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[pebbles]

Hi,
I have been on evorel conti 50 patches for about five years, they control the night sweats and dryness.
However my anxiety is almost out of control, my mood is very low and worst of all i have been experiencing these awful night terrors.
They occur about 30 minutes after i have fallen asleep about four times a week and the content is always the same, that I have forgotten to do something that is catastrophic. I wake up shouting, crying and panting and i dread going to sleep.

 I have also been having periods of feeling panicky when coming out of the supermarket and worried that i have forgotten where my car is, where my keys are etc etc . I also get scared going to places like car parks as my anxiety kicks in and i get panicky that i again i cant find my car.

 I love hill walking with my young grandchildren but now i rarely go as i have it in my head that i  might lose my way or lose my grandchildren.
My memory is really bad and i am worried that i have early signs of dementia.
I am 59. My last period was about four years ago.

 I had not considered that my symptoms might be due to the menopause  or my HRT patches ?
Has anyone experienced this and if so did you find a way to help ?
I tried valerian but it upset my stomach and i also cannot afford counselling.

[Clarella]

That sounds awful!

Anxiety is certainly a symptom of low oestrogen. I don’t know whether you’re allowed to go up a little to see if if helps?

You’ve described some of the types of panic I’ve experienced before I raised my patches. I’m 45 and only started it last Nov

Could you chat to a Gp?

[ElkWarning]

I'm so sorry you're going through this ... One of the things that drove me to try HRT was my fear that I was definitely suffering from early onset dementia.  I was absolutely convinced.  It wasn't like having a 'senior moment' (I'm 53), more a case that I couldn't trust myself to remember anything of any relevance.  I was terrified that this would lead to me messing up so badly that something horrific would happen and it would all be my fault.

Well, the good news is that I didn't have dementia, instead I was massively struggling with anxiety.  I was trying to tough it out, and I was paying a very heavy price for that.

I don't know what to suggest, because I did find herbal remedies helpful (with massive slugs of valerian) and I did manage to get into therapy on a sliding scale (£30pw).  Other stuff that helped were: making sure I drank 2 litres of water a day (it was a little thing, but part of me being super conscious that I was taking care of myself), breathing techniques (in for 4, hold for 8, out for 6, still do this all the time), gardening (somehow digging around in the muck slows my brain down), wearing headphones when out and about on my own so I could be in my little world (listening to podcasts), couch to 5K (because it's a routine, even if I could only do the speedy walking version due to general podge).  I think what I'm saying is little steps.

You might also want to talk to your doctor / meno nurse about this.

[Marchlove]

Yes indeed pebbles, almost all of us have, so take heart tonight.

I think you should try and get an early appointment with your Gp and explain what has happened, see what they suggest.

So, were you ok for quite awhile on this regime or has the anxiety been with you for most of this time?

I think the longer your are post menopausal the lower your dose should be.
 This is only me experience and might not be yours.
But, scary as it sounds, you could maybe reduce your hrt slowly by cutting a 1/4 of the patch off and just seeing how this pans out for you.

These panic attacks are not the TRUE you. They are just your mind attempting to trick you. Have a look online for meditation apps or local yoga groups (even better).

You do not have dementia, you just need to take some action pebbles.?

Keep trucking xx

[pebbles]

Thank you both for your reply. It was reassuring to hear your story as worrying that i am forgetting things just makes me forget things even more. At work i never remember anything, especially if i am asked something. i try to be prepared by writing things down on post its etc but its not very efficient as i then cannot find the post it lol !
The thought of contacting my Gp just fills me with dread as i feel that i am back and forward to him with numerous different things, worried that he thinks i am a hypochondriac . I go in and just pretend that i am this happy, joking person then when i come out i tell myself how stupid i am etc etc.
I am not very good at explaining that i am struggling. I know that i should try but i just feel such a failure and that i am wasting his time and that i should
 be able to over come this.
Thank you for the suggestions, little steps sounds good     

[pebbles]

Thank you Marchlove, i have had night terrors through out my life usually in response to stress. However these are much worse and more frequent. Thank you for the reassurance. I will trying cutting the patch to see if that helps. Thank you

[CLKD]

It's difficult to determine how much is hormonal upheaval or other issues.  There are tests that can be arranged to check for early dementia, mayB your GP will set up an appt. with the appropriate dept..

