Hi, I"m LIsa, a new poster...

i'm 45...glad i found you guys..have had lyme disease in the past,and had been treated for past 2 and 1/2 years adn would stilll be treated, but I finally think my remaining symtoms are caused by perimenopause and I"ve been lurking here for a week now!

My main concern is my daily lightheadedness, wooziness and my occasional dizzy spells which last about 3 seconds and only come about every few weeks..I've noticed most of my symptoms ARE worse when i'm ovulating and right before my period...

i also have fullness sensation in my frontal head, anxiety feelings that suddenly came on this fall, a change in my periods in that they are suddenly much longer and heavier...really sensitive nipples all month, night sweats (thoguht this was lyme), can't sleep around ovulation and a few days before my period, have days or just moments where I feel very faint or weak, and have to sit down...

alot of this i can put up with...my biggest concern is this constant state of lightheadedness/wooziness and occasional dizziness..i'm a school nurse and have to function. I"m a single mom adn don't have the luxury to quit...L(wish i could, as i could sleep all day i think..lol)!

Any reasons WHY we get so dizzy etc..and what can I do to stop it? I am seeing an accupunturist /herbalogist which is just beginning to help...she is giving me herbs to brew which are supposed to be good for dizziness and to help balance out the hormones etc... but any other suggestions would be great...

I love this board..you guys have been a lifesaver for me in just this past week, I've been feeling like i'm going crazy with these rushes of adrenaline leading ot these anxiety feelings..thinking nutso!!

thanks in advance,

Nurselisa

Hi Nurselisa,

Welcome to Power-Surge!

When I first started with peri-menopause, I thought it was Lyme Disease!!! We live in tick-infested Maine, so it's easy to imagine this, given that some of the symptoms are the same.

All your symptoms sound familiar....

The lightheadedness is scary and upsetting, and I honestly don't know what helps. For me, it was trying to remain calm. I noticed it more during times when the anxiety was particularly high, but have heard others say it increases during specific times around their period.

Just a thought - you mention that your periods have intensified in length and flow (so did mine before I started easing off - I'm averaging a period every 6 months now). Is there a chance you might be a little anemic?

Sounds like you're getting some good help from your herbalist. There are also homeopathic remedies for these issues. A health-food store staffer could guide you there.

Wishing you well, and glad to have you aboard the Sisterhood Train....


Jacquie

Hello NurseLisa. Like yourself I've been dealing with this dizziness/lightheadedness/woosie/spacey feeling every since my perimenopausal symptoms went from mild to severe. Orginially, I was diagnosed with anxiety disorder until later on the doctors realized that my symptoms were hormonally related.

I don't know if I can help much since I'm still dealing with that woosie feeling, but I will share my experiences. I take a low dose bcp and I've noticed that the woosie/lightheaded/dizzy feeling is less intense the first couple of weeks on the pill. When I get to week 4 (placebo pills) the dizziness becomes really intense. Which is what I'm dealing with right now. I feel off balanced, spacey, lethargic and totally not myself. My vision seems different and I dear not turn my head too quickly.

I'm also taking Wellbutrin and a variety of vitamins and supplements which help make these symptoms tolerable. Of course I wish they would totally eliminate them, but I've come to the conclusion that only time will take care of that.

My co-worker who is 55 uses Vivelle estrogen patch and compounded progesterone which eliminates her lightheadedness and other symptoms. She says that if she forgets to change her Vivelle patch the first symptom to return in the lightheaded/dizzy sensation. Once she changes her patch this symptom quickly subsides.

Another co-worker uses the lowest dose Premarin and she doesn't have any symptoms at all. My mother also did well on Premarin, but I'm hesitant to try this form of hrt with all the recent controversary.

I will be following this post, because I'm really interested in totally eliminating this symptom from my life. Hopefully, someone will have some answers.

thanks for responding....the herbs do help a little bit...but the scary part is , I think I'm just beginning this roller coaster ride....does that mean that the dizziness etc..witll get WORSE, or does it stay the same and just occupy more of my month? I can't imagine it getting worse actually...every once in awhile i'll turn my head fast, or look down quickly, adn the room will move like 'wooooo' for about 3 seconds or so, then go back to normal...do you get those too? only about once a week for those...

