Post-menopausal protest

Many, many years. Sorry!

Spoken as one who has had the quilt on and off all night until I finally gave up and came downstairs and that's despite still being on a low dose HRT.

I sailed through the menopause had no symptoms at all (sorry for those of you suffering) but in the last couple of months i seem to have gone back to my teens. My face is covered in so many spots and break outs, it seems as though every pore has opened so much so that my face is so red and sore. I had acne as a teenager but not like this. What is going on. I've tried all sorts of potions and lotions but nothing seems to work. The lady in Boots suggested a charcoal based facewash but so far has made no difference. My doctor said she could prescribe something but as I'm already on quite a lot of medication which i have been taking for sometime I'm loathe to take anything else. Any suggestions gratefully received.

You have just described my daily lifeVampirequeen
I'm in the midst of menopausal angst
I sincerely hoping that Post Menopausal
I will regain control of my temperature buttons
The brain fog will lift
My memory will somehow return to that of pre menopause

As for Acne went to a Bay city Roller Concert last night and guess what?
Had a huge zit on my chin!

Still managed a bop in front of stage so somethings never change

I thought I'd be post menopausal by now. How long does it last? I haven't had a period for seven years.

When I was little I used to wonder why Grandma had a little pink razor in the bathroom. I couldn't see how she could bend to shave her legs. Now I realise she too lived in fear of becoming St Barbara.

I left the menopause behind many years ago, thank goodness, but now in my mid-sixties I seem to be forever sprouting a forest of chin and upper lip hairs - I can never get rid of them no matter how long I spend plucking/Wizzit-ing etc. It's really rather depressing...

I loved my lovely little HRT pill that i took every morning for 4 months, it made me feel normal(ish) until my Doctor took me off of them when i reminded him that i had a blood DVT many years ago.

aagghhh posted too early. Now i have hot flushes that could heat the village, My poor DH gets snapped and i have no idea where i have put things and i forget so much.

Last period was 12 yrs ago. I'm very lucky not to have suffered any symptoms. I always say it's payback for the years of very irregular and very heavy periods.
Advantages post menopause, I no longer have to shave my legs or pits. Disadvantages the hair on my lip and chin.
I was surprised to read on GN that hot flushes can continue for many years

Its been 20yrs since my last period and although I rarely get hot flushes in the daytime I do still suffer from 2/3 at night where I'll throw off the covers or stick my arms and legs out in the cold. The only other thing is chin hairs. I've given up hope that it will eventually all go completely but am grateful the daytime flushes stopped at least.
I never had mood swings thank goodness.

I had a very early menopause (38) and so it's 25 years since my last period. I'm still having night sweats but only occasionally during the day. I have more spots now than I did as teenager, which is surprising considering that my skin is so dry you could strike a match on it. But the worst thing is my memory of silly, inconsequential things. I'm wracking my brains to try to remember the name of a plant in my garden. I know, it but I can't for the life of me remember it. I could just look it up, but that's a slippery slope!

Reading these posts has brought me out in a flush.

I'm feeling better now, after about 8 years of symptoms. But the exhaustion hasn't gone away. I did some Pilates yesterday and I can barely walk today.

Happy days.

I find that 'sugaring ' rather than 'waxing' is the best method of hair removal as it seems to retard the regrowth more. Look for a local practitioner. I went through the menopause really early in my mid forties with not too many problems but the hair growth which used to be on my legs and under arms has now diminished only to reappear elsewhere!

Been on HRT for 27 years with no intention of ever coming off it. Life is too short to suffer if there is a solution!

