Worst menopausal symptom EVER

My worst symptom is vaginal dryness. It causes pain with intercourse and general discomfort most of the time because of the fragility of the surrounding skin. I have been prescribed estrogen cream to apply several times a week. This isnt as effective as I thought it would be, but its better than nothing. I also use a moisture product that works for several days at a time and of course I use a lubricant when having intercourse.

Mary that is my worst symptom so far, as well. I am allergic to most lubricants and the estrogen cream has not worked at all. Intercourse, almost non existent. Lots of foreplay helps, sometimes!

I have the same issue as Mary. In fact, the symptoms were so bad in all areas, that I went back on HRT. I read afterwards, that licorice supplement will assist with that issue in particular.

What to do about the accompanying osteoporosis?! After a variety of failed attempts to stop (I've given up on the reversing idea) my bones from crumbling I'm now considering daily injections. Anyone have experience with that?

I can't seem to get comfortable. I'm either too hot or too cold. Other than that, I do pretty good. I started using Estroven a while back. It seems to help some.

Mine are like Cynthia's. Hot flashes and mood swings, especially the mood swings. I find myself getting very angry for no real reason and all I want to do is yell at someone. I also can't stand the sweating. I get so embarressed. I think everyone is looking at me. I walk around with paper towels that I call sweat rags. The flashes at night don't bother me too much. I just keep taking the blanket off me and then a few minutes later pulling it back on. It's the flashes during the day that bother me.

The lack of sleep sneaks into first place but hot flahes are not far behind. Today is my first day on Femhrtt, anyone have any experience using it? I have only a half of thyroid
and a strong family history of breast cancer and have fought HRT for obvious reasons but no herbal remedy remedied all my symptoms.

sleeplessness, sleeplessnes, and sleeplessness

I don't get hot flashes anymore after taking HRT for five years and getting off it, but I do get "night sweats," but now I get them throughout the day. They aren't as severe as hot flashes, but it's still a discomfort.

Also, where I live (Austin, TX) there are a lot of allergies to contend with so when I have allergies I can't tell whether I'm having a low grade fever or "night sweats." The good news is, the allergy medication and the allergies knock me out at night and I have no problems sleeping.

Exhaustion. It comes and goes and is similar to what I had during pregnancy so that when it hits it is sudden, like feeling hypnotized and I have to go and sleep for an hour or so.
Weird, huh?

It depends on the day.
Some days it's inability to sleep. My solution...sleep when ever I can!

Other days it's hot flashes.
My solution laugh and carry the beautiful fan my husband brought me back from Japan!

Seriously the thing I love is that I don't go through the mood swings like I used to. Life is so much easier when I'm not always on edge!

First it was the night sweats. Toss the blanket, towel dry, apply powder, crawl back into bed and repeat every 2 hours.

Then it was the mood swings. Walk into a room with a smile, someone says something to me, I produce fangs and snarl at them. Following the transformation I head to a nook where I cry my heart out because I didn't recognize where that bitch in me came from.

Then came the hot flashes. It creeps up from the toes and shoots straight for the sky. Sweat trickles down your face. I would run for the coolest area I could find. In the summer I would stand in front of an AC or fan. In the winter I headed for the outdoors. I swear steam would rise from my body as I stood without a coat in the frigid cold.

Then came the insomnia. Grrrrrrrrr. Wake to go pee every 2 1/2 hours and then try to shut the eyes again. The alarm clock glares at you with its demon red eyes. Rest finally comes a half hour before you have to rise for the day.

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I'm with Mary. Dryness and tearign is the worst symptom. I rank the lack of libido second, because when I am in the mood, these issues ruin the experience.

All the above!!!!! Especially hot flashes, mood swings, sleeplessness you name it.

I feel old and unattractive. Which makes me unhappy, which maybe affecting my libido. I just feel unhappy with myself.

Dryness,that includes not making tears,and insomnia.

No libido, no sexual desire.

db10

I started getting night sweats about two years ago. I was seeing an acupuncturist at the time for other things, but in the process of working with me and doing whatever magic acupuncture does, the night sweats went away completely. Unfortunately I haven't had the finances to continue with the acupuncture and the night sweats slowly but surely returned. But when I do have the resources, acupuncture seems to help a lot with many of the symptoms of menopause/perimenopause. I highly recommend it, presuming you find a savvy acupuncturist knowlegeable in woman's health issues.

