As I begin my story, I have currently in the middle of a hot flash. Pulling up my hair and madly fanning my neck. I have learned that applying coolness to the neck is the fasted way to cool down. RELIEF!!! Now I can begin my story…

My name is Amy and I am 33 years old. On October 14, 2008, my life changed before my eyes: I was told I was in early menopause. It all started a couple of weeks early. I was having hot flashes and dizzy spells- as well as some other "girlie" issues that you can probably guess. I was used to the hot flashes 2 years ago when I was on clomid. But they had stopped once I stopped the medication. So when they reappeared, I was a bit miffed. So I made an appointment for my annual "girlie" exam. When I told my doctor about my recent symptoms- he raised an eyebrow (literally- it was kind of freaky!). He said he wanted to run a blood test, not to worry it was only a slim chance. "Slim chance for what?" I asked. "Premature Ovarian Failure". Well sir. I’d never heard of such a thing. He said my results maybe in Friday, but possibly Monday.

So, I race home to my beloved Internet and do a search. My mouth dropped. The symptoms of this condition mirrored what I was going through. But my doctor said "SLIM CHANCE!- It might just be high blood pressure". On my hands and knees I begin to pray like crazy for high blood pressure. WHO prays for high blood pressure? A girl who is NOT ready for "the change!"
Friday came and went without a call. That means a whole weekend of wild wonder. Monday finally roles around and again no phone call. Okay- now I’m getting miffed again. WHY is this taking so long? Tuesday morning- I make the call. The doctor is in surgery and will call me this afternoon. Less than 2 minutes later- he is calling. Do doctors call from surgery if another patient is anxious enough?!?! Apparently not. He had just walked in and call me first thing.

"The news isn’t good. Your FHS is at 66.9. Your ovaries have completely shut down. You are in menopause." Silence… If I was in the right state of mind- I might have heard the crickets chirping. Without realizing what I was saying, I said "So my chances of having a kid?". My doctors was very sincere in saying that the window just closed. He mentions something about hormones and my pharmacy. A hot flash is coming on… We hang up. I sit at my desk for a moment then send out an email to my team about the conversation that just took place. My boss emailed if I was okay- I relied simply, with only one word: "NO". One of my coworkers was there in an instant and just held me as I whaled. Then my boss sent me home….

Telling my hubby. He knew something was up when the door opened. I walked in and fell into his arms. I apologized for not being able to give him kids. He apologized for not giving me kids sooner. We both said the other didn’t need to apologize. We then look at the dog (Maple) and say "Well, you’re the kid!"

I talked to my Dad for a while, as my Mom was out. I talked to Mom later and then took Maple to the dog park. I will never forget that afternoon as long as I live. It was a gorgeous afternoon and Maple was as happy as… well as happy as a dog free to run around with other dogs! I sat in a chair and took it all in. It was very surreal- almost poetic. Words cannot really describe my calmness that afternoon. I was to learned later that ALOT of people where praying for me during those moments… (Thanks to all!)

When I got home, my hubby was just getting home as well. We talked for a little bit, then Mom called. She and Dad wanted to take us out to dinner. We dined at the Cracker Barrel then had dessert at DQ. It was really nice. My parents couldn’t have children. Both my brother and I were adopted. They knew our agony… they knew our pain.

The hormones. Before dinner we ran by the pharmacy and got my HRT (hormone replacement therapy). It looks alot like bc pills in the little circular container. So I dialed up my day and dispensed my first pill. Last night I took my second pill. No marked changes in the first 36 hours.

These past few days have been heart wrenching. A friend emailed me and told me how "brave" I was to share my story so openly. I didn’t think of myself as brave. I felt rather like a beat up wimp. I’m normally very optimistic and happy- so a marked change in me is very noticeable. I told me story as it was unfolding so that people would know and I wouldn’t have to tell it 50 million times. So, here is my story in it’s entirety.

Any advice for me?

I am taking high blood pressure tablets and find that if I take hormone supplements I feel a lot better and happier but I get a headache every day. It is not with me 24hours a day. Can anyone suggest what foods I should be eating?

knowing that he’s under tight glycemic control & he’s got high blood pressure that is adjusted by antihypertensive drugs, not using any new drugs & the this excessive sweating is a new symptom.

I just started taking a progesterone only birth control pill this month (I’ve not been on birth control for a long time due to high blood pressure and combination birth control pills)…so this progesterone pill is a new thing for me. My breasts are so swollen and sore. I’m kinda small chested naturally but right now my breasts seem huge. It’s awful! Anyone else experienced this with progesterone only pills? What can I do to stop the breast tenderness and shrink back down to size without stopping the birth control? (I’m getting married this month and want to have the birth control protection!) Do symptoms go away after a while?

In the last few years I have noticed that caffeine seems to last a very long time for me. I usually abstain from caffeine (except chocolate occasionally), but in the last few weeks I have developed a taste for hot chocolate (sugar-free) and usually have two- to- three 8 oz. cups from 7:30 am to around 11:00 am. After that, I pour a 16 oz. glass of Diet Cola that I sip on until 6:30 pm, but after that I do not consume any caffeine before bed time. The problem is that I cannot sleep at night anymore and, in fact, feel very "wired" and "hyped up" until around 3:00 am when I finally become sleepy enough to actually nod off, but if I only nap 30- to -45 minutes then I am wide awake when I wake up.

I don’t know if it matters or not, but I am including a little bio information in case it is needed: I am 43 years old, married, 2 sons, 2 dogs and live in Texas. I have been going through perimenopause since I was 27 (verified) and I have High Blood Pressure (low-dose medication) and asthma (only a rescue inhaler used as needed – approximately 3 times per week in the winter & rarely in the summer). My LDL and Triglycerides are high. I have had chronic back pain for 17 years and, as a result, I take 100 mg. of Morphine Sulfate twice per day, and 800 mg. of Ibuprofen twice per day.

