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[Popmummy]

Hello

I am 52 and not had a period since the beginning of February. I have always suffered with varying degrees of anxiety, but the last few years it’s intensified. I am often tearful, don’t sleep as well as I did, have some palpitations and the worse thing is the brain fog and forgetfulness. For a long time I’ve put it down to being part of the anxiety but since my periods became further apart it’s got worse. I’m considering HRT and have paid for an email with Dr Currie.

One thing that I feel alone in though is that I keep getting hot flashes. They are manageable, but I’ve noticed that they only start in the evenings, following dinner and sat on the sofa! I get really hot and then it subsides. I do also wake hot and sweaty in the night, but no real ‘night sweats’. I can get generally warm at work in the day, but never get these hot flashes, even after eating lunches or drinking hot tea!

Does anyone else find their hot moments tend to be evening only or am I on my own!
Sarah x

[Janecats]

Hi there, think you are definitely in menopause, your anxiety symptoms sound exactly like mine, I am 53 but had a partial hysterectomy 11 years ago so could not gauge exactly when my menopause started (as no periods since then); however last few years have suffered extreme anxiety, especially health anxiety. Do you get hot flashes mainly in the face? I too get hot at certain times but never night sweats, just burning sensation on my face, especially when stressed at work. Sorry you are having such a hard time, I have not been able to decide what to do about hrt, so good for you making a start, I have so many questions but cannot get a gp appointment either. What other symptoms do you have? My worst are definitely anxiety & now feel sort of invisible, if that makes sense? Just feel old and past my sell by date, my poor hubby gets asked on a daily basis if he still finds me attractive! Sorry to have rambled on is only my 2nd post on here, take care Jane x

[shrosphirelass]

Ive been on HRT for nearly 3 years and have only just started to get hot flashes. They are nearly always after dinner and later in the evening. My face and neck go bright read. I have to have cold water where ever I go to cool down, otherwise I can feel like I'm going to pass out. I am constantly taking cardigans off and putting them back on again. It's not too bad if I'm at home but if I go for a walk early evening it can be really difficult.

[Popmummy]

Hello

Thanks for the replies.

Shrosphirelass - That sounds awful. I would describe mine as suddenly feeling hot in my upper body, but not to the extent where I feel faint. I hope these get sorted for you. For me it's more about what is causing the heat in the evenings rather than the experience. I worry that it's not menopause and something else having googled!

Janecats - I know what you mean about the 'sell by date'. I have really struggled with moving into this time of life. I'm desperately clinging on to the feeling of being young, which I know is stupid but it really bothers me. Apart from anxiety (mainly health anxiety) I have awful brain fog and forgetfulness, don't sleep quite as well as I used to, get irritable and no period since Feb. The anxiety is the worse part. As I say, having always suffered it's easy to put everything down to that, but it makes sense that if I am already predisposed to anxiety, then the menopause is likely to make it worse. I am on an antidepressant (have been for many years) and in the last year the doctor added pregabalin, which helped with my general anxiety but not the health anxiety. I would like to think that if I tried HRT for a few months and it worked I could start to reduce the other meds and know that most of my issues are menopause related. At least then I can decide whether to continue with the worry of links to BC or stop. It's weird how I get the hot waves in the evenings. I'm fine at work it's when I am curled up on the sofa that they start!

Jaypo - I don't mind my hot turns too much, but a fan is a good idea.

Thanks again ladies

x

[Taz2]

My hot flushes began as purely evening ones then progressed over the next two years to day and night sweats every twenty minutes which is when I turned to HRT in order to still function. They were accompanied by great anxiety, nausea, insomnia and poor memory. The patches alleviated the flushes within 48 hours (bliss).  I believe lots of us start off with evening and night flushes.

Taz x

[CLKD]

In the 1980s this happened to my Gt Aunt but no one put 2 and 2 together .  She was by then in her late 60s, no HRT ...........

