All I know for sure is that the fast women sure don't seem to have let it slow them down.

I finally jump to 50-54 and guess what? Yup, they're still all there in front of me. ;-)

Menopause seems to be something you just don't hear much about (athletically speaking), I am hoping that it means it is no big deal.

G

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It's a little like wrestling a gorilla.........you don't stop when you're tired.........you stop when the gorilla is tired.

It seemed to be a non-issue for me. Sometimes I would get a bit sweaty at night, but I was already sweaty from training anyway! It's possible that doing lots of exercise reduces the symptoms. Actually it's a plus, because you don't have to worry about getting your period on race day.

Heather

 I hope this is true!
a new stability after finally coming out the other side

I'm soooo over perimenopause. I have 3 days of a crabby mood followed by 3-5 days of insomnia followed by 3-5 days of night sweats and the sweet-salt craving. Getting my period is a relief! The week after is great! I have increased energy. I'm so strong during this week I wish I could bottle it. I wish all my races were the week after.

I have either great genetics or have made sound lifestyle choices (both?) because it's been one huge breeze for me. I might have had one hot flash in 06 but I couldn't really tell since it immediately followed a race and I was hot anyway.

I still get periods about 10 months apart and then for only a few hours. But no decernable lack of strength. I need more sleep but not unmanageable amounts. This has been the best time of my life - calmer, stable, healthier. I may skew the curve for others.

Menopause rocks!

B

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"the only normal people are the ones you don't know"

I had a terrible, terrible time with hot flashes. I was routinely flashing about once every 30 minutes. During the day I was okay with it, but it really interfered with my sleep. So, I've been on Angeliq for about 6 weeks now and my hot flashes are gone. I can sleep! I feel normal again.

I would have preferred to manage my symptoms more naturally but I can't really use soy (it interferes with a thyroid hormone taken for Hashimoto's Thyroiditis), and frankly I was really tired! I imagine I'm just kicking the can down the road, but I have an ambitious (for me) season ahead this year. Perhaps I'll reevaluate my options next off season.

There seems to be a very wide variety of experiences. I had lots of what I termed "warm flashes" ,often accompanied by a sweaty taint area-not pleasant. When they occurred during the night time, the flashes interferred with my sleep mostly which, of course, affected my energy levels. That said, all-in-all it wasn't bad (your mileage may vary...). For me it never adversely affected my desire to train and, as someone else said, I don't miss having my period on race day.

So far this has been my experience. A little warm at night, a bit more PMS'ie type stuff at odd times in the month, a cycle that varies widely in volume & intensity and a little bit of extra crabbiness that I choose to call hormonal. ;-)

Not always pleasant, but certainly nothing that has me rushing for the pharmacy.

I just wish the period would disappear completely.

G

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It's a little like wrestling a gorilla.........you don't stop when you're tired.........you stop when the gorilla is tired.

I've been struggling for four years now, with terrible sweats, both day and night. I've tried all the natural stuff. and finally starting using the patch. My husband will ask, "are you wearing your patch, honey?" Because he knows the evil timberdick is in the next room without that patch. I know there are risks with the patch, but pouring sweat all day and night every twenty minutes was a risk to everyone around me. plus the extra, 15 pounds one gains is not fun. When one looks at the age groupers, like 40 -44, 45-49, there are lots of women. Then there is a big drop of numbers, in the 50-54 and up. I feel it has lots to do with the problems of menopause. lack of sleep, extra weight gain, all play hard on a person's performance. And you know, this so called "other side" may take 10 years or more. It"s easy for men to say shit like that. they have no idea. I would fire your doctor and find a new one with better answers.

I'm like perimenopausal, whatever that means, just turned 56. My moods swing a lot. Finally broke down & went to an anti-aging clinic, did gobs of blood tests, now doing follow up tests. Doc put me on free T-3 for the thyroid and am looking at testosterone & estrogen supplementation. For me the thing that's worse as a limiter to training than the hormonal thing is the arthritis in my shoulders, lower lumbar issues, and chronic ITB stuff (bursitis in hips).

