Hello Everyone
I'm very new here, have been reading the forums for a little while, and whilst it's good to not feel so alone I just really wish none of us had to go through this awfulness
I believe I've been mildly perimenopausal for the last six years, night sweats for the week before my period starts, insomnia for the week before, increased pmt anxiety etc, with periods no longer properly regular.....one month 27 days, next month 32 days, myaybe 36 days, then 25 days etc, and gradually getting lighter but staying the same length.....a bit more period pain with big clots. My Nanna told me years ago this is how it was for her, so I'd thought I might have had an easier time of it like she did.
About 2 years ago missed a period in June. Last year, missed a period in May and October. This year, missed in April and May......great, I thought, I'm 1/6 of the way in....10 more months and I'll be officially in menopause! The only real symptom I had of anything was a tendency towards irritability and impatience......
Anyway, I started a gusher of a period on 2nd June....flooding, pain, clots, more flooding, pain for 11 days.....eased up over the next couple of days and finished after 14 days. But I didn't get the usual relief from pmt that I would normally. In fact I started feeling quite anxious, panicky and overwhelmed. My husband and I had had an argument and I felt quite triggered by that.
I've had anxiety before (in fact had been on a low dose of paroxetine for 11 years until Oct of last year, came off because I felt it was no longer working) so I took myself off to the gp who prescribed fluoxetine (I had taken it years ago with good result). Bad move....within 4 days, I felt like I was having a nervous breakdown...ideating suicide, the lot. My partner took me straight back to the gp who prescribed xanax to help with the panic etc. It didn't help, so a couple of days later he gave me lorazepam, which did, but I am very loathe to take it regularly due to addiction worries.
I'd also started my period again that morning (about a week after finishing the last) so he took a blood test to check hormone levels, and Primulut 5mg (a progesterone to stop bleeding). My results came back with oestrogen levels very low, so he put me on an hrt called Premia 2.5 (conjugated horse oestrogen .625mg and medroxyprogesterone 2.5mg). So lots of progesterone to combat bleeding, fluoxetine for anxiety / panic and benzodiazepines to combat all the side effects from the AD. I developed VA.....no sensation there at all, most distressing.
I felt and looked like hell
Anyway, a week ago I took myself off the AD and hrt, and immediately started to feel better, if a little anxious, but less panicky. I took myself back to the gp and requested Femoston 2/10 because I realised that most of my symptoms were due to very low oestrogen, not progesterone.
I started the withdrawal bleed on Friday and decided to start the Femoston on Saturday (about two days after finishing the other).
Within two hours I felt as weird, as light headed and confused as I had on the other...like I was 'out of place'. I could feel the anxiety and panic start to rise, then it would go again. After about 12 hours the effect wore off, I went to bed, and although it took me a while to get to sleep I finally got there and sleep all night. I did wake up a bit damp and sweaty. I took the next one a couple of hours earlier on Sunday - bad move, as all the symptoms from the day before were back, 10 fold....culminating in being in tears for most of the afternoon whilst dealing with panic and anxiety. I spoke to a pharmacist who reassured me that emotional turmoil initially was normal for a few weeks, and that I could halve them, take half in the morning and half at night until it resolves. I also couldn't sleep that night, so took a lorazepam....but one good thing was that the VA had resolved itself.
So yesterday I took half in the morning, and half with dinner - certainly helped with the weird spaced out feeling, but not anxiety / panic. I also slept a lot better, but still woke this morning sweaty. I'm not going to take it until this evening now, as what I found was once the weird effect wore off after twelve hours I felt quite 'normal'....so maybe if I take it by 6pm, the strangeness will have worn off by 6am and I might have a normal day?
I guess what I'm asking is, is anyone else on Femoston 2/10, did you feel like you were on another planet, does anyone else take it at night? How do you cope? And function? Or maybe my body is not quite ready for it yet?
I'm nearly 51, am about to start a new job on Thursday and I need to be able to function. I really need some help
I'm so sorry for the long essay. Thank you for bearing with me
