Are These Premenopause Systems??

Hi, Yes you could be in premenopause like the other lady said. I would also look at my diet if I were you, eat real food, lots of fruits and veggies and drink water and other things that are truly good for you. Nuts are good to snack on as well. I believe in vitamins, some people don't but I think they can help, B vitamins are good for stress. Also take some time for you no matter what. It's very important so you can be a better mom & wife. Good Luck

I was exactly like you - early 40s, 2 toddlers in the house, doctor telling me everything is normal. But I was irritable, tired, and felt out of control. It really felt like my hormones were out of whack. I call those my "I want everybody to get the heck off my highway" years, and I'm certain I was in the early stages of peri-menopause. I happened upon John Lee's "What Your Doctor May not be Telling You About Menopause" book, and it changed my life. It took several months, but by following his advice I got my body back on track. It's now 10 years later, and I'm hitting menopause for real, and it's going well, I think in part because of the years I kept my peri-menopause under control.

Good luck!

W.,

I am a couple years behind you (I will be 37 next week), but have had the exact same symptoms (even had my blood and thyroid checked!!), but I am not on any birth control pills. I don't know if it is menopausal symptoms, but I do think it's stress. I feel better after I have gotten enough sleep, but that is very rare for me. I am contemplating taking B vitamins since my multivitamin and healthy food regimen doesn't seem to make my energy levels much better. I try to get away and stay at my sister's house once a month (she doesn't have kids), and I try to do stuff for just me to help relax... I know I don't offer much in the way of advice, but I thought it might help you to know that you are not alone.

W.,
I got my blood drawn recently, partially because if the tiredness that seems so overwhelming. I was extremely defficient in vitamin b-12. I now have to take 2500mcg per day. Did they check those levels too when they did your blood draw? By the way I am 39, and I often wonder too if things are starting to change. All my tests in that category came back normal also.
W. M.

Your symptoms could very well be those of menopause. Your OB/GYN can check your hormone levels to determine if it is.

Hi W.!

WOW! with 2 toddlers, no wonder you're confused :o)

I am a 42 yr old SAHM mom, and I KNOW I am beginning the early stages of Menopause. I haven't been checked for it, but then, I don't go and checked much anyway :O) There is a sensation of knowing that it is directly related (on most days). Then other days go by, and I struggled emotionally, and I could not believe I didn't recognize my symptoms.....So far, I've been able to "go with it" without any OTC drugs yet. I'm sure there will come a day :o)

Basically, my moods and body temperature are my biggest problems. But, every now and then, I do wish I could take a nap ~ even though I never take naps. The exhaustion can be dealt with by napping, even though it's hard for me to do.

How I get by, well, first by realizing and accepting what it is ASAP can truly help "control" my mood. If I don't acknowledge premenopause for the day, then I've lost control (so to speak). I just never want to take things out on my kids or husband, and I find that it's very difficult some days. But take a moment for myself, and "checking in " with my body, I can acknowledge a day of menopause and keep positive. If I don't acknowledge it, it's like I missed the chance and moods are out of control and mommy needs MANY timeouts!

With me it started in swings, going on almost 2 years now. The symptoms would last for about 2-3 days, then go away for about a 2-3 weeks. Then gradually get closer. Now, I haven't had a symptom in almost 2 weeks (knock on wood). As for my period. I've lost control/track of it. I can go 2 months without one, or 2 weeks....whatever!

I will not doubt you if you think it's early menopause. I know at my age it's possible, by mom began at my age or even earlier. So, no matter what anybody says, it very well could be premenopause.

BUT....it could also be The Pill that's not cooperating with your system. I would tell your OB about your symptoms and see if it's Pill related.

And yes, chances are, your little one's are giving you a run for your money, but it's NOT all them. I think women are more in touch with themselves than that :O)

Good luck to you....

