The Medusa Was In Menopause

Continued feelings of melancholy, sadness, listlessness, being uninterested in things that one used to love or love to do.... or to even become uninterested in life in general, new fatigue, etc. St. John's Wort (OTC) in higher doses works very well for mild depression in many women. It is important to note that sometimes we are just emotionally (and physically) worn out from the shear magnitude of trying to deal with all these new physical symptoms. This can leave a woman feeling more hopeless than actually depressed. There is a difference to us, but too many doctors tend to rush to treat menopausal symptoms they don't know how to get rid of.... with anti-depressants... instead of trying a little harder for us.  "Here, take this little pill and feel happy."

But, I strongly advise women to be VERY cautious before letting any doctor who is not a real Psychiatrist/Psychologist - talk them into taking anti-depressants because of possible addiction and other known side effects (including lowering libido!) - all the while HOPING it will  help, instead of KNOWING exactly what is wrong and recommending the proper medication to fix it. Too many doctors seem to understand Depression, but Hopelessness..... not so much.

While anti-depressants may treat some of the symptoms of a more severe clinical depression and are therefore a vital tool in the old doctor's bag, they absolutely will NOT cure the hormonal imbalances that accompany Menopause - which is causing all this fun stuff to happen to our bodies. So you can take them and just not care as much that you still feel like crap - but I think that's not a good answer. The medical community hands them out like candy nowadays, and for those who really need them, they can be a lifesaver. But if, after some thought, you tend to think you're actually feeling more hopeless than depressed.... overwhelmed rather than suicidal... it's just possible that what you really need is hope and not a pretty little happy pill.

If you're actually having thoughts of suicide or homicide, please PLEASE go see a Psychiatrist or Psychologist for help. But if Depression (either mild or moderate) is one of your newer symptoms (or a part of your own LIST OF SYMPTOMS), then perhaps you should press your doctor harder to find another way to actually treat ALL your symptoms. And if he/she does not seem forthcoming and willing to go the extra mile to find the answers you and your body need, then find another doctor. Life is too short to be loyal to a doctor who is obviously not being loyal to you.

Doctors fix you, you pay them. That's the way it works. If they don't seem inclined to listen to you and to try to fix you, then you go elsewhere with a clear conscience. You are a woman... you can bitch at the phone company and nag those who need nagged, so stand up for yourself to heal the most important thing in your life..... your health. And pray a little.... praying will help, too.

Estroven OTC [contains Black Cohosh] works pretty well if no other symptoms are present

Days

Estroven or a need for Estrogen

Joint aches, mild arthritis type pain - Aleve and Sam-E work well for me... Sam-E took about 4 months to take full effect, but also helps balance moods

Wear more socks and gloves

Could also be too much estrogen because Progesterone levels have dropped, i.e. see "Estrogen Dominance"

Continued feelings of melancholy, sadness, listlessness, being uninterested in things that one used to love or love to do.... or to even become uninterested in life in general, new fatigue, etc.

Try OTC strong eye moisture drops

Can lead to debilitating Skin Crawls

The medical term for this symptom is Formication, and it can be severe enough to cause Anxiety/Panic Attacks, or just present as an annoying new itch somewhere that won't go away. Formication can present, anywhere on the body, as a simple case of the hives. Or, your body can feel like one big hive that itches everywhere uncontrollably. For some, it feels like being eaten by ants, for others it can feel like you have a couple of fleas hopping around on your body... randomly munching on your flesh. It can be annoying, it can be debilitating... especially if it comes on at 70 mph on the way to Grandma's house. At any rate, when Formication hits, it's usually sudden and often leads to an anxiety attack. I don't recommend running out to find a pill to treat anxiety, which may or may not just mask this symptom instead of fixing it.

Where does it come from? As near as I can ascertain from my good doc's, it is your body telling you that you need more Estrogen for some reason. Perhaps you started a new medication that disrupted your Testosterone and/or Progesterone levels to the point where your body thinks it needs more Estrogen. Maybe you're suddenly under a whole lot of new stress, which can throw your levels off. If you're one of those few women who are going to be prone to Skin Crawls as a part of your Total Menopause Symptom List, you need to be aware of where this comes from and how to fix it quickly.

