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[lazyhazy]

Hi, Im 54 and have not had a period for 5 years. I've recently been struggling with anxiety about my brain fog and inability to slow my thoughts down. My brain seems to be on fast forward, (especially at night) which makes me distracted and forgetful. My doc put me on Evorel Conti patches, which I took for 4 weeks, but made me feel absolutely dreadful, really anxious and depressed (which is at the top of the side effects list) I have two questions please. Is it unusual to get these brain fog symptoms so long into menopause, as most info says this is worse in peri, then improves. And also, does the right hrt help with brain fog? My doc suggested anti depressants, but I'm worried they will make me more dozy! Any thoughts please? Sorry for the long post and thanks very much x 

[CLKD]

If you are not depressed then why take them?  Anxiety and depression are two different conditions and need different approaches. How bad is the anxiety, background or 'stop you in your tracks' type?  For me I am grounded within moments. 

Yep. Brain fog is common.  I've been reading a book which is a real page turner but when I pick it up the next time, I have no idea what I've read previously  .  Been like this 4 years  but my head feels heavy and full as I try to remember if that makes any sense.

ADs can also cause brain fog.

[lazyhazy]

Hi, Thanks for your reply. Yes, your description is a familiar one. It's sudden anxiety, generally when I've just done something daft and panic that I'm losing my mind, then I dwell on it for ages. I don't really want to go down the AD route. Am seeing a different GP as the last seemed reluctant to prescribe HRT (probably because she was about 12 and thought, whats the fuss about!) Are you on HRT, has it made any difference?

[CLKD]

Not on HRT other than treatment for vaginal atrophy, do read our threads on that 1!

I have an emergency 'as necessary' pill to take when anxiety floors me. 

[CLKD]

Have you taken time off work so that you can rest? 

[Orangefoot]

My anxiety, awful thoughts and incompetence at work and at home were worse before I started HRT.  I went to my GP three times in a total state of desperation and told her that I was so low and unable to function normally that I worried I would make a catastrophic mistake. She told me I wasn't menopausal and offered my anti depressants which I refused. In the midst of all this I missed the correct date of a payment and we now have an enforcable CCJ on our business.

Now with Evorel 50 I feel normal again but when I add Utrogestan I am back in that awful place and not only unable to function properly or sleep but also inappropriately angry (I shouldn't be shouting through the wall at my neighbours about their take away delivery habits).

Speak to a different GP and try HRT. It might be amazing and if it isn't you can stop and have nothing to lose.

[Autumn27]

I think bioidentical HRT does seem to improve brain fog, and improves sleep, which in turn improves anxiety. I have also added Melatonin, available on prescription for those aged 55 yrs and over, which helps regulate sleep patterns, which in turn helps foggy brain. I am at a stage now where when people can't remember names or whatever, I seem to be able to get fast recall, even faster than some of my  students in their 20s. 7 years ago things were so bad before HRT I took a bus in the wrong direction going to my GP, and had 2 car crashes within 2 months.

[Ladybt28]

So don't know if this is going to be helpful or not but here goes.
My oestrogel and utrogestan have cut my fogginess by some considerable margin although it took 5 months to lift. I am 57 Post meno but need to take them on a cycle so I bleed (progesterone intolerant) On a scale of 1 to 10 I was at 10 because I thought I had alzheimers! an had been like that for about 5 years so yes it can go on a long time LazyHazy and yes the right hrt does help the brain fog!

I had always been foggy headed (but turns out I have had hormonal problems prior to meno) but the alzheimers phase was about 5 years, but my brain still didn't feel sharp and I was left with a weird feeling behind my eyes like chronic tiredness but not! (so hard to explain) - it was just like I was still viewing the world from a distance, I wasn't totally "present".  I explained this to my consultant and she introduced testosterone.  (I am building slowly half a pump every other day.  She said 1 whole pump every other but I decided to take it slow).  It has taken 2 weeks for that weird feeling to go but it has gone.

FYI - I have tried 5 types of hrt including everol conti Lazy Hazy and it was not good for me, neither were the others I tried - But the gel and utro have worked ok and so much better than all the others.  Not perfect but much better (I don't think we ever go back to how we were)  I was left with low motivation, low libido, still depressed and still fuzzy headed out of a list of about 12 meno symptoms. Consultant said that the testosterone should help the last 4.

Ref my Utrogestan  - I use it vaginally but I still have problems when taking it because progesterone affects me badly and although I am supposed to take  it continuously because I am post memo I cannot possibly do that so I trade the bleed for the shorted use of the progesterone.   By day 4 of my cycle I am falling into a depressive hole and am very tearful, bit snappy, cant be bothered but it is not so bad that I sleep all day or hide under a duvet.  Its that horrible feeling but I now know it is the progesterone and that it will pass and that I have to put up with it.  My number of days I use it is the lowest I am allowed.   I have had one other separate progesterone and I can't take that it is worse than the Utro.  Maybe you could try out some other types of progesterone to see if they suit you better Orangefoot.  Do you take it on a cycle or continuously?

Birdy - forgive me if I am wrong but the delivery method of you hrt is by lozenge?

[CLKD]

R U all hydrated enough as when the body needs fluids, it can become sluggish. 

[CLKD]

You have suggested this several times Birdy but have you spoken to some at your local Alzheimer's group?  people who really know how to get the various tests required? and talk to people dealing with this condition on a daily basis?

