Peri-menopause

[Skittles11]

Again - sorry for all the posts. Does anyone know anything about this (unsure if many on here would be able to help, probably not...)

I am concerned I am in peri menopause.

Every time I bring it up with my fertility doctor her response is that she can see follicles (approx 9 follicles baseline) so I cannot be in peri menopause.

However... I have been experiencing horrible night time hot flushes for months.

I also have vaginal dryness which the GP said looked like vaginal atrophy. I struggle to have sex with my husband because it is sore all the time and has been for months.

I have had infections tested at GP which have come back clear.

I know I have low AMH which was diagnosed back in 2020, goodness knows what it is now. But I feel it is more evidence.

What can I do about this? Could it be from years of IVF hormones (been in and out of IVF for 3 years, no baby yet). I feel it must be peri menopause.

Whatever your reply please be kind with your input, as I am really down about this and currently dread going to bed because it disrupts my sleep every night. Plus am so so worried now about ever having a baby. Everything - literally everything - seems against me.

I have only just turned 38.

Thanks x

[PagingMom]

Your age is still young for IVF. Have you considered donor eggs? That might be your better option.

[Skittles11 in reply to PagingMom]

Thanks, yes - I didn't make it clear in my original post but I plan to progress with donor eggs.

[RACMumm in reply to Skittles11]

Hi Skittles. Don’t be worried in relation to ivf especially if you plan to potentially use donor eggs. I’m going to pm you x

[Elsidee11]

hi Skittles, I suffered months of night sweats before I started ivf - to the point my sheets were drenched, even my hair was. The only thing I could put it down to was stress and anxiety of TTC.

Painful sex for me was diagnosed as vulvadynia - which can cause dryness and for me it was a raw/burning/stinging pain. I still have it. I think it was caused by trying naturally for a baby - as I’d often have sex because I was ovulating, and not necessarily because I was in the mood.

I know we’re all different, but I’ve experienced both so I just want you to reassure you it could be something else.

So sorry you’re feeling so down, I really hope you get some answers or some confidence in what your doctor is saying about not being in peri-menopause.

PS Just looked at my tracker and I had nightsweats for 6 months! Xxx

[Skittles11 in reply to Elsidee11]

Hey Thank you for this. Can I ask how was the vulvadynia diagnosed, what tests did you have? Xx

[pink_lemon]

Hi Skittles, I don’t know that much about peri menopause but 9 follicles seems good compared to what I had last time I know, which was half of yours. Could it be other things causing your symptoms?

[Skittles11 in reply to pink_lemon]

I really don't know. I did wonder if it could be years of IVF hormones and my body finding it challenging to find equilibrium. But I also think it's likely it could be peri menopause.

[JA-fnuk Partner Nurse Fertility Network UK]

Have you had bloods taken to check to see if FSH is high ?It is suggested 2checks 6 weeks apart Maybe stress and anxiety causing some of your symptoms - hope you have taken advantage of counselling appointments that should be offered whilst having fertility treatment

Take care

Janet-Partner

[HedgehogMad]

Hi lovely, premature menopause (ie <45 years can be diagnosed with two blood tests requested by your GP - an FSH level taken about 8 weeks apart. Might be worth asking your GP if they will do this to rule it out. Sending hugs xxx

[Skittles11 in reply to HedgehogMad]

I wanted to do this but it is so difficult to time it with treatment as I always seem to be on treatment and the meds would affect the result... for example on my next Day 2 I think I would be taking estrogen. Then after that it would be (most likely) the back of a failed cycle but with meds still in my system? I guess I'd have to actively not pursue treatment if these tests were to be carried out?

[HedgehogMad in reply to Skittles11]

Oh I don't know, I can't imagine that a day of oestrogen would have an effect but maybe ask your GP.Being in perimenopause shouldn't affect your chances if you are using donor eggs.

If the symptoms are due to menopause then being on oestrogen should help the symptoms I would have thought...?

It's worth getting a diagnosis at some point I would say as it is important to be on HRT if you are having early menopause (to prevent osteoporosis), but during treatment you will be on HRT anyway (the oestrogen tabs) so maybe it's worth waiting until you have a break from treatment naturally or (hopefully) after you have a baby 🙏🤞

[BearPanda]

Hi Skittles! I'm really sorry to hear about what you're going through! I don't have much advise, other than the your hot flashes remind me of getting them when my thyroid medicine has a dose too high and my Thyroid levels drop too low. If my TSH drops below 0.5 I have nights from hell! Maybe also worth speaking to your GP if there are other reasons you might experience hot flashes? Although I do believe that we often have a pretty good intuition as to what is causing our symptoms or at least which area needs investigating. Maybe worth repeating FSH, estradiol etc just to double check those levels too? I hope you will get answers to your question from your specialist, this sounds like a frustrating journey! Best of luck!

[Skittles11 in reply to BearPanda]

Thank you. Getting TSH retested next week. Finding it difficult to get FSH and Estradiol measured as has to be day 2 or 3 and I always seem to be on horome treatment or coming out of hormone treatment so worried it could give a misleading result. I think I need to get some advice on it

[BearPanda in reply to Skittles11]

I see, that's definitely tricky to time! Yeah, I'm sure a specialist will be able to advice on the best way to arrange for retesting. Best of luck and I hope you find the answer you're looking for!

