you say that you 're on hrt or you on hrt or bhrt? Have you heard of cycling your bhrt? I will pm you a group on FB that a nurse practitioner has on cycling the hormones. She says the reason Why many women do not have good results because it's being cycling wrong. Many are having great results from.her. Will pm you the info if you 're interested.
You say you were horribly sick too and you finally feel better, how look were you sick for? This started for me about 8 years ago total but the hardcore constant nausea that seems to never go away started about 2-3 years ago. Its like i never get a break from it, like yesterday i was too sick to eat all day finally by evening the nausea went away enough for me to eat peanut butter amd crackers although i still didnt have an appetite, but i wake up this morning with no appetite and nauseated all over again! I dont think ive had one full day when i dont have nausea or loss of appetite and i feel like i cant take it anymore! If i knew this hell would get better maybe i could try to hang in there but its getting to be way too much now!
That should have said how long were you sick for, i hate their typing system!
Good Morning Sakura, If that magazine ends up doing the story, please private message me, and I will give you my information. I don’t need to be anonymous, they can have my name, number, email etc... and are welcome to interview me. That’s an excellent idea… Good luck ! xo
Nice to know ur better mam. ur reply gave me motivation that hang is there.
Could you private message me the nurse info too? I can't find a doc who has a clue about how to balance my hormones, esp without causing massive weight gain. Thanks!!!
Lkl2019 I feel your pain. When I was 36 years old, I got very sick. I started having panic attacks all out of the blue. My periods would come one month and skip the next. They did that on and off for the next several years. I would get real sick at my stomach and couldn't eat anything. I started losing weight. I was so sick that year that I thought I was going to die, and with the panic attacks, I thought it would be a welcome relief. They put me on medication for my panic attacks and they actually helped me for about a year. After that, they didn't work so well and tried me on other meds, but they made me feel worse, so I stopped taking anything. I went to the doctor, and he checked my thyroid and did several other blood tests on me, but everything came back good. They just thought I was suffering from depression and had an anxiety disorder. I finally found out that my hormones were causing all of my problems. I would have good days and bad days. I still do. I am 53 years old right now, and have had every symptom of peri that was on the list. I just try to deal with them as they come, and they do eventually leave. Please don't give up hope. There will be brighter days ahead. If you are feeling suicidal, you really do need to seek help. Nothing is worth harming yourself over. I saw where the moderator listed several organizations that can help you. Don't give up on yourself. We are all here and going through much the same thing. This forum has been a God send for me. Let us know you are ok. You will definitely be in my thoughts and prayers. Hugs for you. It does get better.