I've had cat scans etc..thinking i've had a brain tumor, vestibular testing thiniking i had vertigo or menieres etc..i've been through it all...I was on abx for 2 aN D 1/2 years thinking the lyme was still around, but i think it's perimenopause after reading all your wonderul posts...i actually don't feel like i'm going crazy anymore!!

thanks again...

Lisa

thanks for responding....the herbs do help a little bit...but the scary part is , I think I'm just beginning this roller coaster ride....does that mean that the dizziness etc..witll get WORSE, or does it stay the same and just occupy more of my month? I can't imagine it getting worse actually...every once in awhile i'll turn my head fast, or look down quickly, adn the room will move like 'wooooo' for about 3 seconds or so, then go back to normal...do you get those too? only about once a week for those...

I've had cat scans etc..thinking i've had a brain tumor, vestibular testing thiniking i had vertigo or menieres etc..i've been through it all...I was on abx for 2 aN D 1/2 years thinking the lyme was still around, but i think it's perimenopause after reading all your wonderul posts...i actually don't feel like i'm going crazy anymore!!

thanks again...

Lisa

Hi Lisa,

For me, the dizziness did not get worse, in fact it has gotten better and has not returned thus far.

I found it was an off-and-on problem, probably just the kooky hormone changes going on all the time.

If it comes back, I'm going to assume it's going away again when things balance back out.

Good luck with this - it is challenging!


Jacquie

Hi Nurselisa
I read your post just now, and want to say that I have just the same symptoms as you! I also happen to be a nurse, although not working at present. I'm 49 and have been exactly as you discribe for the past 18 months. Had cat scan - ent vertigo tests etc. Also went to herbalist, which didnt help at all. Saw psychiatrist in case it was nervous breakdown, she said she didnt see any depression, maybe a bit of anxiety, but no treatment, just to see a neurologist and get full physical check. Saw him in January, he said this was to do with hormones, that it was a form of migraine ( m a d a) stands for migraine associated dizziness and anxiety. i wouldnt consider myself a bad migraine sufferer, but i get a sort of long term pain in my left eye, for days before period. He said this is definitly migraine. Importantly - he said it would go in time, but it can last a long time. he recommended physiotherapy exercises (walking forward with eyes closed, ten paces - a bit dodgy unless somebody else there to catch!) I confess i havnt really done them much. But he was the first doc who seemed to know what it was, and explained that they still dont understand the physical brain reasons for this happening, but that its well documented and very real. Also I have a friend who said she had this for about 2 years, and IT WENT AWAY , So I continue to hope, and to struggle to be brave enough to leave the house alone. Its hard for family to understand and remember what I'm going through as its invisible, and one feels judged all the time. I hope this letter is of some help to you, even just the fact that you are not alone.
patricia

thanks patricia,

do you ever get this feeling like a rush of adrenalin or something then a panicky feeling, or kind of an odd feeling before a heat flash? I always thought it was kind of a seizure, but after reading some posts here, i think its' a kind of aura before a heat flash! I sometimes get this rush of adrenalin also...makes my forehead feel kind of full and uncomfortable.kind of like the standing on your head, blood rushing all to your head kind of feeling....

anyone else get this sometimes too?

Lisa

Lisa,

Quite a few women on these boards have talked about the adrenaline rushes. Some specifically have them just before/after hot flashes. You might check out the boards on hot flashes and see how others have described their experiences.

I had adrenaline rushes terribly last year before going on Lexapro. Had the sense of surging going up and down my arms, especially in the wee hours of the morning. Sometimes I would sit bolt upright from a dead sleep, with my heart pounding, and feeling terrified, arms rushing like mad.

My understanding is that the adrenal glands are capable of producing small amounts of estrogen, so try to kick in and help restore balance when the ovaries slow down. The problem is that along with the estrogen, we're getting the nasty adrenaline symptoms of panic, heart pounding, etc.

Fun, fun! This has all calmed down for me, by the way. I believe it will pass when we are beyond all this hormonal nonsense.