[Ecl]

Hi, I’m new here but one of my issues is hot flushes. They can be anytime of the day but are definitely more frequent in the evenings. I have stopped drinking coffee to see if that helps, but am constantly putting cardi on and off or fanning myself in the evenings. Has been worse this last week with the warmer weather too. I also am awake through the night with them too.

[CLKD]

Hi Eci, have you tried a chillow pillow as well as a fan?

[Popmummy]

Thanks everyone

It does help to know that this is something fairly common.

Taz - glad you know what I’m talking about with the evening flushes. It’s good to hear that the HRT helped with your flushes. Did it help with the other symptoms too - especially the anxiety?

Ecl - are you on HRT?

CLKD - I often wonder how our grandmothers etc coped when they didn’t have the treatment around!

I’m hoping I will get an email from Dr Currie soon so I can ask her questions. Not sure if the fee covers any recommendations for HRT though.

X

[Kathleen]

Hello Popmummy and welcome to the forum.

Ever since my menopause journey began I have noticed that there is some kind of circadian rhythm at work.

My symptoms have always been more intense during the day than at night. This may sound obvious but it meant that my night sweats were much milder than my daytime flushes and late evenings were the most relaxed part of the day, even my headaches stopped at 9pm having bothered me all day.

Some ladies say they wake during the night feeling anxious but whenever I woke up to use the loo for example I always felt lovely and calm.

If I could swap my daytime experiences with my nighttime ones I would be a happy bunny! Perhaps those ladies who notice fewer symptoms actually have  hormones that adjust overnight and fortunately they can sleep through them!

I hope that Dr Currie can help you and please keep us updated.

Take care.

K.

[Ecl]

Thanks everyone

It does help to know that this is something fairly common.

Taz - glad you know what I’m talking about with the evening flushes. It’s good to hear that the HRT helped with your flushes. Did it help with the other symptoms too - especially the anxiety?

Ecl - are you on HRT?

CLKD - I often wonder how our grandmothers etc coped when they didn’t have the treatment around!

I’m hoping I will get an email from Dr Currie soon so I can ask her questions. Not sure if the fee covers any recommendations for HRT though.

X

Not yet, I am about to start, tomorrow now that I know I can

[Ecl]

Hi Eci, have you tried a chillow pillow as well as a fan?

Thank you I will look into the pillow. Was camping last week and was no better even with the colder nights.

[CLKD]

? feet out of the end of the tent then ?  Eci.

[Taz2]

Thanks everyone

It does help to know that this is something fairly common.

Taz - glad you know what I’m talking about with the evening flushes. It’s good to hear that the HRT helped with your flushes. Did it help with the other symptoms too - especially the anxiety?

X

Once I had been on HRT for a few months the anxiety was much more manageable. It never went completely but as I began to feel more back in control of my life, could carry out my job properly again and also get good nights sleep I felt much better. Some women do find that HRT plus an anti depressant is the way forward for them if the anxiety doesn't lift.

Taz x

[Wrensong]

Before starting HRT well postmenopause my flushes came throughout the day & night from early peri onwards, some always at the same times every day (could set my watch by them) with some random ones thrown in.  They've always been whole body, not just head & neck, tended to last more than the few minutes menopause articles cite & were often accompanied by long bouts of horrible palpitations (irregular rhythm not just racing).  Having never experienced anything like them before & unable to get medical confirmation they were just due to menopause, I found them very unnerving & until I got more used to them - panic-inducing.  Evening was an especially bad time so I shifted main meal to lunchtime to try to keep body temp down before bed & stopped drinking alcohol when it became clear that only made things worse !  Neither stopped the flushing but avoiding alcohol helped to some extent.  But the worst flushes have always been during the night & though now on HRT I thankfully have fewer & they are generally less intense, they continue to disrupt my sleep well into postmenopause.  Daytime flushes are now mostly relatively minor & more easily manageable, thankfully without the horrible palpitations of earlier years.  Changes to HRT tend to temporarily upset the apple cart!

I find controlled breathing exercises helpful for calming the system when flushes strike.  Also began to practise mindfulness meditation regularly during peri & this became something of a lifeline.