As an example, whenever I get my Testosterone implant, my Estrogen/Progesterone levels are out of whack for a couple of weeks. I need to take more Estrogen to balance that out and get rid of the crawls. Also, when my first bad doctor initially took me off of my HRT cold turkey with no monitoring, Formication hit me one day like a ton of bricks at 70 mph on the way to Denver for a meeting, and again at midnight out of the blue. Obviously, my husband is a saint.

My good doc says that some women need to take something OTC like Benedril, to tone down the "hives" aspect of it until your hormonal levels are more stable. Unfortunately, I can't take Benedril or anything like it, so I have to really watch myself when any changes happen and take more Estrogen during those times. For ladies recovering from Breast Cancer who cannot take Estrogen, if you are experiencing Formication as one of your symptoms, you need to quickly find a doctor or naturopath who can treat this successfully in another way.

Bottom line? Don't let your doctor dismiss this symptom just because it's rare, because it can lead to some pretty severe emotional issues if left untreated. After all, who can stand to be eaten by ants for very long without going bonkers?

Otherwise known as not being able to handle stress anymore

Can be severe in some cases

Doctors say "Use it or Lose it", but that's not always possible in extreme cases. Testosterone very helpful

Can be extreme and prohibit sex altogether

Like chlostrophobia and can be part of Anxiety Attack or come at night with Night Sweats

Often a Potassium deficiency, Anemia, or Thyroid problem, Fatigue is a difficult symptom to track down - but well worth the effort. And, as I have said and will say continuously, most doctors don't or won't listen to women complaining of being so bone tired - they're almost too tired to sleep. Or, they take the easy route... bingo, bango, whip out the script pad and prescribe sleeping pills and anti-depressants. WRONG APPROACH. Why not find out what is CAUSING the fatigue? And maybe eliminate a bunch of other symptoms at the same time with the correct treatment. Novel idea, that Fatigue during the day can often be attributed insomnia at night due to hormonal imbalance, and/or hot flashes and/or night sweats that can keep you awake or don't allow the kind of full, restful sleep that our bodies need to refresh themselves. What needs to be determined by your doctor is... what hormones does your body need that it is crying out for with insomnia, sweats and flashes?    Night sweats and hot flashes are often the result of insufficient Estrogen, while insomnia is usually the result of insufficient levels of Progesterone. (See chart available soon)

Celiac's disease is also a real possible cause for debilitating fatigue. Many, many people (mostly women) either are or can become what they term Gluten Intolerant (Celiac's Disease). Celiac's can be severe or mild. Some women develop symptoms of severe gastrointestinal problems any time they eat anything containing or having touched, gluten of any kind (and you'd be amazed how much prepared food contains some form of gluten). See below to try your own diagnosis through a brief diet change.

Other women don't have the tummy aches, but suffer from achy joints and extreme fatigue. Bottom line layman's terms; Celiac's happens because a woman's body cannot process/digest gluten - and so it rebels. There's a pretty simple test to be done at the doctor's office to rule out Celiac's. Email me for a copy of a great article on this subject. I'll input it  when I  have more time so it can be downloaded directly.

"But I've never had a problem eating bread or other gluten products before..." - doesn't matter. Hormone imbalances (especially imbalances hastened by hysterectomy) can occur suddenly and out of the blue. Most doctors don't really believe this can occur... but I've got dozens of women as examples to say that the doctors are WRONG. Hysterectomy, BOOM = Celiac's Disease. Going cold turkey off of HRT without being monitored, BOOM = Celiac's Disease. We're a small study compared to the thousands they want to see... but fact is fact and we've lived it. Dr. 'B' in Colorado Springs, you haven't lived it. You were wrong. (and you know who you are)

Can lead to Anxiety Attacks

Constantly not being able to sleep can cause a whole bunch of other problems - I would discourage taking prescribed sleep medications, which may make you sleep without fixing the underlying problem which is that your hormones are out of whack

Can make you wonder if you're having Alzheimer's, but it's probably really just menopause and can be made better

Your interests in Typical Activities (art, writing, music, baking, children, etc.) - feeling like a zombie blob with no more interest or zest for life. Can lead to depression, but is really rooted in hormonal imbalance. Again, in some cases Testosterone helps a lot.