~N. :o)

Hi W.,
I am 46 this year and last year started having problems with irregular periods, hot flashes, mood swings, you name it. I went to my OB who I have been seeing for 14 years and he tested my blood and thyroid and said I was not premenopausal and gave me some pills to start my period because I had gone 4 months without one(what a painful experience I'll never do that again). So my cycle was back on track for about 3 months when bam, no period again but this time no hot flashes, just moody and would have PMS symptoms but no period from June to October 2008 and then none from Oct. to Jan. 09. I am going to the Dr. next week and am going to tell him I think he is wrong and ask for more tests. I am also going to see a nutritionist to help with a food plan. I started taking vitamins (really good ones, cheap vitamins don't work) and doing regular detox cleansing (7 day cleanse every 2-3 months) which helps flush out the toxins that build up that cause fatigue, weightgain, bloating and a multitude of other problems. I also use a hormone balancing cream that really helps with the mood swings. We have to take control over our own health and I think that with the proper diet and vitamin/mineral supplementation we will feel better. My periods are still irregular, but I feel better and have a lot more energy.
I would be happy to share information on the products I'm using and the nutritionist information with you if you would like to contact me.
Good Luck!

W.,
I have been having similar symptoms since the birth of my daughter 1 year ago. I am 39. All my bloods come back completely normal, too. I do have a thyroid condition, but it was not found through blood tests-all my thyroid hormone looks normal on paper, but I had an ultrasound and it had nodules on it, and I had sore throats alot, so your thyroid can be abnormal even if the bloodwork is normal. There are naturopaths who can do saliva tests to look at your hormones. I am going to do it soon. Also, I have a naturopath who suggested adrenal fatigue and has given me supplements, which are really helping. There are so many women in our age group with the same problem we have. I wish the docs could give us answers, but they just say "chronic fatigue".
Good luck to you.

Hi W.,

My name is T.. I started having the same symptoms at 40. I am 44 now. I am still having all the symptoms. I just watched the show Oprah did about hormones. I am really interested in the bioidentical hormone therapy. The ladies that started on feel so much better. Always follow your gut on your body, as you are the one that knows it best.

I hope that this helped to know that you aren't the only one that goes through this.
T.

Do you know when your mother reached menopause? And any older sisters? They are the best predictor of when you will reach menopause. My OB was not convinced that I was perimenopausal, and did all the tests. They came out "normal" , but my mother was DONE at age 40. My OB herself said that what may be normal, may NOT be normal for me.
I started hot flashes at 36 1/2, and then proceeded to night sweats. I started seeing my OB because my family physician couldn't figure out why I was spotting on the pill for 2 weeks out of the month - turns out that I was also reacting badly emotionally to the pill. I had thought that it was simply a response to 2 young kids and sudden loss of all family support locally (they moved out of the area). Since having kids I can no longer take hormones. I am currently taking black cohosh (estroven, although I have heard that brand matters and may change). I have certainly taken interest in all of your responses.

Hi W.,

I am a wellness consultant. When your body stops producing estrogen you start to go through the change.

When you balance the body you go back to normal without symptoms. I represent the largest wellness company in the world and have helped many women go through the change without the symptoms of discomfort. If you are interested in learning more email me and I will share some ideas with you.

Have a great Sunday.

N. Marie

Hi W.,
Wow, I read some of these responses and learned alot myself. I also caught part of the Oprah show the other day.
Last nite I spent most of the night waking up every two hours having hot flashes & nite sweats. I am 44 years old, and was told by my doctor about a year ago that everythign was fine......I'm just experiencing some pre-pre syptoms, because I have not missed any periods yet. Even though my periods are not as dependable as they use to be until I start missing periods he didn't think it worth going any further. I will be changing doctors as this is not the first time this doctor has treated me like it was all in my head. Anyway,I just wanted to say Thanks for asking the question & helping me. When I read thru the other responses I got some good info......This website is the greatest!!

Hi W.,
I'm not a medical doctor, however, I work closely with Dr Susan Lark, MD. She specializes in women and especially hormones. She wrote a book called The Hormone Revolution. She talked allot about hormones and stress. Stress can actually cause premenopause symptoms. She also talks allot about proper nutrition and supplementation. Your adrenal glands actually help with energy and hormone production. From your description, it sounds as though you have complete adrenal fatigue. I use a cream called Adrena Calm-and take many supplements to help keep my adrenals happy and healthy. The longer you can menstruate the younger you will stay- it's actually our hormones such as estrogen and progesterone that keep us young. Dr Lark talks all about that in her book. You can also visit two of her websites www.quantumeducation.com and www.drlark.com
She's been a tremendous help to me with my hormonal imbalances, and also she helps thousands of women nationwide with her monthly news letter-
Good luck!
Feel Better!

Your symptoms could be, but they also describe a slew of other conditions, including stress!
If you want to read more about the menopause condition... get the book What Your Doctor Doesn't Tell You About Menopause by Dr. Lee.

