You Are Not Crazy….Just Perimenopausal
Did you ever get old overnight?
Where did these wrinkles come from? How come I can’t read without squinting? Why does my family think I am a bi&*@? Is it hot in here? Why can’t I sleep? When is my period going to come .. or stop? Why do I eat the same but gain weight?
Am I crazy? No, you are just in perimenopause, my dear.
The really crazy thing is when you go to talk to your doctor about it he tells you, ”There is nothing wrong with you” or “You just have to live with it.”
That is simply not true and I think part of the reason why Susan Somers and bioidentical hormones have become so popular. The doctors are not listening, so patients are going to what appears “safer and more natural” which I hate to say, is not necessarily true.
First, what is perimenopause?
Perimenopause may begin as what appears to be increasing moodiness and irritability and is often accompanied by erratic periods, some of which can be quite heavy. The ovaries will also start to wind down in a sporadic manner producing normal estrogen one month and low levels the next. Low levels of estrogen account for most of the symptoms of menopause.
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What a great article! I've been in the throes of perimenopause for probably 5 or 6 years now -- it just took me a while to figure it out. About two years ago I started on Yaz and am so grateful that I did. It has made a huge positive impact on my life in many ways. I would encourage any women in their 30's or 40's who are suffering from PMS, heavy bleeding, hot flashes, etc., to talk to their doctor about supplements that are mentioned in the above article. There are a lot of options to make perimenopause much easier.
I'd like to know how POST-menopause can be made easier, lol! This is pure angst for me.
I feel for you..... if perimenopause is this challenging, I don't even want to think about the beyond.....
What I find funny is that my mom, who turns 80 in a couple of weeks, claims she never went through all the weird stuff I've been going through. To listen to her, it sounds like menopause hit one day, lasted a little while, then was over. She's in pretty good shape, so, who knows!
I wish I would have known about perimenopause before I entered into it! I suffered needlessly for several years.... had bouts of rage and palpitations, got sick every 2 or 3 months, slept horribly.... when just a little bit of over-the-counter progesterone cream could have helped! When I finally figured out what was going on and started using progesterone, it was like a little miracle. Later on when I reached menopause, I started supplementing estradiol and had a similar miraculous effect. I'm angry that information about perimenopause is not disseminated to young women, and I'm angry that most doctors view perimenopause and menopause as a "natural" part of life to be ignored and suffered through. Perimenopause is the beginning of ovarian failure and menopause is the actual failure. Doctors would not dismiss the failure of any other organ.
Kristin, you might want to consider getting off of YAZ and onto bioidential hormones. If you are still perimenopausal, progesterone might give you just the relief you need. Pro-Gest is a good brand, it's very inexpensive, only cost me about $8/month. Do your research and consider supplementing estradiol when you are near or at the point of menopause. Estradiol is not only excellent at mitigating the vasomotor symptoms (e.g., hot flashes), it also can provide a great mood boost.
alysiak, I think that women who are well past menopause don't recall correctly their symptoms. I remember my mother having bad sweating hot flashes and horrible insomnia in her early 40's, but if you ask her about it today at age 79 she'll tell you she hardly had any symptoms at all. Not sure if these women are choosing to have selective memories or their memory is just unintentionally faulty. I doubt I will ever forget the 13 days of multi-times-per-hour sweating hot flashes that I went through before I begged my doctor for a prescription for EstroGel!