The same as everyone else, but the mood swings are driving me crazy, I upset at the least thing, cry, cry and cry. I am retiring on October 29th, (after 28 years) and for some reason I just do not feel excited about it as I should. I know it will be change (and I am looking forward to a change), but I just cry at work and couple times it was uncontrollabbe. I go to bed every night with a wet wash cloth that I have placed in ice couple hours before bed time, - the does seem to help sometimes. The only good thing about this 'change of life thing' is NOT HAVING A PERIOD!!

Hot flashes are driving me crazy, I heat to deth, my husband freezes, i keep the air on 69 sometimes lower..flashes rank #1 then there are sleepless ness, i've tried ambian, and lunesta,no help,plus the other women thing, the bitch, don't know where she comes from, lol , Tired all the time ect. u name it, I got it,,

Ah...mood swings...mood swings....mood swings...hot flashes...mood swings...

I've found that Black Cohosh in just about any product helps the night sweats. I tried Remifemin for a couple of years. Can't afford it any more. So I just get plain Black Cohosh. It's better than nothing!

Dry skin. The skin on my arms and hands looks old and it has happened overnight, seemingly. One day it was fine and smooth and young then the next it was horribly dry.

Reading everyones comments, I think the next timeI go to the doctors I'll just have her read the comments and she will know what is going on with me since it seems that I match almost all of it, Thanks for the different suggests that you use,

No one mentioned foggy mind, being unable to retreive information I'm sure I know. Sometimes I can't think of a noun that I need to express myself. It is so frustrating, I sometimes think I need to be institutionalized.

I can deal with night sweats, I seldom have them anymore, I don't like vaginal dryness,
in fact dryness everywhere as someone put it. It seems my sking is thinning and flaking everywhere. I feel like I am keeping all the skin cream producers in business.

But not being in control of my own mind, not being able to effectively express myself in words, having what some describe as senior moments, that is what is the worst symptom for me.

I hate all the symptoms. Each one seems to take its turn at anoying me. The foggy mind is the one that gets others attention though

The flower of the clover plant helped me. It is also good for bones. I am not on hormone replacement therapy and my bones inproved last year by three points.
I drink 3-4 ltrs of water per day.

I have been where all of you are now. Here is what worked for me:

Foggy brain, memory, etc (This is really scary at work and can be career limiting) A very sharp Gyn said that some women just need more estrogen than the normal .625 that is in HRT. He prescribed 1.25. I was on it for years, like 10, and every time I tried backing off that high dose, the brain problems came back. When all this is said and done and I am no longer working, I will back off again. At least any consequences won't affect my job.

Sleeplessness: Melatonin helped me...a lot. It's an over-the-counter supplement that helps regulate the sleep cycle. Beats me how it works, but it sure did for me.

I forgot, facial hair. Grrrr.

Foggy mind? I call those brain farts. Forget about trying to carry on an intelligent sounding conversation when you can't remember the words you want to say.

Worst symptom ever? Lets see, that's a toss up....the hot flashes, the insomnia (I was cleaning out my fridge at 3 am in my underwear the other night), the inability to choose the right word (I feel like a stroke victim, I know the word but can't get it out)...to name a few.

In addition to menopause, I also had hyperthyroidism. I was referred to an endocrinologist who strongly recommended Radioactive Iodine treatment. I went for the quick fix so now I have no thyroid and am hypothyroid. So first, let me recommend for anyone with a racing heart, foggy brain, irritability - that it might be thyrotoxicosis -but don't let anyone talk you into any treatment until you fully explore all of the options. I am teetering between the symptoms of hypothyroidism (muscle pain, bone pain, depression, weight, insominia) and hyperthyroidism (pounding heart, short attention span, angry, allergies, extreme sweating and feeling overheated).
My worse menopause symptom, I guess, is the whole head sweat. Hate it.
I have not been on any HRTs - would you recommend it? I'm on the synthetic thyroid replacement hormone but nothing else except vitamins and such.