John Lee's book on pre-menopause has a a checklist of symptoms that might be helpful to you. Stress absolutely can affect your cycle, and keeping up with children is stressful!

How's your sleep? Do you get downtime? Pleasure away from the children?

Of course you wanna ask your doctor... but do you think possibly the pill you are on may be causing the symptoms?

Also be forewarned... my mother thought she was going through early menopause at 39, but ended up pregnant... with me! :-)

I'm thinking it's the pill you are on. I know I was miserable when on the pill.

Hi W.,

I agree with the responses that you have received already.

I, also, highly recommend Dr. John Lee's book that has already recommended in your first response.

I would just like to add that menopause can happen very gradually over a long period of time. It can begin long before we are really aware of the symptoms.

Also, the Journal of American Medicine has told us some time ago that everyone needs a good daily multi vitamin to maintain good health. It is important for everyone to get a good multi vitamin.

If you would like to hear my testimonial about how I have been able to safely address my hormonal needs naturally, I would be happy to share that with you.

Vibrancy and balance is available for you,
D. Hendon :)

My periods used to be horrid and I had similar symptoms you speak of. One doctor took me off the pill and recommended two books: The PMS Self-help Book and Our Bodies Many Cries for Water ... I think that's the right title. Anyways, those helped and then years later, we moved, had kids, etc. and our new family practitioner (holistic and Western trained) put me on some of those bio-identicals they spoke of on Oprah. I LOVE THEM. Now I use them only when I feel off in some way and I regulate how much I take myself depending on my symptoms. I use Estrotone and Progesterone depending on my symptoms ... I forget the brands but that's their names on the bottles.

So I don't really call it "peri-menapausal" I just treat it with those supplements. Oh, yeah, I'm now 42 years old but started them probably around 38 or 39 just after I gave birth to my first.

Hi W.
but what Oprah also said is your doctor will say, "your blood levels are normal for your age" Oprah suggested that you then ask your doctor, ok for my age, but what about specifically for me..????
meaning, IF you still aren't feeling quite right, something may still be wrong. Doctors make a lot of assumptions about other peoples health... they have a tendency to put people into categories by age group EVEN when you have symptoms that are similar to someone else but may in fact be something all together different.
Additionally, something worth noting.. take a good look at your eating habits, that which we may have got away with in our youth 20s... aren't always the foods that will sustain us now. While you may be premenopausal, diet plays such a huge role. it's worth taking a look at. But whatever you do, I wish you the best of luck!!

Hi W.,

I recently did a "spit test" that tests your hormone levels at the cellular level, and found I was really low in progesterone and testosterone. My homeopath has me taking some supplements B vitamins, progesterone cream, fish oil etc, and I'm hoping it will help. I've just started it all, but am glad I'm resolving the problem now, before the issues got huge. By the way, I am 41 and was having alot of the same symptoms as you.

Good luck,

Was progesterone one of the levels that were checked? That is often out of whack in women over 30, easily checked, and easily fixed.

Your problems could also very easily be pill side effects...even if you've been on the same one for a long time.

Hi W. -

I have only one 5 mo daughter, and can't imagine how I'd feel taking care of two active little ones. I'm sure more experienced moms will have some great suggestions and support for you.

A couple years ago, I was experiencing all those symptoms 'to the max'. I was a blithering mess (this was before I became a new mom at 42. now I have other reasons to be exhausted!) At 40, I started to feel exhausted, irritable, fatigued, got migraines again, had memory problems, insomnia, sores appearing all over my body, and my cycle began to be very irregular after 15 years of perfect regularity (with no pills). I was having melt-downs every few days. Lots of people told me that this just happens when you turn 40, others said pre-menopause. I said no, there's got to be something else.

Also to mention is that I had been trying to get pregnant for 6 years without success by this point...

Darling, I know you can help yourself feel better, because I did it myself. I found an acupuncturist who had a nutrition-based approach to health care. She set me up with weekly appointments (it’s not always 2-3 times a week). I took all of her recommendations very seriously, in order to gain control of my health.

