Could This Be Hormones and Menapause?

I do say call your OBGYN, and if you are in perimenopause .....sit back as it will be a ride. I hope you have no troubles but oh my mine was a nightmare for two plus years...the list of symptoms I think I had them all. Finally have been better with no periods for several months now. Good luck to you. I was the same way my mom is gone and I have nobody to relate an age too. I just turned 50 and honestly think from 46 on I experienced it all. ugh!

Good luck!

I'm the same age or about to be in a week. I have experienced some similar situations. Mine even last for 3 weeks at times. Light, heavy, light days. Then I have been known to skip a month. (this was part of my history though) My doctor says I'm not in this stage of my life. However, I really think I am after talking with some of my friends that have gone through this. I even have some difficulty with sleeping at times and getting hot on a moments notice. My friends just recently shared with me their is a test the doctors can give you to determine this. I'm going to be asking my doctor the next time.
I'd call your doctor though. Just to rest your mind. Just know that he/she may tell you no. I've also heard about basing it on when your mom or grandma went through theirs. I have the same problem though and can't do that do to mom having a hyst. and grandma never talking about this with her girls.

On a side note: If you haven't seen Menopause the Musical, you have to go see it. It is a riot. It is going to be in Ft.Worth. I saw it in Richardson this last weekend. We just died laughing and we all related at some stage of the play. A definite must!

Cathy,
Absolutely it could be perimenapause, I had a lot of different symptoms for several years. One of them was crazy periods, and then finally very heavy flow. Check out Dr. John Lee. He is now deceased, but he wrote some very good books on Menapause and what to expect. He recommends using a progestrine cream that is bio-identical to our natural progesterine. This has helped me tremendously with symptoms. There are hormonal support groups on Yahoo, check them out.
I hope this helps!
C.

I always like to play it safe and call my doctor and at least ask, so that is what I would say to do. BUT, when I was about your age I started having unbelievably heavy periods with cramping and it was caused by fibroids.......another thing a lot of us older gals can get. My doctor declined to call it menopause. If that is the case it may stay the same or it may get worse. It is more of an annoyance than a concern. I have heard there are nutritional options that could help, but it is unlikely a doctor would tell you that. Start with your doctor, then wait and see.

Hi Cathy:

I believe there are a few of us older moms to younger kids out there. I too have been going through hormonal changes and it is different. I could really use a fan on me 24/7. This could be what is called "perimenopause" causing eractic periods, mood swings, hot flashes, etc. I copied the following from Mayo Clinics website-hope it helps.

"Because this process takes place over years, menopause is commonly divided into the following two stages:

•Perimenopause. This is the time you begin experiencing menopausal signs and symptoms, even though you still menstruate. Your hormone levels rise and fall unevenly, and you may have hot flashes and other symptoms. Perimenopause may last four to five years or longer.
•Postmenopause. Once 12 months have passed since your last period, you've reached menopause. Your ovaries produce much less estrogen and no progesterone, and they don't release eggs. The years that follow are called postmenopause."