Hi ! I am new on here and glad i join really found something interesting me ...I am in the perimenapausal stage at 43 yrs old,i have mood swings excessive sweating day and night, The moods swings can be bad i just don't want to be bother with no one and i have been having periods off and on skips for 6 months or longer..My mother started at 36 yrs old... It is really embarassing when your'e shopping and inline you're sweating so bad just drip off ya.. twinkieca125

Any kind of stress or anxiety brings on a hot flash for me. They are uncomfortable but not to the point of sweating. Jacket on....jacket off type of thing.
The theory is that diet has alot to do with how severe your hot flashes are. I am a vegetarian and drink only soy milk. Also, I find if I have a bottle of water handy it helps relieve the severity of the hot flash rather quickly.

Menopause!! Grrrr...or for me Peri, GOSH why didnt someone tell me about this when I was a younger woman? but then again it probably wouldnt of mattered anyway, okay the Worst Menopausal symptom? ..now thats a good one, I would have to say MOOD SWINGS,..one min I think im okay, the next im assuming every possible thing is wrong with me, upset over anything, and everything, of course that is anxiety I THINK? right? so whats menopause and what anxiety? Or depression, HELP!! WHAT gives?..i wake up in a dreadful fog with light depression, THOUGHTS RUNNING RAMPANT , not a good feeling <--if this is menopause id have to say this is the worst symptom..the Mental part of this is horrible, efore the low back ache, and being in bed for 1 1/2 weeks I was fine!! then all this stuff, SIGH* BEEN TO ER, with what they said was a Panic / anxiety related issue, but im having a hard time believing that one, refused medication, other than what they gave me at ER, took 1/3 of a xanax the other day when i was shaking so bad I coudnt stand it, of course IT DID HELP but, i feel weak when I have to rely on meds, even though sometimes they are needed, ..none the less its been a nightmare of a roller coaster ride for me, ..I pray and I pray alot !!

oh yes and if anyone out there has similar situations with this glorious time in our life please comment, I welcome any suggestions or comments to me at my email or private messages are welcome as well, its nice to know 'others" OUT THERE suffer alike, even though i dont wish this on my worse emeny , even though i dont have any haha. Ie* my evaluation of my self and some of these Dr. diagnosed, stomach problems , burning, esophagas probs, depression, anxiety, panic attacks, mental anguish, worry, i gather deep breaths alot , sigh alot, feel the need to stretch alot, I also deal with this horrible early morning fog and mind chatter, (HORMONES?) ...or something worse? THRYOID:?? could it be the test arent showing it up?? any feedback is so welcome* have a wonderful day my fellow female sufferers, God bless

yeah, what's up with that peeing every few hours? first the heart palpitations start, followed by hot flashes, then im awake, i may as well go to the bathroom, then lay on top of the covers while the cats walk all over me, then finally cover and go to sleep , this all takes about 20-30 minutes. i hate it!!!!!!!!!!!

WOW! Menopause, it is truly an amazing thing (and not in a good way). Thanks to the internet, I am educated far beyond the gobbly gook-partial info I received from my GYN. I knew I was not alone in this mid-life journey, every women has to take this journey if she lives to this stage, but the knowledge and support that women are willing to share and give is touching. I asked my mother about her experiences and she said "Oh nothing was bad, I just stopped" Hmmm, I remember her cursing like she never had and several death threats oozing from those perky little lips, I think she's in denial. I'm sharing everything with my daughters, I call them (in the middle of the night even). just to describe a hot flash. As for my husband, he needs a lot of educating, he is clueless but afraid right now, he is very afraid.

As for my worst symptom, ALL OF THEM, but the suprprises are the pits. I had not had a period for six months, so I thought ok at least that's over with, and then wham......that ugly red snake pops up. So here I am with cramps, heavy bleeding, hot-flashes and those horrible mood swings. Whats a girl to do? My hot flashes were tolerable til recently now they are worse than ever. But it is the mood swings that are driving me nucking futs. My dr. gave me prozac which I was very leary about taking, and didn't because I wanted to do some research first, now those babies are lying at the bottom of the trash can. No way am I going to make this situation worse. Not to mention that it sounds like something that would cause me to go postal, no I don't need that catalyst, I really don't like my boss.

