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[mandy43]

I know you've heard it all before from me, but I'm in a bad way and I find it quite therapeutic to put it down on cyber paper.  I feel so fat!!!  I worked so damn hard to lose 5 stone and it's all coming back on.  My boobs are like water bags once again, my stomach is falling further down and I hate it!  I'm still walking 5 to 7 miles daily and watching what I eat but I'm just doomed to be the big fat heffa I used to be and I could cry.  It's like I'm never meant to be thin.  I look at all these women my age who must be going through similar stuff and they're thin and I just think well why am I not allowed to be.  I was sat doing a student assessment today and the sweat was pouring down my face because that's another symptom, just pouring with water at the drop of a hat and I felt so embarrassed... you can wring my hair out most days and not even that makes me thinner.  I'll end now, but just to say I want to be happy again and wonder when it will ever happen.

[TropicalVon69]

Hi Mandy, sorry to hear you're feeling rough.....I had always been a fat girl and last year due to anxiety I lost loads of weight as I couldn't eat......I've put a lot of weight back on but in honesty I would rather be a bit bigger than feel like I did then...  I can hear how upset you are, just wanted to give you my perspective......

[mandy43]

thank you tropical.  At my heaviest I was nearly 19 stone and I never want to go back there again because I hated myself and had no quality of life, but I can just see myself heading back that way and now through no fault of my own... I just feel like it is so unfair.

[mandy43]

I still get periods sparkle, but usually every couple of months and only last 3 days xx

[mandy43]

no.  I was offered HRT but didn't take it for this exact reason, as a side effect is weight gain.  So, it can only be that in the menopause we store more fat around the middle as I believe it has something to do with fat cells produce estrogen and as our bodies have so little of it we produce more fat cells to give us more estrogen (I read this).  Hence, we gain weight.

[honeybun]

Just wanted to send you a 
And a few suggestions.

Ok your not as slim as you may want but big girls can be sexy and glamorous.

My next door neighbour is one of those. She is 61.....she has a great hair colour, her nails are done to perfection and she wears some amazing stuff.

Do some things to make you feel good, be it hair, clothes, nails ...whatever it takes.

I'm afraid the only way to stop the sweats is HRT, but I really think it's a bit of a myth that it will make you put on loads of weight. If you maintain a healthy diet and get excercise then it should be fine.

Go treat yourself and embrace the way you look.


Honeybun
X

[mandy43]

lovely words honeybun and thank you!!  Sparkle, I had my thyroid tested and it came back as inconclusive, I asked the doc what this meant and he said nothing just said it's fine you don't need meds.  Not sure myself, I am sooo bloody tired all the time and I already have b12 deficiency which is linked with thyroid problems, so maybe I do need to check it again.   

[Hurdity]

Hi Mand43

First of all well done for losing all that weight!! That is a fantastic achievement  Sorry to hear that you are feeling miserable.

Also I agree with the others that HRT doesn't necessarily result in weight gain. The fat distribution effect is a definite part of menopause - it is well known and mentioned on this site. Women tend to go from approx pear-shaped (defined waist and hips) to apple shaped - fat round the abdomen - which is less healthy. This is the effect of oestrogen depletion and also the balance of oestrogen/testosterone.

Here is an article on this website:
http://www.menopausematters.co.uk/weightgain.php

Whilst I do agree that every woman should make the best of herself so that she feels good and positive about herself I don't subsrcibe to the view that it's OK healthwise to be fat - if something can be done about it. For your future health it is of course very important for you not to put on that weight  so your efforts with exercise and diet will be beneficial but must be maintained. Of course your healthy BMI will depend on your height so 13-14 stone may still be not too bad if you are tall but still might need working on if you are not! This might not be what you want to hear, but is intended to be realistic even while being sympathetic - because you mention weight.

So yes you need to look at why you are putting on weight despite efforts with diet and exercise. Perhaps you can say (honestly) what you eat on here and we can maybe help - see if you can improve at all?

As for the thyroid - it seems to me that this is one of the least well understood - and improperly treated conditions around. The very fact that your results were inconclusive suggest to me that maybe something is wrong here.  Please ask for a print-out of your results. Initially when  blood test is done they only measure TSH which is a rough indication - but they don't measure the levels of the actual active hormone (T3). Some women ( a close friend of mine included) have problems converting T4 to T3 and her TSH levels are no indication of her thryoid function.  Also the reference range for TSH for which treatment is given is not standard from country to country and some women are not classic all or nothing cases!  Sadly she had to go privately to be treated. It is one of those conditions where doctors should go on symptoms.  Classic hypothyroid symptoms are weight gain, fatigue and feeling cold but of course if you are having menopausal symptoms as well it may not be as simple as some symptoms overlap with menopausal symptoms.

