this post is probably for the menopause group, but I know many in here will have gone through peri-menopause / menopause and so am sure may have some relatable experience.
I’m currently experiencing terrible insomnia from mid cycle until my period comes. So for about 10 days. My cycle is only 20 days. My RA also flares around the same time each month. I wake with sweats, flushes and then anxiety.
I’ve struggled with HRT although they’re trying me with Mirena coil and then oestrogen on top but have to wait for this as needs to be fitted under general anaesthetic.
My questions mostly if anyone else experienced similar and indeed the flaring at this time also, did HRT help? I’m being referred to gynaecology to discuss longer term options but also did anyone’s RA symptoms improve once they’d gone through menopause?
Any shared experiences, suggestions would be much appreciated. I can tolerate most things, the pain, fatigue etc., but insomnia for me is so debilitating. It hugely impacts me mentally and I’m struggling to cope with work (albeit in part time and flexible) - but I’m a single parent and life is just bloody hard at times anyway without this on top.
Literally at my wits end about it. Thank you x
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Sapphire1701
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Yes I did! Yes HRT helped, yes it went away when I menopaused. You have my total sympathy, but you will get through this, there is a menopause paradise awaiting you! Just try to be kind to yourself and cancel anything extra that you can't cope with and ask other people to help you, tell them you are struggling. Good luck Xxx
Why is the coil being fitted under a general anaesthetic? Have you had previous problems with fitting a coil? It should, with local numbing of the cervical area, be a painless procedure, although too few people are offered this because of lack of training.
And yes, I found having HRT was a real benefit at the time, especially with the sleep and hot flushes. The perimenopause was the worse, perhaps because it was new and unexpected.
Perimenopause can feel worse because of the incredible fluctuations in hormones. Sleeping disturbances were quite cyclical for me ( and horrific mood swings ) hrt has helped enormously as well as a low dose anti depressant oh,and I found the mirena coil ideal as it seems to give a steady release of progesterone. I had a very late onset at 55, and only now at 58 do I think i have finally hit being post menopause🙄I find fibromyalgia, has its own symptoms but i think it likes to 'ramp up ' other health conditions and symptoms as well.
Another vote for HRT - sleeplessness is the pits so I really feel for you. It definitely helped me during perimenopause. Another possibility is a low dose antidepressant. I started Mirtazapine for anxiety and the GP persuaded me to try it by emphasising that it was good for sleep and I'm so glad that I did. Now post-menopause and off HRT, I'm still on a half dose of Mirtazapine - way below the dose for mood effects - simply for the great sleep that it gives me.
Mirtazapine is what I take. Weirdly even half a dose was too strong, but just a tiny 1\4 is wonderful initially for cyclical mood swings, but very much help sleep.I also take amitriptyline, which although another AD, my go prescribed to help fibromyalgia nerve pain. Again, helps sleep even if oa and ra pain makes me wake when I turn over, I get straight back to sleep again
I was on the full dose originally (one tablet) and initially it zonked me out but once I got used to it - and realised that I needed to take it at 9 pm if I wanted to be alert by 8 am - it was fine. I have read that the sleep effects increase as you decrease the dose but I'm not sure if that true 🤔 I might get a pill cutter and try a quarter....
Thats interesting that lowering the dose may increase sleep benefits. I have also had to experiment with best times to take doses, 7pm seems to work with amitriptyline,then the mirtazapine I take half hour before bed. Am not dozy when I wake up,but by 2\3 pm I am often napping for 20 mins or so...
It knocked me out for the first couple of doses but I stuck with it and it settled down. I did find that taking it an hour or so before bed helped me to wake up at a sensible time the next day and after the initial period, I also found that I was able to wake in the night if necessary (e.g. dog emergency! 😂) and still get back to sleep easily. I was on one tablet for ages but cut down to a half when life was more settled and I didn't feel that I needed the emotional support, just decent sleep.
Yes the HRT helped, I had fewer periods because I was on the mini pill, but it just seemed to mean an extended period of PMT once every three months and it certainly caused some flare ups. HRT seems to have calmed that down.
I don't want to spam this board with the same advice to everyone on lots of threads, but truly magnesium glycinate and increasing my iron levels helped quite a lot with the sleep problems too.
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