I am really confused, and to be honest a bit worried - can anyone help me out? Sorry to make my first post a call for help!

I think I might be starting Peri as I have many typical symptoms, but one particular symptom has me baffled....to explain, I need to waffle about some background stuff.

I am coming up to 42 (my mum was around 40/41 when she went Peri - she suffered badly for 15 years!!!). I have been plagued with odd health problems for about 2 years but am only now wondering if many are Peri symptoms: I'll list them in a tick.

I always suffered from very heavy, very painful, and short (apprx 24 days) menstrual cycles - from the very start. I also always had painful ovulation with wind and clear discharge. I'd also get large, red, sore "hormone" spots.

At 31 (Jan 97), I had my uterus and cervix removed as I had developed several large fibroids which were unoperable and I couldn't cope any more with the pain. I was warned about this bringing on early menopause. After a year or two, ALL ovulation pain went. I assumed ovulation had stopped completely. I also found my hormonal spots went away. That said, I did not have any glaring menopause symptoms. I DID have odd health problems which can be attributed to menopause (itchy skin, palputations, sweats) but these were not typical in pattern or intensity. They can also be explained as related to other health problems I already suffered from, as well as a very stresful personal life (husband had cancer and died being just one).

Fast forward to this September and what happens? Out of the blue, I have a painful ovluation (right side) - along with the wind and discharge. 22 days later (not far off my old cycle) I have a painful left side ovulation with wind and dishcarge!! It was unmistakingly ovulation both times. That got me wondering if I was going through menopause but felt I couldn't be as (1) I thought I had stopped ovulating 8 years ago and (2) DON'T YOU ACTUALLY CEASE OVULATING (OR AT LEAST OVULATE LESS) WITH PERI RATHER THAN RESTART IT OR RESTART TO PAIN ASSOCIATED WITH IT?

I became worried about things like ovarian cysts and cancer, but the pattern wasn't typical of those. Now, as I learn more, I realise I may have been having Peri symptoms for some time....and that new ones have begun since this recent ovulation.

My symptoms include:

+ Feeling hot, and sweating very easily on exertion (had them for about 5 years so they may be just me - my grandad and aunt had them too)....lately, they have become more pronounced during sleep and I feel hot and stuffy in bed.
+ Terrible sleep problems. Several anxiety dreams EVERY NIGHT WITHOUT FAIL for several months. Awful feelings of dread and panic whilst trying to get to sleep. These feelings are independent and not down to fear of the nightmares. Mostly, I get intense fear of death (my own and my darling dogs').
+ Nausea spells (had them for about 4 years but they used to be brief and possibly IBS related). They have, in the past week, become more intense and can last for hours.
+ Confusion - I feel fuzzy sometimes and forgetful. But then I have been really stressed out.
+ Diarrhoea. I (out of the blue) developed what the docs say is a milk intolerance, one year ago. As a result, I get diarrhoea most days even with moderate milk consumption (yet I have been a heavy milk consumer my whole life with no problem).
+ Though only a couple, I have started getting hormone spots again.
+ I feel aggitated a lot - can't settle down and relax. I do tend to be of this nature anyway, but's it's far worse then normal.
+ I have had occassional palpulations but they are infrequent - maybe once every couple of months.
+ I can get realy bad feelings of rage but don't act on them - though they come in response to a trigger rather than being unprovoked. Again, I've put this down to long term stress as the past few years have had several extreme personal difficulties.
+ I do have the itchy skin problems but they have been around for a few years and may be just me. My sensitive skin has gotten worse over the past couple of years though - especially in the genital area which has frequent flare ups.
+ About a year ago, I began getting multiple joints crackling and hurting....but I do appear to have arthritis problems anyway.

I am really confused - mainly due to the ovulation side of things which goes against what I have learned about menopause.

I am seeing my doctor next week and plan to ask for a blood test, but if anyone can help me understand things in the meanitme I would really appreciate it.

Can I say how pleased I was to find this website. It was such a relief to find people here who are having the same kinds of experiences as me and to discover I am not alone and also not barmy in thinking something is really going on.

Thanks for any help you can give, and best wishes to each of you.

JULIE
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Crikey, somehow I managed to create this thread twice! I am sorry about that. Just ignore the other one.

Hello Julie,

It's funny that once we start looking back over the past few years we can see a trend in the symptoms of peri. I'm sure that at the age of 42 you are there in one way or the other. I'm 49, and if I look back to my late 30's, in hinds sight I can see so many things that were changing but I had not attributed them to peri.

When I started full blown peri, I was still having periods like clockwork. The difference for me was, I was "feeling" like PMS all month long. What I suppose happens as we are heading towards menopause, is our hormones start to fluctuate dramatically. With all that happening, very soon we start to have all sorts of problems.

I was still ovulating each month, so no matter, I still felt awful. Seemed like overnight, things got worse. I had IBS come and go, indigestion (which I never had before), milk intolerance (which I never had either), hemroids (yuck), fatigue, anxiety, unable to get to sleep, and lots of irritated moods, yes big burst's of anger (that you try to contain). It seemed like it just hits and the next thing you know, you are having the crazies.

The last thing to happen in my experience was heart palps (that was awful) and then finally the hot flashes. It wasn't until all this happened, that I started to skip a period here and there. And that is where I am at present.

So I think that peri isn't just about not ovulating, it is when hormones are in flux. Our bodies are in transition.

I also have times when my ovaries can "hurt" and feel like a knife is stabbing inside. But it isn't all the time, so if you have severe pain, get it checked out to be sure. Welcome to our site, you will learn so much, take care.

Juliann