[Booda21]

I don’t have any experience with this but just wanted to say sorry you’re having something else to stress about and that your clinic aren’t fully taking your concerns on board. It’s rubbish that they would leave you second guessing and not doing anything to check for sure. Hopefully it’s just a side effect of being on and off hormone medication. Hope you get some answers xx

[Skittles11 in reply to Booda21]

Thank you for this. That's exactly it. It's just one more thing on my list to stress about. I'm not feeling very strong right now, think everything is really taking a toll. I will try and push for more answers xx

[Hopecontinues]

Hi, I have had similar symptoms since having the mirena coil fitted when I was 38. It was fitted to reduce the size of my fibroids, but I never got my sex drive back and was left with vulvodynia. I had the coil taken out to start my fertility journey 5 years ago and now have a 2 week old feeding in my arms. At 38 and with 9 follicles I wouldn't worry about these symptoms, especially if you use donor eggs.

Best of luck.

X

[Skittles11 in reply to Hopecontinues]

Thank you, I really appreciate this. Can I ask how you were diagnosed with vulvodynia? Did they run any tests?

[Hopecontinues in reply to Skittles11]

I went to see a specialist who diagnosed it from an assessment. No test that I remember.

[FREEDOM2023]

I am 42 and diagnosed with peri menapoze. My egg count has been very low, I am very dry but not painful sex. My period stopped 4 months. And when my GP checked my FSH and LH,they were 36 and 19. However I have started having period since June and my levels halved!!! I don't know weather is perimenopausal or hormonal imbalance. I also used years of IVf medicine without any success.

[Azzurra79 in reply to FREEDOM2023]

Hello, may I ask you if you did anything to cause such change? I am also over 40 but really hoping for a baby

[FREEDOM2023 in reply to Azzurra79]

It happened right after hysteroscopy. And I had egg retrieval few weeks before then. I think ivf injections speed things up as I probably might have gone to menapoze earlier than most people

[Doodlebug23]

Hey, I had that dryness years ago when I was your age and went though discomfort for about 18 months with no diagnosis even after a biopsy. Eventually my retired family doctor saw me after coming back locum, said oh that’s just dryness, and prescribed oestrogen pessaries which seemed to kick my body back to normal after about 6 months and never had an issue since.

Does it matter for IVF though if it is peri menapause if you are open to donor eggs? I mean if you’re stressing because of the IVF implications. My clinic don’t seem to be bothered in the slightest about it. My cycle started going a bit random a few months after I started IVF and I think as I’m 47 it’s probably peri menapause. They just said oh yes due to your age your cycle may be like this.

Come on we got this 💪🏻! My turn to lift your spirits now! X

[Skittles11 in reply to Doodlebug23]

Thank you for your uplifting message 🙂From a donor egg perspective it is definitely much less important. However I am also concerned because of dysfunctional cycles - I am not sure I understand how / when you start medications if you're having dysfunctional cycles. How do they know your day 1? Sorry not sure if that makes sense.

For me I am also feeling quite uncomfortable with it - the night sweats and the dryness, not very nice 😒

[Doodlebug23 in reply to Skittles11]

It makes perfect sense. I’m not sure either tbh. I guess with drugs.

Sorry I just completely had my IVF baby brain head on with complete disregard for the fact that you are still a person 🙈

I used to work at Boots and I had several people swear by the pendant you hang on your pants x

[Weegran20]

Hi , The best thing you can do is ask to have FCC all your hormones properly tested to reassure you . Hormones can change rapidly so you should persist in your quest for answers . That’s really the only way you can be certain .

Hope you get some answers. Meantime I would look at helping yourself achieve the best outcome with your eggs. Look at the book … ( It starts with the egg ) . This has really helped my daughter increase follicles .

Good Luck .

[Wishinandahopin]

hi lovely, Perimenopause can last 10 years or so before menopause happens. I think your doctor must be thinking of menopause as with perimenopause you can still have lots of follicles and be very fertile- my mum was having symptoms at 42 (her periods stopped at 49) and she was told she was in perimenopause but she was still very fertile and to be careful if she didn’t want any more children.

So yes you could be in the starts of perimenopause- as far as I’m aware, aside from making you not feel great, this shouldn’t affect ivf especially if, as you says you are using donor blood eggs.

Perimenopause is painfully under researched and lots of doctors just talk about menopause and not perimenopause. Some people do experience an early menopause sadly but I wouldn’t have said 38 was too early to experience the start of perimenopause. I would expect to soon or in the next few years- I am also 38.

Hope you are ok xx

[Pittuck23]

Hey, gosh you sound like you’re going through the mill a bit, sending you lots of hugs.

All of this sounds like peri menopause to me, I myself am in a similar situation, albeit I went through ivf 7 years ago and was told I had low amh. I have similar symptoms to you, which have gotten worse to this point now.

This should t affect your ability to conceive with ivf though. I would definitely go and get another opinion, note down all your symptoms and how long they’ve been happening for. Hopefully you can get some answers. Wishing you all the best and luck in you’re journey xx

[AcuFertilityDoc]

Hot flashes/flushes, vaginal dryness and night sweats do occur with peri-menopause, but they occur for many other reasons as well, including IVF. 14% of women undergoing IVF experience vaginal dryness (have you tried a lubricant?). Hormonal changes caused by the hormones taken during IVF cause night sweats and hot flashes. In a related sense, up to 90% of postpartum women experience hot flushes and night sweats while their bodies sort out their hormones. Hormones can create a lot of havoc!

If you’re still ovulating on a fairly regular basis and your ultrasounds are showing 9 follicles, it seems very unlikely that you are peri menopausal. I’m sorry your journey is taking so long. 🩵

[thisismaya]

Hi Skittles,

I am sorry to hear about what you are going through.

Perimenopause typically starts in the late 30s to early 50s and brings various physical and emotional changes.

Hot flushes can be a nightmare, have you tried doing yoga before sleep to cool the body temperature?

Perhaps you can check out this new health platform called HExSOS. It has some FAQs surrounding perimenopause and menopause.

hexsos.com/

I hope you find it helpful.