YET ONE MORE QUESTION...... - Menopause Message Board

ds4832 · 04-24-2003, 08:29 PM

I know the answer i'm mostly going to get is "go see your gyn" (i'm one step ahead..appt on 5/1)..anyway, my question to all of you who have gone through or are going through perimenopause/menopause, what were the first symptoms that you experienced?..also, does when your mother went through menopause really affect when you'll go through menopause?..i ask this because I think i've started the perimenopausal stage of my life, however i'm only 35..my mom stopped her menses at 37..my symptoms are very bad mood swings (usually starts 1 wk prior to period and lasts throughout my period), change in menstrual flow (very light),very little cramping, if any,(used to get cramps with every period), breast tenderness during/prior to period is very seldom, very low sex drive, sudden hot flashes (i used to think it was due to bp fluctuation but the last couple i've had i've been able to check bp which was normal), and here recently (over the last 2 months) i've been waking up from sleep wringing wet with sweat..last night for example i woke up sweating, hair was wet, shirt was wet, etc...am i nuts or does this sounds like it could be the beginning of peri/menopause?..like i said, i have an appt with gyn soon--is he going to take my symptoms serious considering my age?...thanks to everyone in advance for sharing their thoughts...stay well....

mlgable · 04-25-2003, 12:03 AM

For me the night sweats was the first thing I really noticed. Then along came the nasty mood swings before my period and finally came the erratic periods and some hot flashes. It is great that you are seeing your GYN about this but remember that your regular doc can also handle things like this which might be beneficial especially if it takes a while to get appointments with your GYN. My healthcare provider handles all of my medical needs unless something comes up that requires someone more specialized.

ds4832 · 04-25-2003, 12:23 AM

thanks for your input..i forgot to mention that my periods vary anywhere from 20 days to 31 days..used to be they were every 28 days, almost to the minute....i had my yearly check-up last week (decided to let my GP do it since I was there) and everything came back normal..i made an appt today for 5/1 to see my GYN for another problem i'm having and figure since i'm going to be there anyway i might as well run all this by him..

tagger · 04-26-2003, 09:50 PM

Sounds like your on your way to menopause. Lately I've been hearing more and more women going into menopause early. (and I thought I was early at 47yrs!) My mother started early (about 42yrs) and had a hard time (hot flashes, mood swings etc. but HER mother, my grandmother started at about 50yrs and sailed though it easily. Personally I'm not enjoying menopause much and I think I was peri-menopausal much earlier than I was even aware of. I'm on anti-depressants and wonder in hindsight if all along it was simply hormones raging! I was taking Black Cohosh for the hot flashes and it seemed to do the trick but recently there has been a warning that it has some possibly dangerous side effects so I stopped. One thing that really works for me is Evening Primrose Oil for the mood swings. About 3-4 days ago I was crashing bigtime, crying, hysterical all that. Then I remembered that I had forgotten to take my Evening Primrose Oil for a few days. Went right back on it and almost overnight I became calm again. I tried the HRT (app 3 mths) didn't like the side effects (and the new kind of scary data) so went off it. If your gyno's good he/she will discuss with you the different ways to "manage" peri-menopause and menopause. Any woman you talk to to manges it a different way and you have to research your options and find out what works for you. There are some excellent books out, I don't think I can give you titles or authors in this forum but check out your bookstore or library. You will be amazed at all the info and research there is out there. I've been fully menopausal for app 1yr now and am still waiting for that post menopausal "zest" that I've read about! There is a menopause forum on this health board which might give you some more insight....Good luck!...Tagger

tagger · 04-26-2003, 09:54 PM

Sorry, thought I was on the "all topics" board. We are ON the menopause forum that I mentioned. Did I mention "brain fog"?....Tagger