Ladies of the lounge who have been through or are going through "the change"

[csziggy]

51. Started in mid forties for me though I had had problems for a decade or so

From when I first began cycling, I got migraines that correlated with my cycle. In my thirties I began having longer, heavier periods and the migraines got worse, lasted longer and came more than once a month. By the time I was in my mid-forties the whole situation became debilitating and I was losing two weeks a month to bleeding and migraines. The hot flashes and night sweats were horrendous - I could not get through a night without being drenched in sweat multiple times and simply got used to sleeping in a soaking wet bed.

I talked to my Mom and she told me it took her over ten years (probably closer to fifteen years) from when she began having symptoms until they stopped. Then I went to my doctor and he sent me to a OB-GYN who was great. He tried a D&C and when that didn't make a difference so we went for a full hysterectomy and took out the ovaries as well as the uterus. I went on hormone replacement patches for ten years - probably should have stopped using them sooner, but there was so much other stuff going on in my life, I just kept with the routine.

It has been great - I have my life back! No spending days leaking and ruining clothes for a week a month. No night sweats or hot flashes. NO MIGRAINES for the first time in forty years. I didn't realize until after I was recovered from the surgery how bad off I had been. I was able to be active again until my second knee went bad. Now that both knees are replaced, I'm hoping to have another life revival, LOL.