Need your advice please!!

[Mozartcowgirl]

Ok.. everyone out there... please help me on this.. if you have.. or are going through menapause.. please tell me how you are feeling.. or felt when you began this trip.  I  am soon to be 40.. and no... im not stressing about it.. but.. have been experiencing what my dr.s MIGHT think is peri menapause starting about 2 years ago.. but now.. its really revving up... i am hot.. almost all the time.. when i check my temp.. its about 99.0-99.6..... my NORMAL temp used to be about 97.8.... now its not 99.0-99.6 all the time.. b ut... its like t hat alot... i now.. get cramping sensations for about 3-4 days in teh 2 weeks period before my period is due...  .. my periods went from on schedule.. every 28 days.. to now.. 30-34 days apart... my PMS symptoms are off and on.. last month.. i gained about 8 pounds.. then lost it two days after my period started.. this month.. it was a 33 day span in between periods.. and even the normalicy of the period has changed.. sorry if TMI. but usually..i used to have  a brown discharge inthe beginning.. now.. its just pink red.. and also.. now my periods maybe.. maybe last about a two days... last month.. my period was heavy... weird.   everything is whacky now..lol... its the heat that really gets me.. omg i get so hot... from the inside out.. its hard to explain.. can you guys let me know what the beginning.. middle.. and end of this ride is like.>??  I need to hear it from real women.. not a doctor.... and im not trying to be offensive towards a dr.. b ut i think that there are times when its just better to hear from you guys... the ones who experience things in different ways.. take care.. and thankyou!!

[kayelp]

I've just replied to another post similar to yours, there are so many of us going through this rough time.I'm having terrible palpitations causing me to panic at the moment. Since about 2 yrs ago, I have suffered (and I mean suffered) with palpitations, periods coming too frequently, headaches, weight gain, mood swing and weight gain to name but a few. My dr does my hormone levels every 3 months and my hormones are still normal. I havnt had a period for 4 months now but she said because I am under 50, it has to be 2 years without a period until I am considered menopausal. I'm not sure how much more of this I can take and because they checkked out my heart and found there was nothing wrong, they don't want to see me for another 6 months. All I can say is that reading about other peoples experiences on the internt has reassured me that I'm not alone and although its very uncomfortable, its normal!

[SassyLassie]

Hi~You can certainly start Peri-menopause as early as the age of 35, I know I have. I have all the symptoms too. I have missed a few periods this year, but, when I do have them, they are "normal" flow but short in duration. I am more weepy than usual, have more irregular heart beats, really nasty at times, have hot flashes so badly I could melt the snow if I stood in it, LOL. I have gained weight, and it is almost impossible to get rid of. I also am having more forgetfulness and foggy thinking, I hate that the most, scares me, but, it is a part of both peri-menopause and menopause, ugh!

I am using Natural, bio-identical hormone cream, Progesterone, it is wonderful and DOES help with all the symptoms. You can get a non-prescription brand at any good health food store, right now, I am using one prescribed by my naturopath, it is made in a compounding pharmacy.

I also suggest reading these two books. One is called: "What You Doctor May NOT Tell You about Peri-Menopause" and the other is called: "What Your Doctor May NOT Tell You about Menopause" both are outstanding. They are written by Dr. Lee, a pioneer in the field of bio-identical hormones and women's health.

I don't think that some docs take us seriously when we tell them about our symptoms, the docs that are guys should have to experience, even for one day, I bet their tune would change.

Hope this helps, I am sure there are a lot of us out there.