I notice that if I completely abstain from all caffeine, by the second night I go to sleep very easily and wake up refreshed.

Is it possible to have a high sensitivity to caffeine? Enough that it would disturb your sleep for up to 48 hours? I am also highly sensitive to antihistamines and pain killers and wonder if it is a correlation?

Any answers, thoughts, or hunches are most welcome. Thanks!!

an ultrasound showed i had many follicles in the ovaries. i have also had very oily skin and acne since my teen years that just won’t go away. my doctor doesnt seem concerned, he doesn’t think it’s PCOS since i’m skinny and don’t have high blood pressure or diabetes or anything. so what else could it be?
there was also a little fluid in my pelvic cavity. dr said ruptured cyst?

This is not so much a question but something I wanted to share with other ladies out there. After posting this question I decided to ask my GYN if he knew of any natural hormone replacement supplements that was backed by clinical research, there is so many out there I didn’t know which way to go and because of a history with breast cancer I don’t want to go on HRT.
He sent some information back regarding "DONG QUAI" saying is the only one with clinical proof.
The estrogen found in the root mimics ours and it also helps as a calming agent for depression, mood swings, weight loss due to water retention and so on, worth reading about.
It comes in caps and in root form, the root really smells bad when you boil it to make tea.
Taken orally 6 per day, norn, aft., eve. and it takes 30 days for it to get into your system, the tea is faster but like I said is not very pleasant.
If you have high blood pressure ask you doctor, mine is always on the low side so is not an issue for me.
GNC does not carry this product Vitamin Shoppe does and is not expensive.
Hope this helps some of you
Best of luck to all of us

Around the beginning of last year i went to the doctor, at this doctor visit i was told that the reasoning for my irregular periods where from a hormonal imbalance and he put me on birth control to regulate me. In August I missed two pills and began to panic as if i were pregnant and stopped taking the pills. I went seven months with no period after I discontinued the pills. He also Diagnosed me with have prehypertension (high blood pressure) and that i am "overweight". at the time i weighed maybe 230. im probably up to at least 250. For the past two weeks I have been bleeding and in a sense it would seem like i was bleeding like a stuck pig. I was reading the other day that i could be anemic or have a type of anemia and that could explain why im feeling weak, tired, stressed and having stomach pains. Is this something that I would go see my regular family doctor about or would I need to go and see a gynocologist? Ive never been to a gynocologist before. My husband and I are trying to start a family and I am beginning to thing that this hormone imbalance thing has a lot to do with it because i don’t even have that much of a "sex drive" anymore. Is there a certain medication that I may need to ask for to clear this up? I began taking prenatals because i was told it would help in the process of having my body ready to conceive. Also is this true. I am going to be making a doctors appointment soon im just not sure what doctor to go see and exactly what to tell them. Any sugguestions or comments are greatly appriecated. Thanks.

If you have been on HRT since 40, through to age 51, because of full Hysterectomy, do you then go through a whole menopause when you come off it?
Or have you passed the time for it to kick in.
I’ve had some high blood pressure & think i need to come off, but want to know what to expect.

I’m 41 & had a total hysterectomy May 18, 2009. I’m now fighting high blood pressure. I’m wondering if it is hormonal or if it is totally genetic. High blood pressure does run in my family, but mine seems to have come on quickly, almost overnight.
Any info. would be greatly appreciated! Thanks.

I do have controlled high blood pressure. But everytime I check to see if it is up during these "flashes" it never is. I am almost 37 yrs. old so maybe it is a hormone thing?

I was sitting in an airconditioned room (which I am used to everyday, except that this time, the thermostat was really so low). I suddenly realized my acidity was acting up– sour taste in my mouth (three hrs. w/o meal) and suddenly I had very cold hands and feet and I felt the chill go through my whole body and I was very uncomfortable. It took 15 mins. for the cold feeling to subside (when I left the room). I hate the sensation– sour taste and super cold hands and feet (though I’m used to the winter season) but this one was different– like I felt really freezing inside the room while the temp. outside was 27. Could it be the aircon? Could it be because I was already hungry? Could it be because of the hyperacidity? Could it be due to perimenopause (just turned 40)? Could it be due to high blood pressure (which is usually normal and controlled)? Could this be because of the medication I’m taking– Coversyl? The feeling was so weird and made me a little nervous. That’s why I decided to go home at once and check my BP which was normal. I would appreciate your opinion.

I am a 34 year old woman who has had 2 c-sections and my tubes tyed and burnt. i have periods every 2 to 3 weeks. i have been experiencing mood swings worse than normal. i am a working wife and mother. my life is stressful. i was recently diagnosed with anxiety attacks. my latest attack included difficulty breathing, uncontrolable body shakes, an out of it feeling, and a hot flash that didn’t go away. that was when i was diagnosed with anxiety attacks. is it possible that menopause is causing these attacks or am i just losing my mind? what are some symptoms of menopause. docs keeping telling me i’m too young for menopause but i don’t believe them. anyone else with anything like this please give me input or any docs please answer my question. only serious answers please. thanks
i was diagnosed last week but they put me on atenolol because i have high blood pressure also. this is supposed to lower my blood pressure, heart rate and adrenalin but i was higher than a kite all day the next day from it so i didn’t take anymore. i’m supposed to go back to the doctor thursday. hopefully they can give me something different to help me. my blood pressure isn’t extremely high anyway just a little bit.