thanks so much but my eyes blurred after the "limiting caffeine and spicy foods" and the rest is a blur. I'll have 1 foot in the grave and 1 hand holding a hot cuppa black Joe before I give it up. ;)

Srsly, thanks! Working on the water and soy, trying to find a balance between enough soy for flashes but not too much (diarrhea). I've also read about gabapentin and I guess I'd try that before HRT. Again, thanks so much!

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http://harvestmoon6.blogspot.com
https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/katasmit

You're very welcome. I've also used a technique called the Emotional Freedom Techniques for a wide variety of things. I'm doing a free tele-class for athletes next Wed. Feel free to join if it interests you by going to http://expertsportsperformance.com/training/

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Staying cool when the heat is on
FREE training call to Overcome Blocks and Fears when Racing on Wed, 2/13 register at http://expertsportsperformance.com/training

I used low-dose bio-identical 7-beta estradiol prescribed by my menopause doctor (Brand name Divigel). I found it to be great for insomnia, night sweats, mood swings, fatigue, and the "menopot" around the belly. I've tested my blood and the estrogen level is practically at the lowest detection limit, which means I'm getting just enough to help me feel better without the risks related to estrogen. Put it this way, with Divigel (applied as a gel topically for transdermal absorption), my estrogen level is below what it would have been before menopause, but enough to where I get great relief from menopause symptoms. My only problem now is that my insurance no longer covers brand name, so I will have to switch over to something else.

I don't drink coffee or alcohol, so no problem there for me!

I exercise already, but not sure why yoga or tai chi are suggested? That doesn't make any sense to me. Best I could find is that yoga decreases insomnia in postmenopausal women. But so would exercise, right? The study's groups were: passive, stretching, and yoga. So it's virtually a study of exercise vs non-exercise. We all know that exercise helps us sleep, menopausal or non-menopausal.

The suggestion that made sense to me was the soy, since it mimics estrogen.

Having done research, I heard about black cohosh. I tried that and it did absolutely nothing for me, FWIW. Here's a 2009 study to back me up, interestingly funded by an Alternative Medicine group. http://nccam.nih.gov/...spotlight/042610.htm So for now, don't go running out to buy some. Another article, from September 2012: http://www.sciencedaily.com/.../09/120913173032.htm

The reason yoga would be recommended is due to increased mindfulness. As your holding the different poses you learn to relax into them. Getting frustrated with the sleep problems (although I fully understand) leads to tension in your body because you're fighting it. You're having an emotional response to a physiological issue. Learning to accept the wave of hot or cold, without the resistance, creates a different response. It puts you back in charge.

Similar to racing a tri, if you get distracted, or lose confidence then you're body tenses. You can't perform to your best when your tense. So the goal is to learn how to remain focused on the goal, even when you're under pressure. If you can do that during a tri then you can respond in a similar way to your hot / cold states at night.

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Staying cool when the heat is on
FREE training call to Overcome Blocks and Fears when Racing on Wed, 2/13 register at http://expertsportsperformance.com/training

bumping this with a week or so of results. I took someone (sorry didn't come to me)'s advice and bumped up my soy milk to 2 cups a day. 1 cup was doing nothing except giving me calcium (I can't do dairy). Then I spaced out the 2 cups - 1 in the am and 1 late in the pm and that made a definite difference! Libido still non existant but I got a little relief from no recovery from hard efforts AND I'm only waking 2-3 times a night due to sweats/chills. So HUGE success there. I'm looking into maca root now. ANyone work with that?

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http://harvestmoon6.blogspot.com
https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/katasmit

It must be a minimal dose (2 cups) because if I have less or miss a day, I have sleep problems soon after. I notice bad sleep whenever I go on vacations and wonder whether it has to do with not drinking soy during the day.

Glad to hear it's sort of working for you.

Girlfriend,
Throw in the towel and take the drugs. I say this as a 45 year old triathlete who started menapause overnight at 43. Thought I was losing my mind, not to mention my bladder, sleep and sex drive. After a month of the nonsense and constant concerns about losing complete control of my bladder (happened twice on group rides) I called the doc. I have never taken meds regularly and avoided western medicine unless absolutely necessary. A $7000 deductible will do that to a person.

One appointment, a prescription of 2 milligrams of estrogen and 4 days later I was the Annie I used to know. I praise the inventors of synthetic estrogen. That little $4 bottle of tiny blue sanity pills saved my life and probably my job and marriage. I'm never giving it up. Zero side effects. Quality of life returned to normal. Am I risking cancer? Maybe. But I'm risking it every time I put on deodorant, eat processed food, get a bad sunburn, visit a smog filled city.....we're all going to die of something. I will take a quality life over amiserable long one any day.

Go get the bottle of blue sanity. You won't regret it.

I've had episodic bouts with the hot flashes for the past couple of years (I'm 52). The most recent one started up again about a month ago and I thought "dang, here we go again". In reading the comments about soy milk, I thought I'd try it. After 4 days and about 500ml (2 servings) a day, I've already noticed a difference. Can it happen that quickly? I'll be on holiday next week and won't have access to soy milk so I'll see if they come back.

One more point re: weight gain which is another major complaint around menopause. I gained about 8 pounds from September to December with the winding down of race season. After the Christmas season ended, I concentrated on portion sizes of my meals as I do eat really well. I also didn't deny myself the odd treat (cookie) or salty snack like a bag of chips. Anyway, I have managed to lose 6 pounds to date. My training volume is the same as it usually is this time of year, so I do attribute the weight loss to just watching what I shove in my mouth.