Remember that bumper sticker "I'm out of Estrogen and I have a gun....?"..... my slogan

Estrogen, Testosterone needed here. This happens in more severe menopause cases...

Loss of some or ALL feeling in most or all your "parts"..... Estrogen, Testosterone, etc.

In this case, even George Clooney can't help

Loss of eyebrows/eyelashes is likely thyroid

This can include gas, bloating, Irritable Bowel, heartburn, unusual constipation or diarrhea - the key point is that this "new" symptom is new to you... could be within a year after a complete hysterectomy or if your hormones become out of whack from neglect or improper diagnosis by your OBGYN. A menopausal woman could become Lactose and/or Gluten Intolerant almost overnight, though.

To be absolutely safe, be sure to get thoroughly checked out by a GastroEnterologist before dismissing new stomach problems. You need to know for certain any new symptoms aren't something bad that needs immediate treatment. After you're sure there isn't anything bad like cancer,  and your symptoms still persist - especially even with medication - you might try a Lactose free diet (or just add OTC "Lactaid" to your diet before eating ANY dairy products like cheese, sour cream, coffee cream, milk, buttermilk, ice cream, many salad dressings, just anything that comes from the milk of a cow - get the chewable ones and just chew one or two before the meal) for three days. If after that your tummy problems still exist, then try a strict Gluten free diet (email me for instructions) for 5 days. One of those is the likely culprit..... and no, doctors do NOT routinely test or even look for those as the cause.

Just ask Dorri (Gluten Intolerant after hysterectomy ), myself (Lactose Intolerant after my OBGYN made me go off HRT cold turkey), Rhonda (Gluten Intolerant when her unmanaged menopause became severe), Angela (Gluten Intolerant after hysterectomy), Perry (Lactose Intolerant after hysterectomy), and so many more. Menopausal age women all, we were diagnosed with GERD, Irritable Bowel, and Acid Reflux. We were put on one of the new drugs that's supposed to retrain your body to perform proper daily elimination, a diet with massive doses of fiber-rich foods, and either harsh medications or something OTC like Prolosec for the gas and heartburn. The medications all lose their effectiveness after about a year, but we all still had the symptoms and were equally miserable - because none of our doctors thought to look for a new allergy as a part of our diagnosis procedures. Actually, only Rhonda's doctor asked her if she had any allergies and of course, she said no because she had never had any before. Who knew that they can pop up out of the blue? Certain not the "experts".

Then one day out of the blue, I read some tiny little article about a possible link between out of whack hormones and a sudden onset of tummy troubles. So I set out to find my own diagnosis, cured MYSELF, and then passed the info along to the others. Their results were the same, happily. The new menopausal life for the ladies with Gluten Intolerance is a bit more difficult to handle than the Lactose Intolerance, because Gluten is in so much stuff that we eat everyday and never even question (like bacon, canned olives, dark colored colas, etc.). Happily is is not in chocolate chips or pure maple syrup! Wild Oats health food stores have the best Gluten-Free selections I have found in a store setting, and there are lots of great cookbooks and places to buy Gluten-Free foods online.

You can also become "sensitive" to raw veggies and some fruits as a result of something menopausal. I've found that the OTC Beano works great if you use it diligently. So, if you have questions about your individual situation, please feel free to contact me - after you've been checked out by a tummy specialist to rule out anything funky. If they don't find anything bad, the rest is pretty easy to fix!!!

Hay fever, peanut butter, strawberries, etc., even if never allergic before

Although very "special", there are lots of things out there to get rid of it. Many women just give up and shave.

Restless Leg Syndrome.... possible magnesium deficiency

Hormones becoming out of balance can cause many changes to the body. Have a full range Thyroid blood test done to determine where you are, because you may have an under-active or overactive Thyroid, along with other Menopausal symptoms. This scenario can make a true diagnosis more complicated. Make certain that your doctor listens to you and all of your symptoms... agreeing to treat both the results of the blood tests AND your symptoms. (All my blood tests came out "within normal ranges", and yet I still had very serious Thyroid-related symptoms.) Thyroid blood tests are rated by a national average of between "here and there" on a scale.... but YOUR body may have a different idea of what is "average".