Useful menopause tips for diabetes sufferers.

Tabbyjoolz said:

I didn't take any supplements. The two big symptoms I battled with were the hot flushes and feeling rather low. Thankfully the low feeling passed fairly quickly, but the hot flushes were another matter. The only way I could cope with them were to dress in easily removable layers and sleep naked at night. The night flushes were particularly hard to cope with as they disrupted my sleep.

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Chook said:

I am just in to my 60s but my menopause was at 41 after many years of PCOS. Noone told me that a total hysterectomy would put me straight in to menopause and I didn't get any advice or support - so well done @ickihun for starting this thread, I would have loved this kind of information back then.

My tips are:

1. Don't panic if they put you on HRT and it doesn't suit you. It really didn't suit me, causing me severe depression. That goes for the patches and the tablets.

2. I used to take a soya drink (powder which I mixed with sugar free Ribena) which worked very well at stopping the hot flushes. I got mine from a Chinese supermarket as the soya supplement in the chemists were a bit expensive. Don't bother trying to do the soya supplement using products from the supermarket because it will mean drinking lots of soya milk (and yes, I have tried it when I ran out of the powdered drink sachets).

3. I agree about the fan. No matter what supplements you take you will feel the heat more than you used to.

4. Keep a spare set of sheets to in your bedroom so you can do an instant bed change after a 'tropical moment'.

5. Explain to husband/partner/kids/work mates what's happening to you - explain the hot flushes and irritability in advance (just so they don't think its funny and tease you).

6. If you go to work it might be an idea to explain to your workmates / boss whats going on as you are very likely to get irritable.

7. Some women go one step higher than hot flushes and feel hot ALL the time with additional even hotter flushes. You are not weird if this happens. It will eventually stop.

8. It really helps to talk to other people who are going or have gone through the same phase. Same as how great this forum is, it stops you feeling isolated.

9. Do ask for help from your GP and/or nurse - but don't feel obliged to do what they say, it really is a time when you need to do what you think is right for you.

10. Treat yourself to some cotton short sleeves tops (and wear a cardi over if you need to) - the cotton will keep you a bit cooler than man made fabrics.

11. Watch your weight - its natural to put weight on during menopause but the extra weight will cause you to feel hotter

Sorry for rambling - just trying to think of stuff that would have helped me back then.

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Brunneria said:

I haven't hit obvious menopause yet, but I have done a bit of reading about it, particularly because I wanted to know what to expect alongside polycystic ovary syndrome (which I have).

Here are some interesting links that I found. The good news seems to be that women with PCOS may have a 'milder' menopause. The bad news is that it can take a lot longer (years!) to pass through menopause.

I found these links were really interesting, but they were just the ones that were thrown up by a very basic google search, so I am sure there is a lot more info out there.

http://www.pcosnutrition.com/aging/

http://pcosdiva.com/2015/12/pcos-and-menopause/

http://www.todaysdietitian.com/newarchives/020314p40.shtml

http://www.pcosdietsupport.com/pcos-symptoms/pcos-post-menopause/

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Chook said:

That reminds me of my first year of the menopause when I had a short sleeved tee shirt on with all the windows open - and there was snow outside. My poor husband had about ten layers on and used to regularly sit watching TV with a coat on. It was that or have me sit there naked.....

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Chook said:

Yes, I agree - I was using soya drinks for about 5 years and, even 20 years, on I still get the occasional tropical moment.

@ickihun - I've never heard of anyone being cold as a symptom of menopause - that sounds like thyroid.

Oh yes, a woman can definitely live okay with no HRT and a hysterectomy. The soya did pretty much the same job as HRT but without the side affects. The reason I chose soya was because (at that time) I'd just realised I was suicidal on HRT and read an article that compared European women with Oriental woman who rarely suffer any menopause symptoms - and Oriental women eat a LOT of soya at most meals. So I thought it can't hurt to give it a go and it really worked for me. I'm not saying it will work for everyone but its worth a try.

If you mean getting 'up close and personal' with Mr C - then, yes, no problems that way. The hysterectomy itself was difficult but since then I've felt better because my PCOS symptoms meant I only had a period about once every six months (which would last two weeks) but I would have PMT starting a month after the period and lasting for months until the next one - along with the usual irritability and bloating.

One other thing I would say, the biggest problem with the menopause (as far as I was concerned) was the unpredictability of my emotions. I would cry at virtually everything and often get irrationally (and unnecessarily) angry. Look around for the things that help you - it could be soya or HRT or exercise* - but it does help if you have someone to talk to that is or has experienced the same thing.

*My step daughter has just had a hysterectomy and has taken up marathon running and kick boxing to combat the symptoms.

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