Issues During Pre Menopause

I'm years past menopause. I'm tired, need naps, have no energy. A few weeks ago I was diagnosed with anemia. I suggest you make an appointment for a physical exam. Could be perimenopause. Could be something else.

You need blood work done. You need your iron checked, your hemoglobin checked and your thyroid checked. Don’t blame it on pre-menopause.

Have your thyroid checked. It's a simple blood test. Hypothyroidism is very common in women.

I agree, give your doctor a call. Recently I was feeling very weak with little to no energy. Turns out I have high blood pressure. My doctor prescribed something. I feel so much better.

You just really have no way of knowing what might be causing it or what might help. Your doctor is the best person to help.

Definitely see your doctor to discuss what's happening. So many changes happen during the time of perimenopause, and the symptoms can vary over time and from woman to woman. There are also a host of other underlying medical issues that can cause extreme fatigue, so it's best to get checked by your provider to see what's going on. This is always the most sound approach, and it's particularly important if this change is different from your everyday "normal."

ETA: I see a lot of responses about vitamin deficiencies (especially B12, D) and low iron. I had all of these for years, and would simply supplement as instructed or tweak my diet or whatever. No one thought to ask WHY I was deficient, because these are so common. I had an endoscopy for an upper-GI issue and my doctor happened to biopsy my small intestine as a routine thing that she does when she's in there anyway and we were shocked that I had a ton of intestinal damage, consistent with Celiac disease that had probably been active for about 10 year by the amount of damage to the lining, which couldn't absorb these nutrients. I had to supplement some specific deficient nutrients until they got up to normal ranges and then was able to taper off most of those because my healed gut can now absorb those nutrients. So...if you are chronically deficient in things like D, B12, zinc, calcium, magnesium, or iron...and you eat a good diet get sun exposure, etc., push your doctor to help figure out WHY your body isn't doing what it should be able to do without supplements. There might be a root cause that you can fix.

Original: What you're feeling isn't a normal part of aging. See your doctor. Have them do complete bloodwork. My fatigue was from undiagnosed Celiac disease. Once that was diagnosed and I was off gluten, my energy went back to normal. You could be deficient in iron or other nutrients for a variety of reasons. It's important to rule out possibly serious conditions before assuming it's just hormones and aging.

I don't mean to alarm you, but a friend complained to her doctor at a physical that she was feeling more fatigued than normal. Her blood count ended up being low, which prompted more testing, and she learned that she had advanced colon cancer (she didn't have other obvious symptoms like rectal bleeding). She had been bleeding internally from a tumor and that caused severe anemia and fatigue.

Please see your doctor and get to a root cause and don't let them brush off your concerns without a full workup to find out what's going on. Hope you find an easy answer and feel better soon!

Well, some of it is just pre-menopause but you always do have to rule other things out - so blood work is essential, and talking to doctor a must. I had low B12 and if you're anemic (very possible if you're having those weird periods) .. there are a lot of reasons (as cited below). I also had the low vitamin D and around here, they often advise people to take it daily after you hit 50 as a precaution - so worth talking to your physician.

I find I need to exercise - a walk will help elevate my levels. I hated the idea of them (fit bits) just because the kids here were getting them and I thought, great, one more thing for prepubescent girls to worry about their weight about - but I wear the least expensive one myself (I wanted to track my heart rate) and it does encourage you to move. I find I am less 'sluggish' because I do get up and walk around and get busier throughout the day.

Drink lots more water than you think you need. Also, watch the sugar/carb intake especially in afternoon. Eat something like a protein and a fruit - like cheese and whole wheat toast or cracker, or fruit and 20 almonds or something and then drink water. Avoid the sugar rush slump. It will get you through until dinner.

Then catch your zzzz's. Crucial for me. I don't always sleep with hubby - we have an extra bed and if someone is tossing and turning (or in his case snoring), we just take a night or two apart, because at this age, if I don't get my sleep or feel rested, it leaves me feeling drained (he's the same way). REM sleep is so important. Get nice bedding you like (good pillow) and make sure you feel rested when you wake up. I go to bed earlier than my teens. I feel like a kid but I so enjoy my bed.

Good luck :) If it helps. it is very common - my friends and I all talk about this. Just rule out any physical/medical reasons for it (a lot of my friends and I have had the odd medical /vitamin deficiency at this stage in the game) and make changes to your lifestyle. But some is, unfortunately - perimenopause I think from what we've gathered.

* Oh and I do take the occasional cat nap, nothing wrong with that!

I would speak with a doctor who specializes in reproductive health and bio-identical hormone therapy. They will run a full panel to see what you are missing or low on (or even high - that can mess things up, too) and they can lab create a hormone cocktail that will balance what you body is off on, out.

If nothing else, just check into it . . . it's pretty amazing.

it's hard to sleep well when the hot flashes descend upon you, so fatigue is pretty common during menopause. take that nap!

practice strict sleep hygiene. set yourself up to get all the rest you can. cool washcloth by the bed, fan, black cohosh and raspberry leaf tea, meds if you need and can tolerate them.

eat clean and exercise. it's very hard to exercise when you have no energy, but it's so important. some yoga or a walk are fine if that's all you can manage, but push yourself to do something. the exercise will also help you sleep better.

it will get better! no one knows how long it will take, though, it's incredibly individual. hang in there.

ETA- yes, i totally agree with all the suggestions to get thoroughly checked out by your doc! likely it's just pre-M, but you do want to rule out any other issues.

khairete
S.

Could be hormonal, or even a vitamin deficiency. I have vitamin D and B-12 deficiencies, both of which can cause exhaustion. It could even be a combination of a deficiency and the hormones, or even a sleep disorder, like sleep apnea, kicking in. Diet may also be to blame, as some diets can create havoc on your stomach, keeping you from getting good sleep. Having blood work checked for deficiencies and hormone levels is a good start, and the doctor may suggest a sleep study as well.

L. - welcome back!

You need to get your blood drawn and have your hormones checked along with your vitamin D levels - I was like this - tired every day - when I told my doctor - they drew blood and found my Vitamin D levels were LOW...dangerously low. Now I spend more time in the sun daily and take a Vitamin D supplement. I chose not to get the shot but take the D3 supplement.

Good luck!

then take a nap!
I love me a nap. they are amazing.

I'm with everyone else. Talk to your doctor. I have issues with both low iron and low vit D.
Both can leads to exhaustion, and my doctor helped me sort out how to correct these. But it is IMPORTANT to talk to your doctor first. Too much iron is toxic so do NOT supplement unless you know you are low. I don't know if vit D overdose can happen, but still, you don't want to waste $ supplementing something that is not low (waste of $ and it won't help) so Dr visit first.

Generally you feel more tired because you don't sleep as well at night.
The hot flashes and night sweats don't let you get into a deep enough sleep so you feel rested.
There's nothing wrong with taking a nap.
Estroven helped me a lot and took some of the edge off the flashes.

Have your parathyroid checked, it's a simple blood test for Vitamin D and calcium. If you calcium is high and your Vitamin D is low chances are your parathyroid is malfunctioning. It's a simple surgery and if this is the problem once the offending organ is gone your are cured.
You have 4 parathyroid glands on the back side and corners of your thyroid. You will be fine with 3. I had the surgery done in November of 2018 and feel so much better.