I could have a brain problem as I couldn't remember my dog's name earlier  a complete blank.  No feeling or anything between my ears.  It took about 10 mins. to remember but that's 'normal' for me 

[CLKD]

I have felt similar.  But you aren't getting immediate help.   

[Ladybt28]

Birdy - please, please don't stress mind you I know it is easier said than done - it is highly unlikely you have alzheimers - the memory problems and the fogginess are totally part of meno, but are not much talked about (except on here - where we are all aware of the issues cos most of us have been there) and yes it is extremely scary I too fitted the profile but it wasn't.  I couldn't find words, stopped mid-sentence. Went out couldn't remember why or where I was going.  I parked my car and couldn't remember where, lost it more than once in carpark and called my husband telling him it had been stolen! and if you are suffering badly with anxiety your mind just runs riot and your body gets worse because the worry ramps up the anxiety!

I may be speaking out of turn but I have been reading your posts for a while now and I am thinking that maybe your combination lozenge of bio-identicals is either not strong enough or  is in the wrong combination for you because if it was right it would be working for you by now.  I don't really understand the lozenge system, it confuses me a bit...are they made up of the hrt chemicals that are in the likes of everol, or my gel, or femeston etc eg chemically made in a lab to mimic our bodies hormones or are they made from yams or soy or the totally natural sources of oestrogen etc mixed with progesterone (although I thought there wasn't a natural progesterone in the natural world, there was only a lab derived mimic one - I know someone will correct me I am wrong??!)  What I am asking is exactly what oestrogen, progesterone chemicals etc are in your lozenge - do you know the name of the progesterone for example?

Personally I do not think you can continue to suffer as you are - something is not right - you need to go back to your consultant who prescribed your lozenge and tell them how poorly you are and that the levels needs to be tweaked or represcribed and/or you need to try something different altogether and/or indeed a different consultant (whichever makes things better) I had to try 5 types before I got one that even started to work properly, the rest were a nightmare. We all react so differently.  It is working for Autumn 27 but it is definitely not working for you.  I am very worried about you and having been there, I know the trauma of the mental health situation you find youself in - it is a nasty and dangerous place to be.  I am convinced it can be fixed - your consultant needs to step up but you need to tell them first!

[Ladybt28]

It's not connected to the anxiety Birdy - I didn't have problems at specific times, I had it all the time.  I have run my own business for 18 years and I was so bad I actually discussed with my husband about selling it at one point because I couldn't speak to anyone, I couldn't write my letters, I couldn't do a flaming thing and he had to carry the whole weight of it.  That's beside all the general day to day stuff.
Ref the alzheimers association - forget what they have to say, which is going to be general but not necessarily apply to you.  If you are adamant that it is dementia of some kind then then get your GP to do the tests or refer you for a brain scan which can show up any problems. Personally I wouldn't do this now as any GP tests are going to be influenced by your hormone imbalance.
Wait until you have got a definite answer around hrt.  Also regarding blood tests around meno and hrt probems, lots of women here say they are not really a good indicator of what is happening.  It is how your body reacts and the symptoms and issues you have which are the real indicator. If an hrt is working to a certain degree you should get relief of some or all symptoms.  If you don't then my view would be, its not working for YOU regardless of what the bloods say.

Using the Marion Gluck clinc which I believe takes the hollistic route with hrt probably means you like alternative medicine and those types of avenues right? (sorry if I am making the wrong assumptions I don't mean to offend) but to be honest you may have to re-evaluate your opinion and go towards a more medical route.  I know some women can do the "alternative" thing or the more "hollistic medicine" thing and have it work but there are plenty who can't. Their bodies need pure chemical replacement of the lab type if you see what I mean.  I suppose the Clinic use your bloods to calculate the levels of the lozenge but if you dont absorb the right amout or one bit is too low or too high for your own body then the bloods make no difference? The more bog standard medical route may not be what you like or would wish to do but the bottom line is you deserve to feel much better than you are now.

How long to you have to wait to hear from Marion Gluck?

[lemondrop]

Hi Birdy as others have said this seems hormonal . Just because your hrt is body ? Identical doesn't mean it's suiting you . Just as the evorel conti gave you anxiety this regime may be doing that as well . Everyone is different .

Everol conti gave me crushing anxiety insomnia and suicidal thoughts and made brain fog worse . So after 10 weeks of hell I've changed onto femoston conti and three months in on it sleeping better still bit anxious and still got memory glitches but generally better so will hang on in with it for a bit longer .

I had the worrying about dementia but at least two of my friends the same age as me have similar if not worse cognitive symptoms. We can't all have Alzheimer's the care homes would be over flowing with 60 year old women .

It still makes me anxious when I have a memory or concentration fail but I know for a fact that the worrying makes it worse . Btw it happens to me daily at least twice .

Instead of googling dementia try neurosymptoms. Com or functional cognitive disorder or dr Louise newsomes instagrm account and read the comments left re brain fog .

You are not the only one by a long way but your anxiety is stopping you from being rational . I've been whet you are and feel for you deeply xxx

Lemondrop xxxx

[CLKD]

Your GP is the place to start if you have found the information from the Alzheimers Group of little use. 

When I first went there my oestrogen and testosterone were very low.   So at least then I could pin my fears on something.. so the regime has helped a little  . 

It can only be diagnosed at post mortem. There are lots of tests that can be given, some are repetitive, which would give you a clue.  How would knowing help?