>>I just wish the period would disappear completely. <<

Thanks to some tumors and resulting surgery, that was taken care of 5 years ago. Very happy with the decision. Plus, it meant skipping any sort of menopause all together.

clm

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clm
Nashville, TN
https://twitter.com/ironclm | http://ironclm.typepad.com

maybe i should concern something like an anti-aging clinic. I had thyroid cancer, so i do not have my thyroid any longer. Just goes to show you, how complex the problem is. Every woman is different. thanks

what is Angeliq? i have never heard of i. i am on estrogen and progesterone, and have been since my mid 30's. i'm 43 now, and the E/P combo is become less effective over time. back to insomnia, hot flashes and palpitations, which make me feel hungover 24-7 for weeks on end. this really sucks.

i have had thyroid checked like 10 times, and a billion other blood tests, so i don't think this anything other than garden variety peri-menopause.

Angeliq is a "bioidentical" estrogen and a micronized progestin. I read about it in the book: You Staying Young by Drs Roizen and Oz (you know, Oprah's drs). Swing by a Barnes and Nobel and read the chart on page 210. Perhaps one of the drs can weigh in on the difference between PremPro and Angeliq. As a lay person, it seems the progesterone in PremPro can be problematic so I decided on Angeliq. So far I'm really happy with it.

Wow, you just described me to a tee. Unbelievable. I read your post and it was like a wake up call. I am only 35, and having huge hormone issues anyways. Undiagnosed hypothyroidism for last few years is finally under control, but endo says perimenopause - yes - at 35. I didnt really think anything of the night sweats... or the insomnia... or the crankiness. I used to attribute them to the adjustment to the synthroid. But now I think I will go back to the endo and pursue this a bit more... frankly I would be happy to have the period end too as it's all over the calendar even while on the pill. Just don't want yet another abdominal surgery.... sigh...

glad to read I'm not insane tho. ;-)

AP

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"How bad could it be?" - SimpleS

Yes and I am still struggling 6+ years in! I really thought that menopause would be no big deal for me. Never really bothered by my periods (just a tendency toward constipation the week prior) So when menopause hit - it was a MAJOR big shock. (For my doctor too as she described me as " not the body type normally associated with severe menopause" - whatever that is.) Seems that one in three women are really lucky and get no symptoms and then others can get really bad symptoms. I always wonder if mine are partially due to having had one ovary removed (cyst). Having one ovary is supposed to be as good as two - but I am not so sure.

I was a very competitive triathlete until menopuase - but I have to say that now I find that I am forever injured. I can quite see why the numbers of competitors drop off after 50 - especially for womed who arre low on testosterone to begin with. It is called injuries :-(

I started around 35 too! I was on a 28 day schedule then. Lately I have gone to a 21 day schedule. It really sucks b/c it's like the whole cycle comes again too soon.

I have been lurking for a year or so, but your post made me sign up! I quit smoking 4 years ago, at the age of 42, and it pushed me right into menopause! My doctors have all laughed at me, but I firmly believe that the shock of nicotine withdrawal on my body took a regular 26 day cycle into hot flashes, wacky cycles, and after 6 months, no period at all.

I have not been able to sleep for 4 years. I flash day and night. I have gained 30 pounds. I get injured all of the time. I have tried lots of stuff for the sleep, but have not tried Ambien, as I have heard wacky things about it. I worked out 2 to 3 hours a day last summer and lost NO weight. I am at the end of my menopausal rope, but I did find that working out did help the flashes a bit.

Glad I am not alone here.

I can so relate to having a stressor push you into menopause! Not anything related to cigarettes, but menopause started for me at age 45, right after my mother had a major stroke that landed her in the hospital/rehab for a few months and changed all of our lives indefinitely. The stress of that pushed my hormones right over the edge--I distinctly remember sitting in the hospital and having my first hot flash, and my second hot flash, etc., etc. In spite of my good lifestyle choices (I was very fit at the time this happened), I suffered with intense hot flashes and mood fluctuations. Because I have a history of deep vein thrombosis/pulmonary embolism, my doctor wouldn't even consider HRT. But, the stress of having to deal with this while caring for my mother, working a full-time+ job, and dealing with a teen-ager who just had to hit all of his adolescent glory at the same time stretched my coping to the limit. It's a good thing we don't keep guns in the house ;-).

