# It's official - Menopausal



## jms1963 (Feb 23, 2007)

I was to the Gyno for my yearly yesterday. I had been having hot flashes and moodiness all summer and called him in the fall to discuss these symptoms ... he sent me for blood work and he gave me the results yesterday - my ovaries are done working and my estrogen level is barely registering. At least this explains all the symptoms I have been experiencing, but it is kind of bittersweet entering this next stage of my life.We discussed hormone therapy and I expressed my concerns over all the mixed information you hear about them. He prescribed Femhrt and said if my symptoms become unbearable I should give it a try - anyone out there have any experiences to share ?Thanks,Jodie


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## overitnow (Nov 25, 2001)

Not me, personally; but my wife uses a mixture of soy, black cohosh and dong quai from our usual supplement source which lowered her flashes considerably for 2-3 years. In the past few months she upped her dose of the same flavonoid supplement I take to the suggested amount and her flashes stopped almost immediately.If you want to go the same route, send me a PM. We'll be gone until the 29th but I will answer in the New Year. Happy Holidays.Mark


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## degrassi (Jun 10, 2003)

Are you taking the birth control pill?I"m 25 and I've been having hot flashes, and various other "hormone type symptoms" so I asked my doctor to test everything(they took 17 viles of blood!). They tested all my hormones and the estrogen/progestorone came back saying I was post menopausal! He tested them again just to be sure and they came back again so low they were in the "post menopausal range". My doctor said its probably from the birth control pill i'm on as the hormones were testing normal before I started them. I've since stopped taking the pill(stopped mid nov.) to see if that helps. So far I'm feeling much better. The hot flashes are getting better and I dont' have the constant clammy/sweaty feeling anymore. My sex drive is back up too as it was non existant before. So if you are on the pill, you might want to try stopping it before treating with hormones.


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## Lilly1 (Jul 24, 2007)

Please be very careful with any hormone replacement therapy. I was having many hot flashes daily and suffered with almost constant night sweats. After doing a lot of research and deciding that because I had no family history of bc I gave HRT a try. The symptoms went away almost entirely within 24 hours...it was heaven. However, one year later (almost to the day) I was diagnosed with breast cancer. After reading the biopsy results and finding out I was on HRT, my surgeon told me to throw them away and tell every woman in my life to stay away from all HRT. She couldn't say (legally) that this is was the cause of my cancer, but I read between the lines. After dealing with all of this and researching more, I believe that hot flashes, nights sweats & mood swings are a normal process that some of our bodies have to go through and although it's uncomfortable, I assure you that the treatment for bc is far worse. If anything, perhaps try some of the natural supplements that overitnow is talking about but, please do all the research possible.Good luck!LillyPS...I am just 4 years older than you and had my last period in 2006.


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## annie7 (Aug 16, 2002)

i'm trying to cope with menopause now too. perimenopause was absolutely miserable. i had begun trying black cohosh but stopped taking it after reading about it. it's recommended for short term use only--up to six months. looks like there's been a lot of mixed results regarding safety from different studies.made me a little too nervous about taking it. you definitely don't want to take it if you already have hormone sensitive conditions like breast cancer, uterine cancer or endometriosis. this is from the nih office of dietary supplements: "black cohosh is estrogenic, long-term use may adversely affect uterine or breast tissue. No studies have been published on long-term safety in humans, particularly regarding abnormal stimulation of cells in the endometrium or breast. " http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/BlackCohosh.asp http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/black-coh...ent-blackcohosh http://www.webmd.com/breast-cancer/news/20...t-cancer-spread Lily--so sorry to hear you have breast cancer--hopefully it's in remission..or, even better, cured...i'll keep you in my prayers


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## jms1963 (Feb 23, 2007)

Thank you everyone for your replies.I think for the time being I'm just gonna grin and bear it rather than medicate in any way. Everything out there just seems so scary - hopefully my symptoms won't escalate and my family will give me a break on my moodiness.Hope everyone has a wonderful holiday !Jodie


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