I to am perimenopausal, 45 and been this way for about 10 years. Hot flashes start when I eat spicy foods or get frustrated. I started prozac about 5 or so years ago. I am an Occupational Therapist and one of my term papers was on prozac when it first came out, through research I found that problems arise with prozac when it is not taken consistentaly. I just tell everyone that I am a hot middle aged lady, I carry around an oriental fan, I have a personal plug in fan at my desk and I am beginning to enjoy winter because I can go outside for 5 or so minutes. I know there is more ahead but so far I am handling ok. My husband thinks I am crazy. When I put sheets on the bed I put on bottom sheet, then two top sheets, my husbands kinda normal with extra on his side and my side is a folded in half sheet so if/when I sweat too much I can just pull out my moist sheet. We have cuddling only at special times. My libido has lessened but so has my husbands and he says its definately not because of a problem. He is a big guy. God be with us all.

I AM NEW TO JOINING INTO CONVERSATIONS HERE ON GATHER AND I AM SO GLAD I FOUND THIS PAGE SO THAT I CAN VENT ABOUT MY OWN MENOPAUSE SYMPTOMS. I HAVE HAD THEM ALL AND I HAD THEM! THE HOT FLASHES IN THE SUMMER HEAT ARE THE WORST THING I HAVE EVER HAD! MOST DAYS THIS SUMMER I RAN AROUND THE HOUSE NAKED BECAUSE EVERYTIME I PUT CLOTHES ON THEY WERE SOAKED IN 2 MINUTES OR UNDER EVEN WITH THE A/C ON! MY DOCTOR PUT ME ON PREMARIN AND EVEN IT DONT STOP IT BECAUSE I THINK IT IS TOO LOW OF A DOSE! ALSO MOOD SWINGS HAVE HAD ME GOING CRAZY SINCE I HAD MY HYSTERECTOMY IN 2003 IM 46 AND FELT LIKE I WAS GOING CRAZY BECAUSE I HAD NO ONE TO TALK TO ABOUT IT EXCEPT MY HUSBAND AND BELIEVE ME--HE WAS NO HELP AT ALL! I FEEL FOR ANY WOMEN GOING THROUGH THIS MENOPAUSE STUFF! I AM OPEN TO ANY SUGGESTIONS THAT ANYONE CAN OFFER BECAUSE I KNOW THAT WINTER IS COMING AND EVEN THAT DOESNT HELP MY SYMPTOMS! IT MAKES YOU FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE A PERMANENT FEVER THAT NEVER GOES AWAY! SOAKING WET IN TOLEDO, OHIO

Worse symptom for me are the hot, sweaty flashes. I can be sitting talking to someone in an air-conditioned office and all of a sudden, BAM, sweat is flowing down my face like a river. Ughhh, hot and sweaty used to be sexy; now, it's a pain in the butt.

Sleeping at night is now an adventure. Covers on, covers off. Nightclothes on, everything off. Turn the A/C down when I go to bed sweating, wake up a few hours later freezing.

One thing I've noticed is often the flashes are triggered by my stress - those are the ones, surprisingly, that I can control. And, under really extreme stress, I'll have a short, violent period.

How is this for irony: I'm having a flash right now by just thinking about stress flashes LOL

I turned 43, and everything changed. All of a sudden, I am at work, and I can not sit. It was painful to sit. Then, the mood swings-OMG! I went to the doctor, and he says: "you don't have any hormone activity going on-no wonder you are anxious and foggy." I had to go on HRT. Sometimes, I cut back, even though it is a low amt, because I will begin to spot, and my boobs will ache.

This only happened once, thank God! I had been 5 months or so without menstruating when I began to feel pregnant...in every way...tender breasts, quickening, increased girth, morning sickness...the whole nine yards. I was convinced my husband's surgery had reversed itself. Then, after a fall, I started spotting. I was absolutely convinced that I was pregnant and now about to lose the baby. I know now why the root of hysteria and hysterectomy are the same. A month later I had a period and had seen the doctor for an exam. I was not pregnant, but I was embarrassed, humiliated and chagrinned. It is seven years later and my husband still gives me stuff about it sometimes. I have never seen this written anywhere, but have had several women share that they experienced a similar malfunction. As an aside however, I know a woman who thought she was having menopause...felt "ill" one day with "horrible stomach cramps" stayed home from work and delivered a darling baby boy. Every time I see the little cutie at the store, I feel some redemption. Also, about three years after the hysteria, I had one completely normal cycle. Ovulation, with all its benefits, followed by as normal a period as any I ever had. I am pretty sure that if my husband had not had surgery, we might very well have had a surprise addition to the family!