Menopause - doctor recommendations
I am 42 years old and am heading into early menopause. I am looking for a recommendation for a medical doctor (Cigna) to work with me to improve my symptoms. Maybe a reproductive endocrinologist or an Obgyn. I’m also open to alternative treatment recommendations but I want a medical doctor to work with as well. My symptoms are exhaustion, irritability, and food cravings. The space between my periods has ranged from 6 months to 2 weeks within the past year. Basically I feel like I have PMS all the time. I got this diagnosis from my primary care doctor and she recommended a sleep study for my exhaustion prior to making any plans to relieve the menopause symptoms. I have already seen a sleep specialist and she thinks a sleep problem is very unlikely to be the cause of these issues and so do I. I recently moved from Brooklyn so the primary care doctor is new to me, and I won’t be able to see her again until mid-January. If anyone has gone through something similar I would appreciate any recommendations. Thank you!
Parent Replies
I am 10 years older than you, and I've been through this already! To share my experience, I just went to a regular nurse practitioner with whom I discussed my symptoms, but none of my symptoms were particularly bothersome, leading to your openess to "alternative treatment recommendations." I believe I did not have problems with menopause (I felt different, but nothing was really problematic), because I slept 8 good hours every night, ate mostly healthfully, exercised three days per week plus walking every day, and kept my stress down by not being afraid to decline commitments to my time that I didn't have time for. If I didn't stay firm to this lifestyle, I would probably have your symptoms whether in menopause or not. Best of luck to you!
This helped me:
Evening primrose oil; red raspberry leaf tea; extra B vitamins; a good antidepressant (response to prescriptions varies from person to person, so you may have to try more than 1 medication).
For sleep, I sometimes find a mini-dose of Trazadone helpful.
I have seen a Functional Medicine Osteopath to treat hormonal issues (PMS). She is out of network and has an office in Marin but can do video sessions after the first session. Functional Medicine requires a lot of testing and supplementation. It has been helpful for me.
Her name is Stephanie Daniel, DO.
Oh yeah, I can relate! A very low dose of anti-depressants has worked wonders for me during this time.