I did finally find a ob/gyn who specializes in bioidentical HRT. After very thorough testing which determined I don't have the genetic markers related to clotting disorders or any other predisposing factors, she started me on Vivelle Dot patch combined with a compounded micronized progesterone, as well as Synthroid and compounded liothyronine. It has made a world of difference. I'm considerably more stabilized, don't have hot flashes, and even lost 10-15 pounds. I know the research on the safety of bioidentical HRT is still emerging, but this doc is so thorough that I feel relatively safe. I also take 500 mg tryptophan for sleeping (the Lidtke brand is very pure), which works great with no side effects or residual drowsiness. You have to be careful taking tryptophan with an SSRI anti-depressant, but, if that's not an issue, it's terrific! I don't think I've slept so well my whole life!!

Thanks for your reply - do you think I could look into this even though I have not had a period in over 3 years? Thanks,
Nancy

Holy crap, yeah my cycle is shortening and shortening it seems... just glad to know I'm not nuts. ;-) AP

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"How bad could it be?" - SimpleS

I had surgery at 43, Dr. left my ovaries so things were okay until around 46, then I started to go through the hot flashes during the day and night sweats at night. I would wake up 3-5 times a night. I was totally drained out everyday. My running started to really get slow and of course I had weight gain. I tried the HRT for about 4 years, then really got scared about the breast cancer thing so I took myself off. I would say after 53-54 I stopped having any difficulties. I personally think I am a stronger person now (60)then when I was in my 30's and 40's. I also feel I am a lot healthier as I do eat better now.

Timberdick I had to laff at your reply about your husband. I had made a comment -- now that I've been using Nuva Ring successfully, about "I'm not taking this thing out till I'm 80" and My husband made some crack like "yeah, no kidding."

I guess I would say I was "peri menopausal" when I went on NR, and OB/gyn -- male, said I could stay on it and "breeze right thru meno" were his words. Said I could go off around 50 or so (am 45 now) to see if I still have a period and if not there's a version of NR for menopause. It's been the best enhancement to my life.

I imagine I will still have hormonal fluctuations even with NR but am hoping for the best. My mom keeps telling me "boy, I wish I'd exercised like you are when I was your age, menopause would have been so much easier" (she became an exercise fiend at 65, is 71 now -- better late than never)

This is a great thread and I really appreciate hearing other stories. Everyone is different. One gal at work warned me of the "you'll think you're going nuts" phenomena so i'm on the lookout for that as well, and other little know side effects of the big M.

Thanks all for your experiences. I had an FSH test last week after around 8 months without a real period and the result indicates I have 'crossed the chasm' as the nurse practitioner put it, and am now post menopausal - she offered congratulations which surprised me a little ;). In the last few weeks I have noticed the beginnings of that new stability that my doctor suggested might come. Although I have hot flashes sometimes, I am not finding them debilitating, and the night sweats and sleep disturbances that characterized the perimenopausal years have resolved into pretty good quality sleep most nights. By the way, have any of you tried bamboo fiber sheets? We found they kept my side of the bed from becoming soaking wet during the night sweats phase. Got them at Linens and Things. Thanks again to all you fellow travelers who shared your experiences - I do wish you all the best!

What is a FSH test? I haven't had a period in about 2 years. Nothing else, no symptom, not one. If you're 50 though you just assume it's menopause right?

I have had two post menopausal friends who have both suffered stress fractures this year. A nurse friend of mine tells me that occurance has more to do with estrogen or the lack of it than it does with calcium. I wonder if there's anyway to prevent that. I'm so far refusing to take any hormones or anything, i never could take the pill at all because it threw my whole being out of whack. I'm quite sure hormones for menopause would do the same thing....

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Nor do I use punctuation in the way a child sprinkles glitter over a ribbon of glue on construction paper - Trash Talk