I couldn't remember what a nasturtium was on Friday evening, DH had to show me on GOOGLE.  I had a complete gap in my brain! 

Let us know how you get on.  MayB keep a mood/food/symptom dairy would be of use - diary even 

[Taz2]

Hi pebbles. I think it would be a good idea to have a chat with your GP just to rule out any underlying causes for your anxiety.

When we are suffering from anxiety it becomes very difficult to carry out normal tasks and memory can be affected. This, coupled with poor sleeping, can really impact on us. I think it's to do with cortisol levels. Low magnesium can cause anxiety too I believe. Let us know how you get on.

Taz x 

[Shell babes]

Are you on testosterone gel? For me, this was the missing link that made hrt work better. It seems to create mental clarity and makes me less scared and less anxious.

[Marchlove]

Morning pebbles

How about you write down what you’re experiencing and hand it to your Gp at your appointment. Just let him read it, then you’re well on your way to having a proper discussion.

Night terrors are horrid. Magnesium can be a great help with this. There are been some good threads on MM recently on the best magnesium to take for anxiety, so have a search on the forum.
I take magnesium Bisglycinate 1-3 capsules before bed.

Let us know how you get on xx

[pebbles]

Thanks for your support everyone. 

[Jett]

I agree with Marchlove Pebbles, about writing down what you want to say and handing it to your GP.  I did this last week and it was much easier than me rambling away forgetting to mention things.

I also have a recurring wake up bolt upright in the middle of the night in a panic thinking I have forgotten to take medication- I don’t have to take any pills, I am on patches! It happens a few times a week and my OH has to convince me I don’t have any pills to take.

Magnesium helps with sleep as others have said.  I have also been struggling with remembering words at work and have lost confidence. My patch has helped a lot but I still need to write everything down and if I forget my notebook I am goosed!

Anxiety is horrible- there are good short yoga sessions on YouTube if you Google sunrise yoga with Adrienne it’s 15 mins a day - small things like that help me, also breathing, listening to audio books and podcasts.  There is a good book “why had nobody told me this before” and it has some good practical advice about dealing with, anxiety, stress, confidence- might be worth checking out.

Good luck, hope the doc can give you some peace of mind and find something that helps.

Jxxx

[pebbles]

Hi there again, thanks so much for your support.

I have read the information sheet for the patches and it does say that side effects can include anxiety and depression so i have cut off a third from the patch to see if that makes any difference. My rationale being that maybe i have become sensitive to the progesterone level. however if i am honest it was due to the anxiety (although it was milder than this ) and depression that caused me to ask for HRT in the first place.

I am wary of going to my gp as i am worried that they will change my HRT; when there was a shortage of patches i had to take kliovance tablets that gave me a lot of stomach problems so much so that i had an endoscopy. at the time i did not realise until i went back on the patches that the tablets were causing my stomach and gerd symptoms.

As i am nearing 60 i am hoping that maybe i need less - or is this wishful thinking . Its been 10 years of this nightmare and part of me just wants to give up on HRT to see the real me, do you know what i mean ?  is that unrealistic i wonder - time will tell...
Also have started magnesium, hopefully it will help with night terrors - thanks 

[Marchlove]

Evening pebbles

No it’s not unrealistic at all. I’m certainly very much in the camp of less is more

Estrogen can cause anxiety in some people because of gene mutations. I have these and they are relatively common.

I’m which case and my specialist concurs with this, some people need less estrogen.
Enough estrogen to control aches and hot flushes, but not too much so that anxiety rears it’s head.

I quite understand your reluctance to go to the Gp at this present time.
So you reducing the patch for awhile to see if that helps is a good way forward.

Slowly does it, don’t expect immediate results and keep a log.

This is the best advice I can give you based on personal experience.

Magnesium should help as well.

Nitey xx

[Dee]

Hi everyone hope someone can help lm so scared have posted last couple days about things lm scared of dying becoming overwhelming seen gp on mitrazapine 15 changing from citralpram 20 cross tapering for one week going to discuss hrt next week will this make my thoughts worse or help l know its post meno (4yrs) will these thoughts go ?can cope with other symptoms lm 63  thanks Dee xx