My GP made me come off HRT 3 years ago (I had been on it for 15 years following removal of ovaries and hysterectomy). There was no gradual weaning just cold turkey. I knew the day would come but what I wasn't quite expecting the steam roller that hit me. Fatigue, weight gain, teenage spots, my thermostat totally unable to regulate my body temperature - and oh yes - that lovely moustache and chin stubble (looking akin to a hairy piece of pure crackling). I think the worse part though was the sudden lack of interest in any "marital relations" - thankfully I have a very understanding DH! 6 weeks ago I plucked up courage to see my GP to plead with her for a return to HRT. After a few checks she agreed to me trying the lowest dose for 2 months. Wow what a difference! I've more energy, lost over half a stone, sleep better and only have 2 or 3 hot flushes a night - and these are certainly less severe than before. Perhaps the best bit though is that my "urges" ?? have returned! I just pray that my GP continues to prescribe the HRT for many years to come. I know that not HRT isn't for everyone and I am very aware of the potential risks, but i want to continue my renewed zest for life and be able to play and run around with my grandchildren for as long as possible.

Hi tippy 22, I also sailed through menopause,15 years later, I've developed spots- so please post if you find solution, after expensive & exhaustive search I'm no further forward.

Oh vq how I sympathise. I am 67. I sailed through the menopause really. I have had lots of problems with hair loss, tooth loss etc but I have always looked after my skin and people have said to me 'your skin is lovely'. Now I have a red, blotchy spotty face!!! Things I have tried so far are - sudocrem, E45 cream, something called Bioderm, Freederm gel and facial wash (on the advice of my teenage granddaughter), even calamine lotion. None of these have worked. Someone said it's probably due to hormone changes. When I asked a pharmacist she said it was rosacea acne and a lot of 'older' people get it. She told me to go to the docs for an antibiotic cream or something like that. If it doesn't go I will follow her advice. I have to plaster make up on to cover it but the little bumps still show through. I am sorry for anyone who has this, but I was so pleased to see this post. I thought it was just me.

I remember complaining to my Aunt (who sadly died last week, aged 99) about a spot She made me laugh when she said 'Oh that's good,it shows there's something still alive in there!'

Boots Tree Tea Spot Wand is very effective.

No-one has mentioned hair. As I near 80, the head on my hair is growing ever thicker.... and it always was lush.... but it is also growing down towards the corners of the eye, making me look somewhat like the great white monkey.

Thank you anni I will try that.

Can anyone tell me if having HRT means you have to have periods again? I know they give you progesterone as well as oestrogen in HRT if womb /ovaries still intacto, which mine are, but though I like the idea of HRT at times, I hate the thought of a return to periods (progesterone is supposed to stop build-up of endometrial matter, so I believe.).

I also worry about coming off HRT and going through a second menopause.

Is it worth it?

My menopause was 20 years ago. The trouble is, nobody tells you what happens to you so it all sort of hits you out of the blue! I remember going to the library and could only find awful books by male doctors saying EVERYTHING about the menopause was psychosomatic! Utter rubbish, what?
The hot flushes were the absolute worst - and it's only in the last few years they seem to have gone. Also, I identify with the brain going - memory and so on. It really worried me till I read Jenny Murray saying she even forgot her best friends name! Also things like arthritis.
I never wanted to go on HRT. Partly because I don't trust pills doctors give you and partly because I feel this is part of life, part of being a woman, and embracing it all.

Charly, I had a hysterectomy so can't advise you re. bleeding on HRT as I only take oestrogen. I do know that any bleeding due to taking the contraceptive pill is not a period at all but withdrawal bleeding caused by stopping a hormone specifically added to the regime to simulate a period. The contraceptive pill originally was given continuously but women were unhappy thinking that blood was being dammed up and too many gave up taking it for this reason. When I started taking it in the 70's I took the pill continuously to do away with periods (many women doctors did this). I suspect that combined HRT works this way too.
Re. coming off HRT - if it works for you why come off it? The government guidelines have changed dramatically (see NICE guidelines). Although some doctors are out of date in their prejudices those who are aware of the new guidelines based on up to date research are more inclined to keep you on patches or implants long term and if you ever want to come off it would recommend gradual reduction rather than the awful cold turkey that some women were subjected to in the past.

Ninathenana
I'm so looking forward to no longer having to shave my legs and armpits...why doesnt anyone tell you this as a positive?
Mind, I would prefer not shaving the chin (I thought I was alone in this pattern of male hairiness)and even the 'foof',any insight as to if and when this is a bonus to add to your 'silver lining'