Menopause - news and discussion thread

Wyva said:
I've been dreading menopause ever since I first heard about the symptoms in my teens. (And I'm not even someone prone to "health anxiety".) With ME/CFS it sounds even worse to have those additional symptoms. Really not looking forward to it...
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My initial symptoms were awful - months of waking every two hours, terrible hot flushes, exhaustion, even achier joints than normal, I felt terrible, and this is from someone with severe ME. The poor sleep and the constant changing of clothes was absolutely exhausting me to the point of tears and I’m not someone who feels like that normally, as well as exacerbating my ME symptoms which was worse.

Luckily my GP at the time was amazing and was happy to go along with my request for HRT. It was a godsend. It took about a month for the symptoms to dissipate but dissipate they did and I’ve been on it for about five years now. It even sorted my hair loss out. I was aware of the risks of HRT, especially being overweight, but I also couldn’t go on dealing with all the physical stuff and I was worried that the continual physical stress (which is major PEM trigger for me) would push me into the very severe category which is something that (obviously) I wanted to avoid at all costs.

So while it can be difficult, if you’re able to take HRT I can highly recommend it. If you can’t, I can also recommend taking sage supplements - they’re great for alleviating hormone-related overheating and sweating. My daughter takes it for the sweats she gets with her period and swears by it - I used to take it for the same reason. I hoped it would be enough to help me cope with the hot flushes and night sweats of peri-menopause and menopause but while it did help a bit, eventually they just got too much for me to cope with and I clearly needed something more.
 
Spartacus said:
It has been a few years now, and I have to say it is a relief not to have the monthly downturn in my ME symptoms that I used to have pre menopause. Also hardly any migraines now!!
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Over the last couple of years, I have been getting a lot less migraines, almost none, whereas they were pretty frequent before and often part of an exertion response. I was thinking about that the other day when I did have a brief and mild headache, wondering why that was. Now that you say about your experience with migraines Spartacus, menopause is the obvious reason.
 
I got a migraine last week which was the first time in 10yrs since menopause started. I got the aura but the headache was very mild.

Before meno I'd have a migraine every 2-3 years and it would last 4hrs.
 
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UK Telegraph: Health officials backtrack on ‘talking therapy’ for menopause symptoms

Health officials have backtracked over menopause guidance that recommended talking therapies should be offered as an alternative to HRT.

Draft proposals from the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (Nice) led to a backlash a year ago, with accusations of “medical misogyny” and an implication that symptoms were “all in the mind”.

At the time Nice said cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) should be considered “alongside or as an alternative to HRT”, with its publicity heavily focused on the benefits of the talking therapy.

On Wednesday, Nice stressed that HRT should be the first treatment offered to women with menopausal symptoms, in new, strengthened guidance.

Officials said: “HRT is the preferred, recommended approach” for managing symptoms such as hot flushes, insomnia and low mood.

The number of women taking the therapy has doubled in the past five years, with many crediting the “Davina effect”, after the broadcaster Davina McCall spoke out about her experiences.
Ms McCall was among those who criticised the Nice draft guideline as “patronising” when it was issued last year.

Nice said there was no good evidence to suggest that HRT increases or shortens life expectancy, saying women should be given information about the facts to make an informed choice.
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Health officials backtrack on ‘talking therapy’ for menopause symptoms
 
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Nice said there was no good evidence to suggest that HRT increases or shortens life expectancy, saying women should be given information about the facts to make an informed choice.
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People I know have said to me that they care more about quality of life than length of life. If HRT makes women feel better then that should be enough for it to be offered to them, in my opinion.
 
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The Guardian
HRT should be offered as first-line treatment for menopause, says Nice

Thu 7 Nov 2024

Women with menopause symptoms should be offered hormone replacement therapy (HRT) as a first-line treatment, not therapy, according to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice).

Its final menopause guidelines for medics in England and Wales, published on Thursday, state that HRT is the preferred treatment for managing symptoms such as hot flushes, night sweats, depression and sleep problems, in what is seen as a climbdown from previous wording.

Controversial draft guidance published last November said women experiencing these menopausal symptoms could be offered cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) “alongside or as an alternative to” HRT.

The draft guidance provoked widespread criticism that it put CBT on a par with HRT, thereby belittling symptoms and harming women’s health.

Nice said it has responded to the feedback and rewritten the guidelines, which now say CBT should only be considered for patients on HRT who still have symptoms, or those who are unable or do not wish to take HRT.

Prof Jonathan Benger, chief medical officer and interim director of the centre for guidelines at Nice, said: “We are not suggesting that CBT is an alternative to HRT. It’s not an either/or, and we have worked through the guidelines extensively to really clarify this point.

“We are very keen to emphasise that HRT is our recommended first-line therapy for vasomotor symptoms [night sweats and hot flushes] and for [other] symptoms of menopause.”

CBT is a “useful” additional treatment to help those already taking HRT with persistent symptoms, or for women who cannot or choose not to take it, he added.
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Dr Donald Grant, GP and Senior Clinical Advisor at The Independent Pharmacy, warned that menopause can be "tricky to diagnose".

A delayed diagnosis can also exacerbate symptoms and worsen their quality of life as women go without the support they need during this challenging time.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is a condition that causes extreme tiredness regardless of your physical activity levels and can impact your work and social life.

Joint pain, brain fog and difficulty resting are also symptoms shared between CFS and menopause. However, Dr Grant noted: "To differentiate between both conditions, doctors will have to carry out tests by examining hormone levels and assessing menstrual history - particularly if women are in the key age group for menopause."
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Doctor says menopause is often misdiagnosed as one of four common conditions
 
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I think it is far more often the case that doctors miss other conditions while ascribing every symptom as part of the menopause . My sisters hypothyroidism was put down to menopause for at least two years . I think the short appointment times have a lot to do with many misdiagnoses .
 
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