Hi all,

I don't post much but visit regularly and really appreciate this board. I go through much of the same as everyone else. I am 40, started these feelings 2 years ago. Hit one time, then about 6months of quiet then it hit again and has never left. Tachycardia, numbness, headaches, ovulation pain, fatigue, heavy periods, light periods, anxiety, hot feelings in pit of stomach, goosbumps, shivers, teeth chills, and a whole lot of other symptoms. I used to just get these symptoms almost exactly mid cycle or the day before my period. Now I get these most every day. I feel like I can not even work. Never no when my heart will race and the chills and all will come on. I've worn heart monitors and the cardio says it is just sinus tachy. Of course you are glad when they say it is benign, but it certainly does not help dealing with it for hours at a time.

Of course no dr. will admit peri since my blood levels come back o.k. though over the course of years I have come back post meno at times, that was before my last child!

So do we have any clue on how long most actually go through peri before actual meno? When we might possibly look forward to relief? I've been seeing a doctor of osteopath and have changed my diet and adding supplements. Hopefully he will have some other clues to addressing this problem.

Ahh, if only the dr's had this problem, they might be a bit more sympathetic.

Hi Mom4 - I don't want to depress you further but it can go on for quite a number of years maybe 10-15 - but then you could be one of the lucky ones who gets it over with quickly!. I am now 42, started having migraines out of the blue at 37, but most of my peri symptoms began when I was 40. My sister is 50 and is not yet post meno. Her periods started doing strange things when she was around 40 but haven't stopped yet. Mine are still regular but I am starting to get shorter cycles. I am therefore expecting to be in for the long haul!

I have read that many people find their worst symptoms do settle down to a lower level. (I have experienced this with anxiety already) - but sometimes only to be replaced by another symptom (in my case palpitations). Sorry it isn't great news but Power Surge is a wonderful site full of wonderful supportive people and we will all get through this together!!

OH I AM SO FRUSTRATED!!!

I went to my gyn and asked for a blood test for peri. Of course my test came back normal.

She told me I could start a birth control pill anyway which may or may not help my symptoms. If it's not hormonal than WHY does my body get so hot I feel like jumping out of my skin. When my heart starts racing because I ate how is that anxiety? When my mind is relatively quiet and I still can't sleep or I have a good dream and wake up with my heart pounding...what is it if not peri.

I daydream about having a peaceful nights rest. I vaguely remember what that was like. I used to sleep like a baby for 9 hours.

I also feel like I'm losing my mind some days (like today.)

It shouldn't be this hard. It's like we all have some mystery disease that the doctors never heard of.

Crazy.

Hope you all are doing better than I am today.

Lisa

Lisa-

Did your gyno take your FSH on day 3 of your cycle? I had elevated FSH last year and was told that I would be going through meno sooner rather than later. Then this year, my FSH was not so high. I'm almost 48.

There is no "normal" in peri and only dumb doctors use that phrase. All they can say is that during this particular day of your cycle, your hormones are not in the perimenopausal range. Next month, could be a different story.

I'm so frustrated, I'm thinking of trying another AD. I wish I knew of one that really addressed the anxiety and the depression. I am so sick of going in circles.

I am so frustrated too!

I'm not sure how old your are, but if you are having symptoms in your forties, I don't know how anyone could say you are not at least in peri. I don't know why its so hard to diagnose the obvious.

I ask my GP to do labs last year to see if I was in peri, he ask me if I plan to take hrt's? I was pretty sure I would not. He said then there is no reason to do labs, since I was still having periods, more then likely they would be normal.
AND when you stop having periods you know your post so why do labs if your not going to take hrt's? I really like him but thought Oh but I want to know???

So I ask my endocrinologist, he order a fsh last (April 2005), it was slightly high so he told me I was going into menopause. he was pushing hrt's.
Few months later saw my gyno, showed him the labs from endo>>gyno said OH that's not the right test, only the estriol will truly tell if you menopausal. He ask if I was still having period, I am. So he said you can't take hrt's now while still having periods, so why worry about labs?
he said I could get to much estrogen (since our hormones spike at times). Which would make me feel worse!

So I'm pretty much Brain dead at this point!

Their all men, don't agree on anything and driving me nuts!

SOOOOOO whom is right>> I don't care, I'm in PERI-MENOPAUSE HELL!


I wonder since many of us are having extra anxiety, if the adrenal gland is kicking in to make estrogen would that not make our level/labs be normal? So it's not a true reading so to speak?

I saw a news report the other day that said if a women is having hot flashes or night sweats, she was in perimenopause, it doesn't matter what the labs say!

Oh I read this one day:

Peri-menopasue is like having a baby> it takes as long as it takes!

it just all seems so hopeless!

Snowmoon,
I don't know why you can't take hrt until your periods start?
BHRT (estrace and prometrium) have really helped me. My sleep is still bad, but I feel much better than I did before. Is there a specific reason that you don't want to take hormones?

That this is something all women go through and yet no one seems to know anything...it's crazy.

hello just found this site and want to know when all this start im 38 almost 39 and i wake up and i have numbness and it goes away i always think im dying and around my period it gets worse until the end i had surgery two years ago to remove a football size sists sorry spelled wrong could i be going thru what everyone is talking about premenopause someone told me that was amtrh you just go into menapause help please