Please phone the surgery and ask them to tell you your blood result over the phone and make a note - and ask for a print-out for future reference - and then take it from there. You may need a referral to an endocrinologist. I don't know much about it but there are various thyroid sites and forums - one such is thyroid UK (I think) with lots of information too.

By all means embrace the way you look (for the moment!) so that you feel good about yourself - but definitely do something about it, so that you can return to a healthy weight as you age.

Wishing you all the best 

Hurdity x

[mandy43]

Hi Hurdity I have no intention of embracing the way I look, I hate the fact that I can see I have gained weight.  I am 5ft8in and I guess about 14 stone (size 16 jeans and I was a 14).  My mum had me at 41 and I have only ever known her as being overweight, she is 86 now and I just feel I am doomed to be fat, in the genes and all that.  I have spent the last 15 years battling my weight.  Everytime I got the weight off I got pregnant and piled it all back on.  The last time I lost 5 stone and then the menopause hit, it always feels like the odds are stacked against me.  Last December I decided to sell my car so I would walk more.  Now I walk the kids to school and back, walk or bike to work and on top of that do exercise.  A typical day I eat a slice of toast with beans or tomatoes in the morning, I don't eat lunch, I have stirfried vegetables and chicken or fish for tea and stirfry without any oil.  I have a small bowl of salad and 2 crackers for supper.  Of a weekend my husband makes a chinese meal of noodles and beef for tea and I do have a bacon toastie for breakfast.  That's pretty much it.  I'm not  big eater and I stick to one piece of bread per day.  I drink black coffee and one cup of tea per day and the rest is water.  I will ask at the docs for my thyroid result but they only ever say inconclusive as I have asked them a few times, they don't give numbers.

[toffeecushion]

I totally sympathize with you.  I lost 3 stone at one time, but now weigh more than I ever did.  I try to watch what I eat but I just can't shift it.  If anything I am gaining more each week.  I desperately want to lose weight to improve my health but am finding it so hard.  I'm sorry I can't offer any advice but you are most definately not alone.   

[mandy43]

it's so unfair isn't it, toffeecushion! I wish I didn't care so much, but I do.

[CLKD]

You need to alter your eating habits completely.  How about speaking with a dietician or with a personal trainer at a Gym? not necessarily to join up but to gain advice?  5-7 miles a day is a LONG way, not something I would have time nor energy for even 25 years ago when we owned a dog  - holidays probably, but certainly not in the week. 

If you are exercising then you should be building muscle, again something a personal trainer can advise upon.  Middle age spread is real!  my apron dropped earlier this year so looking downwards is different to 12 months ago.    some days I HATE it!

[Hurdity]

Hi mandy43

Heavens there is nothing wrong with your diet at all - except maybe a little low on protein, and you shouldn't really skip lunch. How about the salad and crackers then, although I would have an egg too or something or v low fat cott cheese as well?

Having seen what you've written - please please phone your surgery and ask them to tell you your last blood results over the phone and write it down - the actual numbers!!! - and do ask them to print it off. No need to go to the doc at this point until you have got this info ie the actual numbers!!! What you are interested in is specifically the TSH - not sure which other results  would be useful. They are probably used to people just wanting to know if it's normal or not - but in your case with your symptoms ie putting on weight for no obvious reason while eating a low calorie diet and taking lots of exercise- you must pursue this!

Ask them to tell you when you had your last few blood tests done - ie the date and year and what the TSH result was (at least). Also T4/T3 if they've ever done it - but doubtful? By the way I know very little about thyroid as I said but enough to know you need to have this info.

When you have the results let us know and maybe you will need to go back to the doc and ask for a referral - although they will have strict criteria about when to refer no doubt.

Good luck and let us know how you get on!

Hurdity x 

[CLKD]

If a person is showing signs of thyroid problems even if a blood test returns 'within normal limits' it is un-ehtical not to refer … after all, GPs are that and Consultants know a little more  .  If the GP won't refer regarding thyroid function tests then ring the appropriate Dept at the Hospital and ask for advice.