- She suggested changing my diet seriously: for me, there's no wheat. Less red meat, NO soda, no coffee, not even decaf, no fried foods, no sugar (which includes no alcohol, no fruit juice, no dried fruit) – just fresh pure foods.
- She looked at all the vitamins and supplements I was taking and made some suggestions.
- She recommended an HPA profile lab test too - turned out I had almost no serotonin production in my body, and my adrenals were shot after a lifetime of toxicity and stress. You need serotonin for proper sleep and physical and emotional support, and you need your adrenals to function well for energy. They both affect the thyroid. (I had tested fine for thyroid). Your thyroid can appear to be fine on tests, but you can still have adrenal fatigue. So I was prescribed specific lab supplements to boost my body's ability to produce it's own serotonin, which also helped the adrenal function. I took my serotonin-precursor supplements on schedule twice a day, with a prenatal vitamin, extra calcium/magnesium and Borlean’s Omega Twin.
- I did yoga once a week.

I felt like I ‘woke up’ for the first time in many years. All my symptoms went away within a month, I am not exaggerating. I lost 'weight', and reduced inflammation and acidity in my body.

Three months after starting acupuncture and being serious about my health, I got pregnant without even thinking about it. I don't think it would have happened without the self-care I did. I’ve been healthy ever since – super-tired from nursing, but because I corrected my body's imbalances, I think now I can handle the mommy fatigue better.

So if you can, seek out acupuncture and make some small changes in your diet that can make a big difference in your body's chemistry - it could make the biggest difference in your life since becoming a mommy! I am so enthusiastic about this because I know how it feels to feel so bad, and then to come out of it feeling so good. Maybe your insurance will cover the cost of an HPA Profile test if your doctor orders it (Sanesco Labs provides the testing kits to L.Ac.s and MDs).

Send me a message if you like, I can give you my acupuncturist's name and number.

Sending you light and support,
C. S.

W.,

There is a GREAT book called 'The Wisdom Of Menopause' written by Christiane Northrup, M.D. My mom got it for me when I was 35 because it has lots of information regarding very early symptoms of menopause as well as what you can do early in life to minimize discomforts when you actually do go through menopause. I have recommended this book to many of my friends and co-workers. You may find it helpful.

Good luck,
D.

It is not like your hormones drop steadily, ok? Maybe you were good when you had yr blood work.They spike. All I can tell you is in my experience, the 40's are the gateway to fatigue.I got fixed, and that starts it sooner. Everything you are saying sounds periomenapause to me. Please try to allow yourself REST. Trust me sweetheart, (house)work will always wait for you. Just try to keep beds made and floors vacuumed.Enjoy the kids while they are little, playing with them is more important than cleaning, ok? This time flies by. You can try black cohosh for 6 months, it did wonders for me. Remfemin is one. Good luck.

Hi W.!
How often do you eat? The reason I am asking is that I am a weight loss coach and a lot of times, we see that people are not eating often enough and definitely not enough protein. That would account for being exhausted, irritable and fatigued as well as possibly a chaotic mentrual cycle. Just a thought. When trying to keep up with kids and not having enough nutrition in our bodies- it can be very difficult!! I hope you get what you are looking for!

A. Hansen

Talk to your doctor and have him/her schedule another blood panel for thyroid and other issues that have these symptoms just to be sure. A lot can change in six months.

Take care!

Your symptoms could likely be from a wide variety of things, but I just wanted to let you know you are not too young for it to possibly be pre-menopause. I know the Drs. usually say it begins later, but my own experience was that I went through a hard and fast menopause in my early 40s. I think I was about 41 when I first noticed the symptoms, and was done at age 45. It wasn't pleasant going through it, because I was extremely emotional and even felt suicidal at times. But during all the years since, I have never regretted getting done with that stage of life so early. I recommend you keep on asking the Dr. and if there is a specialist they can recommend, by all means take advantage of any help you can get, both to be sure of what is causing your symptoms, and if it is indeed pre-menopause, to help you get through it with a minimum of negative effects.

This also could be your thyroid. When I had my second child I couldn't figure out why I was so tired which made everything so hard. Why was I the only mom in the entire history of moms who couldn't handle too kids. I was anemic and hypo-thyroid. Have your blood checked.

My OB told me that there is a condition that happens to women in their late 30s to early 40s. It is not early menopause, which usually occurs 5 to 10 years later. Anyway, she thinks of it as an end to easy fertility because your periods become more irregular, and your hormones are less stable. Many women feel either increased anxiety or increased depression at this time. She said many OBs prescribe a low dose of antidepressant, just for about 2 weeks every month, before your period, and that seems to help a lot of women. The best thing that helped me is just knowing that this was a normal thing that all women go through. You might want to talk to your OB about it, but it is very common. Good luck!