Good luck, Sisters!

today I have such pressure in the front and top of my head..it kind of builds and then releases etc..it causes me to get anxious ...does anyone else get this with this perimenopause stuff? It only seems to come once a month or so about a week before my period comes...but it makes me feel like i'm standing on my head and all the blood is rushing to my head....fulll and uncomfortable...and more woozy than usual..

thanks

Lisa

My hot flashes almost always start with an adrenaline rush. When I first starting having them 2 yrs ago at 40, they scared me! I am now back on a low dose bcp and they have stopped. A lot of women experience this feeling and it causes panic sometimes. You are NOT ALONE!!!!

Maura

what is this bcp I keep reading about? thanks Maura....glad you're feeling better. Today I got my period..a week earlier than planned...my head is so anxious I"m going crazy|!!! Wish I could chop it off!

Lisa

bcp = birth control pills


Hope that head pressure leaves soon, Lisa. I haven't had that, but am willing to be there are others on these boards who have. Peri-menopause seems to affect pretty much the whole system in one way or another.

When you consider that our bodies have been bathed in estrogen for 30 years or so, and are suddenly being depleted, it's not surprising that it can affect our physical and emotional selves.

But we will level out - I just feel this in my heart!

Hang in. You're not going crazy, just transitioning, along with the rest of us!



Jacquie

thanks jacquie,

ahhh bcp! that makes sense..i thought they were dangerous at our age...no? now that i got my period yesterday i'm hoping things will calm down in a few days...today i woke up with every muscle in my body aching feeling and very anxious again....had chest pain during the night...usually just gas from my period etc...today that's better...i read on here where many get that too!

It's amazing to see so many have all my symptoms..I really thought i was going crazy or imaginging these symptoms or just plain dying! so thanks to all...for your reassurance. i really need it.

Lisa

Nurselisa,

You are among company - as you can see many of us suffer from anxiety and fear that something terrible is wrong with us. I am 42 and my doctor has said thst the bcp is safe to take until 50 (as long as you don't smoke and are healthy). It has really made a huge difference to me. I am also taking Lexapro for some lingering anxiety and this worked for me 2 yrs ago when all of this started (I should have never stopped taling the pill to begin with!)

I hope you find relief soon!

Maura

Maura may I ask which bcp you are using? I'm using Mircette and I think I'm not getting enough estrogen from the Mircette and may need to try a different brand. I'm just trying to explore my options before I speak with my ob/gyn. Thanks.

Myfaith,

I am using lo-ovral. It is a monophasic pill - meaning 21 of the 28 pills all have the same amount of estrogen and progestin and then there are 7 days of placebo pills. From what I understand, Mircette is biphasic -this means that the hormones contained in the tablets are delivered in two stages. Mircette contains 20 mcg of ethinyl estradiol, an estrogen, and 150 mcg of desogestrel, a progestin. The last seven tablets start with two days of "inactive" pills, or placebos and 5 days of 10 mcg of ethinyl estradiol.

My doctor prescribes monophasic pills for perimenopause because it keeps everything "even" throughout the cycle. Something like this may work better for you. You may want to discuss it with your doctor.

Good luck!

Maura

thanks you guys...today I' m very lightheaded again,a nd have that pressure in my frontal lobe which makes me very dizzy and lightheaded ! also feel very anxious..day two into my period..what day into your period do you start to feel better? what day does the progesterone in our body start to rise again? that's when i start to feel better again usually..

also, do your eyes burn and water too with this?

still learning..thanks for answering all my questions...


Lisa

Nurselisa,
I've been reading some of your posts and just thought I would add that you should find it very helpful to either talk to a GYN doctor about what constitutues a normal period and one that comes after an annovulatory cycle (when ovulation does not occur). Progesterone does not kick in until after ovulation. If you have a month when you don't ovulate, then you could either end up with rising levels of estrogen or perhaps you don't have enough estrogen kicking in to begin with. If I had a normal month when all worked as it had for 30 years, then I felt great by the 3rd day of my period. BUt when you're in transition, hormones do not react as they normally do and so you do not get the expected relief or mood that might have once been there.
A doctor would take blood tests and hopefully be able to tell you what is going onwith your cycle, for certain. There are also very good articles and interviews with doctors that are archived on this web site that can explain these things.
I take Alesse, a BCP, for perimenopause - since fluctuating hormone levels cause anxiety, hot flashes, lightheadedness, insomnia, etc, etc, ETC, being on a low and steady dose of hormones all month really help get rid of these symptoms.
Bad as you feel, do take steps to see a specialist. Best of luck to you!