I have found a big difference (at night) just from missing 1 cup. I am now concentrating on a 12-hour span between cups and have had 2 GREAT nights in a row!

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http://harvestmoon6.blogspot.com
https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/katasmit

Do any of you have a cooling mattress pad? I just got a new bed, first one in 15 years, and I love it except it is hot! I already have the heat off in my bedroom so it's a cool in there as I can get it.

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Jen

"In order to keep a true perspective on one's importance, everyone should have a dog that worships him and a cat that will ignore him." - Dereke Bruce

I'm down to one drenching a night (sometimes 0) with 12 hour apart large cups of soy milk and COPIOUS amounts of water. I'll have to look into a cooling mattress pad. I just keep shirts and towels at bedside to change for that one drenching event.

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http://harvestmoon6.blogspot.com
https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/katasmit

Update - I was doing okay on 2 cups of soy and much water but would still ocassionally have soaking nights and always needed to sleep on a towel and duirng the day would soak clothing. I'm on my 2nd week of powdered maca root and boy, what a DIFFERENCE! I rarely have soaking flashes now and I haven't slept on a towel for maybe 5 days? I started at a leveled 1/4 tsp and this week I've increased to a heaping 1/4 tsp. Going slowly as the gut movement is amazing! :)

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http://harvestmoon6.blogspot.com
https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/katasmit

Glad to hear the maca root is working for you. I bought a bottle of the pill form and it has been a disappointment so far. I have another 4 days to go and I will have consumed a month's worth of the product.

It absolutely galls me that my hormone replacement pills are now $85 per month, while the analogous man's product (Androgel) can be had for a measly $10. I was looking for a cheaper alternative, but may be forced to go back to the expensive pills, as it's hard to place a price on a good night's sleep.

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DFL > DNF > DNS

SSP, have you tried melatonin for the sleep disruption? has worked wonders for me since the hot flashes started

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No coasting in running and no crying in baseball

I take melatonin every night. It helps me get to sleep, but not stay asleep.

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DFL > DNF > DNS

Well, I TOTALLY jinxed myself by posting. :) However, the soy milk + copious amounts of water + maca root are definitely better than nothing. :) I'm going to try upping my maca root to 1/2 tsp this week and see if I can decrease the soy. I have, however, strangely gained weight (argh!) so that is normally a sign hormones are coming back. Alas, no libido changes.

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http://harvestmoon6.blogspot.com
https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/katasmit

Have any of you tried accupuncture? I was a non-believer until my wife (58yo) tried it. Major hot flashes even though she was taking hormone replacements, hooked on lunesta (sp?) and still couldn't sleep. She was a wreck!! About 10 sessions later she is a new person. Rarely has hot flashes, no hormone replacements, and sleeps like a rock. May I also add that I am no longer scared of her.

Well, it seems I am starting to get daytime hot flashes again, the last few days.

I had been eating soy milk in the form of tofu dessert (homemade). Maybe by coagulating it, somehow that decreases the efficacy of the estrogen-like compound?

Also, on fasting days (I am fasting for 24 hours twice a week to prolong lifespan), I don't drink any soy milk. Maybe that is contributing. Started that three weeks ago.

another update for anyone following along. since my last post I've been slowly increasing the maca root to twice a day. I tried going 1/2 tsp but my gut didn't handle it so I'm doing heaping 1/4 tsp bid and the hot flashes (dripping sweat, have to change clothes, sleep wtih towels) are GONE. Also, apparently I've been a royal bitch and didn't know it. :) I've felt like everyone in my family is Such A Loser and finding fault (in my head) with all of them and the other day I felt a lightness of mind I hadn't had in a LONG time. So there's that. Libido is coming back and I get warm flashes and sometimes might break a sweat but so much less I don't even keep towels by the bed anymore.

Anyway, it has taken a while to kick in, but it really has made a huge difference. I think this week I'm starting to maybe see some tiredness relief also. No naps yesterday or the day before!

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http://harvestmoon6.blogspot.com
https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/katasmit

Thank you for updating us, Kathy. I really appreciate you sharing your experience.

I am having terrible and frequent hot flashes now. May I ask what brand and form of macca root that you use?

I got it off Amazon. Let me see if Ic an find it...

here you go. http://www.amazon.com/...00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

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http://harvestmoon6.blogspot.com
https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/katasmit

Thank you! That is a good price, and organic too.

I get the generic of Estrace in pill form. $4 a month or three months for $10. Thats cash price.i dont have prescription coverage. My estrogen level went to zero a couple years ago when my body fat level got a little lower. I had previously had a partial hysterectomy, so was probably susceptible to early menopause anyway. So, I take 2mg, which is the highest dose. Even though my body fat is a little higher now, the estrogen never came back.

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~Annie~

I just realized why I'm having hot flashes now, after I read your post. I recently lost 10 pounds, so likely that has thrown my estrogen for a loop, as I was already on the edge with soy milk as a hormone replacement.

I bought organic raw maca powder at a local grocer for $24 for a pound. Started with a dose of 1/2 teaspoon, but I read that it won't take effect for 3 weeks. Darn. My night waking is so horrible that it's every 1-1.5 hours. Dreadful stuff, this menopause. I also have hot flashes during the day as often as once every two hours.

All of this since my rapid weight loss.