Do you have hot flashes?

[hinodis]

I am new to having hot flashes and I do not like them at all. I can not even imagine years of this stuff. I am afraid to take the hormone replacement pills. Is there anything to help with these?

 

[BKMETV]

I just figure it something I have to deal with...in the winter I go stand outside in the snow...in the summer stand in front of the air conditioner.

 

[Ms. Belle]

After taking alot of HRT that didn't work and trying vitamins and natural therapies that also didn't work, I'm now on estradiol and I love it. It is a hormone replace therapy, but I feel really good on it. I had my full hysterectomy 5 years ago and this is the first medication that has worked for me. It hasn't made me depressed or fat and I'm no longer sweating profusely.

 

[I loveStitchnippyjon]

I had a hysterectomy in 1998 and did HRT for six years before deciding that I did not want to continue for the rest of my life. I have had hot flashes ever since. My gyn told me that some women have them for the rest of their lives,, and I may just be one of them!

 

[claudia]

I am new to having hot flashes and I do not like them at all. I can not even imagine years of this stuff. I am afraid to take the hormone replacement pills. Is there anything to help with these?

I tried Black Cohash (as recommended by the ob/gyn) but it didn't work for me. I suffered with severe hot flashes and night sweats for about 12-15 years but they are pretty much gone now in my mid 50's. I wouldn't take HRT, so I struggled through them. Not much helped to control them, but I learned that alcohol would set off the flashes for me, so I avoided that and suffered through them to have an occasional glass of wine....it still is a trigger for me. You could try carrying a small portable hand fan to help you through them. The only "good" news about having them is that studies have shown it reduces the likelihood of you getting the most common forms of breast cancer....here is one article on that: http://www.webmd.com/breast-cancer/news/20110127/hot-flashes-linked-to-lower-breast-cancer-risk

 

[suzannen]

I notice a lot of you are in the more northern regions. I realized that I seemed to have a lot more hot flashes in the winter and actually had very few in the summer, even in sweltering heat. After being diagnosed Vitamin D deficient and upping the amount I took, the number of hot flashes I had dropped dramatically. Now, I only have very mild ones occasionally. I mentioned it to a few friends and it seems to have helped them as well.

 

[LaraK]

I notice a lot of you are in the more northern regions. I realized that I seemed to have a lot more hot flashes in the winter and actually had very few in the summer, even in sweltering heat. After being diagnosed Vitamin D deficient and upping the amount I took, the number of hot flashes I had dropped dramatically. Now, I only have very mild ones occasionally. I mentioned it to a few friends and it seems to have helped them as well.

That's interesting...I've been complaining that my internal thermostat has been wacky lately and I am much younger than my mom was when she started menopause...I thought maybe I was starting to get the early symptoms but I was also just diagnosed with a significant D deficiency. I'm glad you posted this because I'll bring this up with my doc.

 

[Liberty Belle]

No, not yet. I'm 43 and everything is still regular and going strong every month. I can't take hormone replacement therapy, according to my mom's doc because of the type of breast cancer she had.

 

[kmccain]

You ladies that were diagnosed with a vitamin D deficiency, how much vitamin D do you take a day? i am currently taking 2000 iu a day.

I read on these boards that vitamin E worked for someone so i tried it. I take one 400 iu a day and they have cut their severity way back.

Good Luck Ladies!

 

[Feralpeg]

Oh, yes! Some people blame the heat that radiates out of Florida on Mother Nature. In reality, it's my fault!

I had a complete hysterectomy nine years ago. I started having hot flashes about a month after the surgery. I've had them, on a regular basis, since.

Due to having had breast cancer, I cannot take any type of HRT. I've just learned to live with them. In fact, the hot flashes don't bother me nearly as much as the night sweats.

I'm just hoping that someday they will mysteriously disappear. When that day happens, the climate in Florida should change dramatically!

 

[Andtototoo]

Well, I've been taking Vitamin D and like everything else I've tried, it has had no effect.

What bugs me about them is that they come and go. It would be one thing if I were just hot or cold or medium for a period of time. But I flash and 60 -90 seconds later, I'm freezing. I'm just frustrated at this point. I'm also so tired of waking up sweating like a pig, throwing my covers off and then freezing my butt off. I wake up at least five times a night. I haven't slept through a night in a year due to the flashes. I really hope they pass, because I cannot imagine going the rest of my life without a full night's sleep.

