When all my symptoms first started I was really scared i was pregnant...i am divorced and have three kids currently laid off from my job and this would have been really bad news for me. I am taking birth control and I had my usual period right on time and even tested last week and it was negative...but I just keep worrying that maybe it was wrong. I have peri symtpoms like insomnia, night sweats and a lot of anxiety..the ones that make me worry I am pregnant is the nausea and breast tenderness ....i even spotted yesterday during my second week of bcps...I know I am not...but I keep feeling really apprehensive about it.

Any input would be appreciated.

Hi alexsmom:

Please try not to worry. The symptoms you describe, I go through them frequently because of peri. And you are right it seems like being pregnant. You have done everything short of going to the doctor. Maybe you should go see him just to be sure and that will give you piece of mind.

I hope that you are feeling better and this helps you feel not so alone. Hugs to you.
Jeaninne

Thank you so much.....I am feeling much better this evening....when i think about it rationally...which is hard when you are in a constant state of anxiety I know I am not...I am having alot of muscle aches and pains today...chest wall pain...shoulder pain....left arm pain...this whole thing is a pain in the butt...that is about the only place I am not aching this evening..lol

It sounds very much like peri to me.I am also on bcp,and they do not take away all the symptoms.Try to take a nice hot bath and rest.GOD-bless

I have taken my share of pregnancy tests, just to reassure myself. I'm not on the pill, but do use birth control. But when I started skipping periods, I got freaked out. Like you, I had the nausea and sore breasts. But.....not pregnant, thank goodness, because at 47 that is not something I would want to deal with!

I have read on the boards that even though you are on BC pills, they sometimes cannot keep up with your fluctuating hormones and you still may get some peri symptoms, just like Lady E said. Hope your muscle pains ease up. Take care and try not to worry!!

I read somewhere the peri is a "second puberty" in terms of the often unpredictable effects of hormones rising, falling and going this way and that. What you're describing is very hormonal, and thus, peri. Breathe and try and "let it go" (I know, easier said than done). Do something good for yourself - a nice warm bath, cup of cocoa, buy a favorite magazine to enjoy, etc. Hang in there. kathleent

I am on bcp;s too and sometimes they deem great and then others, they dont' cut it at all. We have these nutty hormones that change by the minute and nothing can keep up. It will get better, Hang tough.

Hi alexsmom,
I got pregnant at 40 and I too had a very light period. I had no idea that I could have gotten pregnant especially since I had a miscarriage 4 months prior to that. Night sweats were NEVER a symptom for me while pregnant. Only after I started to hit serious peri/meno symptoms. Also, it's highly unlikely the pregnance test would be incorrect. I was so shocked and did not believe the test was accurate so I took it about 6 times! That was expensive. Although possible, pregnacy declines drastically in your 40's. That's why invitro is so popular with the Stars in Hollywood. I have no idea how at my age I was able to conceive twice but thats pretty slim odds. I have more nausea now going through peri than I ever have in my life. Oh, and the breast tenderness was way worse in peri than pregnancy. Relax, go take a urine test at your doctors, or just do what I do. Buy two different brands of pregnancy tests and test away. I have had to do this even as of two months ago and I am going to be 49!!!! I still freak out about a late in life pregnancy.

Thank you all so much for your reassuring words...they do make me feel much better. I actually had a really rough night last night...woke up twice with night sweats...my hair was even damp from them. I have cut out the caffiene and it seems that that has helped my breast tenderness some...they aren't hurting nearly as badly now. I want to get cut back on sugar..but seems like I have been craving sweets the past few days....

I actually did have a urine test done at a doctors office and it was negative too...it was on the second day of my blank pills so I am pretty sure it would have shown up if I was...

Thanks again to everyone for helping me through this...I am so glad I found this site.