debrafrederick's Journal, 10 August 2016

A return to "pre-menopause?" Never heard of that. Not sure what you mean by that. If you are still having TOM/periods especially every month you aren't Menopausal yet and once you are you can't return to Perimenopause.  

Well..... there can be a lot of stopping and starting again for years! I'm not sure what that's called technically. 

Stopping and starting=Perimenopause. Until your periods completely stop; until you have one full year of no periods this=Perimenopause. 

I wish I could return to Perimenopause.  

Engeland, I had no periods from January to July, from January to March I had wicked hot flashes, night sweats, no sex drive, vaginal dryness, etc.....March and a return to LCHF killed out the hot flashes and night sweats, April I began IF in earnest and started doing a 20:4 protocol at that time my sex drive began a return and my period returned in July, now my August one has appeared, exactly on time. I am attributing it to a re balancing of my hormones caused by IF. I had been skipping a month or two at a time for the past three years but I had never gone for 6 months with no cycle, nor had I ever had a decrease in sex drive, I was not happy about that at all. While I don't enjoy the monthly cycles, I do enjoy the return to a healthy level of sex drive and enough lubrication to make it enjoyable :) 

I totally believe diet plays a huge part in relation to Perimenopause and Menopause. Everything works better and in balance when you are nourishing your body with what it requires/needs. That is one of my main reasons for completely overhauling the way I eat. For me loads of wheat, dairy, loads of carbs, any alcohol, caffeine , loads of sugar, junk/processed foods exacerbate my symptoms, so if I avoid these things then it's all good. :)) Won't ever bring the hormones up or back to a normal level, but it helps the symptoms.  

I'm hoping that mine will simply buy me more time in the peri stage, I believe I was headed into full menopause if I had continued doing what I had been doing prior to March, which was loaded with wheat and smaller but still significant amounts of sugar. Right now, hair, nails, skin are all healthy, hair and nails are growing, skin is slowly but surely shrinking...some of my stretch marks on the undersides of my upper arms are closing...which means they are now fine lines instead of spread out...still unattractive, but better than they were. Reduction of facial lines has also been noted by my customers who don't see me everyday. Funny how changes in your physical appearance are not obvious to people who see you daily, but the ones who see you once a week or once a month seem startled by changes that you didn't even notice. 

Interesting conversation. I have been menopausal for over 10 years and am on a HRT therapy. Debra - every woman has to find their way in the peri and menopausal thing. I have to say the HRT for me totally helps with the sex drive and dryness. Not recommending HRT, but just giving my information. I feel I had no choice given my symptons. Good luck on your journey. 

We had 4 days a major rain, not complaining, kept temperatures in the 80's better than feel like 110! up the air to 75degrees, I had it on 70, my last bill was $223, so I think up the temp to 75 will help since its a two bedroom, and the ceiling fans are helping alot!.... Buddy the cat has been having a blast running back and forth on on 2nd floor patio trying to catch storks and ducks below in the canal (LOL), :) Have a super day.... Your getting real close to goal. 

My mother had a complete hysterectomy at age 35 and the issues she has had since makes me want to put off menopause as long as I can, my grandmother had a form of HRT.....the 20 years ago version and she got breast cancer at age 70 and was gone by age 72, they tell us that the Estrogen she was given contributed to her breast cancer. So, even though great strides have been made over the last 20 years in HRT, I'm hoping to avoid that also! 

Hmmmm..once again, this shows how everyone is different. I had a complete hysterectomy at 35, responded poorly to HRT, so quit after just over a year. I used phytoestrogens for about 3 years, and aside from the month that it took for them to kick in, never had much in the way of hot flashes, etc. I weaned off of them, and have been fine ever since. Sex drive and lubrication are normal, even at 60. :) 

menopause wa great for me. my mother died of breast cancer ;so no hormons. for me. i just sailed through it. But developed postmenopausal bleeding at 64yrs . it was cancer only stage 1.5 or so lymph nodes clear. actially my being fat at the time was big contributer. fat cells produce estrogen. (guys take note)  

@DF........My husband tells me all the time he doesn't see the change in regards to my weight loss. I told him "really?" It isn't has if I only lost a couple of pounds. Everyone else has noticed. If I were you I would be cautious with the HRT given your mother's medical history. Take advantage of being Perimenopausal because Menopause may or may not be smooth sailing for you. My physician did prescribe a cream vs. a pill, but I have yet to go pick it up from the pharmacy. Dietary changes and exercise seem to be helping. I do miss my coffee. :(( 

@Mskestrela..........My history is similar to yours except I had a Partial Hysterectomy @36 and menopause was confirmed per labs @49. I was thinking about trying Phytoestrogens, but holding off and trying to avoid taking anything at this point. My mother had severe menopausal symptoms and she didn't do well with HRT either. @Kathleenscanlan............being overweight/obese increases chances of developing different types of cancer for men and women. Fat influences Estrogen and Estrogen influences fat for sure.  

My integrative Med. doc prescribed bio-identical phyto-estrogen cream. I'm using it at about half strength. Too soon to tell how it's working. I'm mainly after better sleep; and that does seem to be improving. Better libido: maybe?.  

Engeland, my hubby says he sees me as exactly the same as I was 33 years ago when I met him, as I do him, both of us have changed, but I don't notice the changes in him and he does the same for me, he said I always look good to him (good answer) but he is glad that I feel better :) He pointed out his gray hair to me last week, he's blonde and I never realized he had gray hair till he made me come in the bathroom where the light was bright and showed me, I have had silver streaks in my hair since I was 30, I thought he was just getting sun lightened from being outside so much this summer. Familiarity breeds contempt is an old saying I've always heard, while not contempt...when you are so comfortable with your spouse...sometimes you don't really look at them, you simply rely on your saved mental image so you don't really SEE them. 

Well it's good to age together; a matched pair. We are the same on the inside, for the most part! And with you getting healthier, you actually may be getting biologically younger. You're defying aging - and menopause. My DH has gone completely whilte-haired, so he does look older, but staying pretty healthy in our household. 

It's good to get healthy together too, Hubby is still maintaining -40 lbs, he has started fasting two days a week, just because he said it makes him feel better, who knows maybe he will start to get younger too!  

Instead of aging, we're youthing! 

@Erikahollister.......Can you let me know how the cream works? Curious.