 

[anniemae]

What is a hot flash like? Do you just get really hot, or do you feel like you will pass out? I am nearing "that age" so I want to be prepared.

 

[Feralpeg]

What is a hot flash like? Do you just get really hot, or do you feel like you will pass out? I am nearing "that age" so I want to be prepared.

I can feel it coming on. It is just an odd feeling. I get super hot and break out in a sweat. You can actually see beads of sweat on the backs of my hands. My face gets really flushed. It sort of feels like you are going to incinerate, but it only lasts a minute. Often, after a flash, I will feel chilled.

I agree with the poster about the night sweats. To me, they are the worst. I throw the covers off and then I'm pulling them back on. I will literally be drenched. Thank goodness I sleep alone, because I am constantly looking for a cool place on my bed. You can just feel the heat coming off of where I was. It makes it hard to get a good night sleep. Of course, I haven't slept well since I started menopause. I'm lucky if I sleep four hours in a night. I just don't sleep well anymore. Another joy of getting older!

 

[DaParkers]

I get hot flashes all the time. I rub pancake batter on my face and that usually helps quite a bit.

Somebody ban this fool.

 

[powellrj]

Invest in lots of layered clothing. Its all I wear year round now. I am usually in a tank top and some kind of a jacket so the jacket can come off.

I get so tired of people telling me I need to dress warmer. Look at me, my hair is drenched and I am covered in sweat. I can't help it that its below freezing out, I am sweating!!!

 

[suzannen]

You ladies that were diagnosed with a vitamin D deficiency, how much vitamin D do you take a day? i am currently taking 2000 iu a day.

I read on these boards that vitamin E worked for someone so i tried it. I take one 400 iu a day and they have cut their severity way back.

Good Luck Ladies!

I take 1200 to 1500 IUs a day, plus I eat a non-fat yogurt every day. My endocrinologist suggests 2000-3000 a day for months like January-March.

 

[rie'smom]

I've been having hot flashes for 20 years. They have lessened to a degree. For the night sweats, what helps me is sleeping with a fan and using a chillow.

 

[Mickey527]

I went through Chemo induced menopause and it was the worst thing. Not only weass I dealing with the chemo anbd the side effects but I had all the menopause sympotoms come all at once.
I remember that I would feel really cold and then from my chest up would get soaked with persperation. Not just damp or a little wet, I would be soaked so much that I had to change my blouse.
As time went on the symptoms didn't come on as quickly but all the time. I walked around with one of those cooling neck things on my neck all the time and that really helped alot. I am talking about the gel things that you soak till they swell and wear them during the summer. I had mine all year long.
It has been 6 years now but I still get the hot flashes alot, ,mostly when I am in bed at night. I am one who sleeps with a sheet, 2 blankets and a quilt but ewhen a flash hits I am down to just the sheet. then I wake up freezing. I don't know how much longer this will go on but I am really tired of it already.

 

[njmom47]

I had them for a very short time last year but they were especially wicked at night. Thankfully they have pretty much stopped.

 

[T*Bird]

Oh, yes! Some people blame the heat that radiates out of Florida on Mother Nature. In reality, it's my fault!

I had a complete hysterectomy nine years ago. I started having hot flashes about a month after the surgery. I've had them, on a regular basis, since.

Due to having had breast cancer, I cannot take any type of HRT. I've just learned to live with them. In fact, the hot flashes don't bother me nearly as much as the night sweats.

I'm just hoping that someday they will mysteriously disappear. When that day happens, the climate in Florida should change dramatically!

Love your sense of humor! You kind of have to laugh at this stuff, don't you? I also had a hysterectomy, at the same time as my BC surgery. (8 years ago) The hot flashes started just days later. Plus, I was on Tamoxifen for 5 years, so that added to the hot flashes. I think that they may be a little better, but I still get them. I used to be very cold-natured, and I still do "freeze" a lot. I can be freezing one minute and fanning the next. And don't get me started on blow-drying my hair! It's rare that I can do finish it without having to stop and lay on the bed under the ceiling fan. It's drives me crazy when I shower and dress and then break out in a sweat before I even leave the house.