Are YOU done?

Is everyone here who is finished with "menopause" able to say they feel better than before? I for one was so thrilled to not have Mother Nature visit me every month. I have never felt so free in my entire life plus I had a very interesting menopause, not a hot flash, no discomfort of any kind so it was a breeze for me. I was one of the lucky ones. I did have an abundant amount of hair on my chin which was never there before so that stunk! I use to have to 'mow my chin' weekly. All in all it was a pleasant transittion. What about anyone else who is past menopause?

I'm with you Chatty,

I guess I have been lucky too. I find that I am colder now than I used to be -- have to sleep with blankets over me when hubby is just sporting a sheet. But that is easy enough to handle.

And I do hate the fact that I have to check my chin every darn morning to pluck the hairs that seem to grow overnight.

But if I had a hot flash -- I think it was only once. And I have to admit that came over me totally unexpectedly and was so embarrassing... It was at my 30th high school reunion, so 10 years ago when I would have been 48.

Not sure if it WAS a hot flash... I got to the room the reunion was in, went to the bar, ordered a beer and wandered over to join a group of classmates. Suddenly I was so hot and sweaty and weak feeling! All I wanted to do was take off my clothes and lie down on the cold tile floor! I was so confused, and I doubt it had to do with too much alcohol consumption, as I had just barely had two sips!!

I took myself to the ladies room, and hid out until it went away. If THAT was a hot flash, I am so glad to have never had another one!!

As for my periods, I always had really heavy nasty ones -- for years I was on the pill to control this, but then the medicos decided this was not safe, so I had to live with it. THOSE I don not miss one single bit!!

OK, now I have bared my soul on this topic. I'm with Chatty, I am glad to be finished with menopause.

Who else wants to share?

I had to have a total hysterectomy when I was 45. It was the best thing that could have happened to me! I had horrible,heavy, painful periods for years. For a time my husband and I did a lot of traveling and it always seemed that half my suitcase was tampons and pads. I sure don't miss any of that! Not having to check the calendar when making plans to see if it was going to be that time, not feeling lousy for 10 days out of the month (the last couple of years before my surgery, I'd have cramps for days before, then the heavy period, then continued pain for days after -- it was awful).
The first year after surgery was a little rough as far as menopause goes. Couldn't take hormones for 6 months because I had so much endometriosis (the cause of all that pain!!) found myself crying a lot and not really knowing why. Then I started on hormones and life got better. Never really had much problem with hot flashes -- insomnia was a problem for a while. I was bound and determined not to become one of those women who has a hysterectomy and uses it for an excuse to gain weight or let myself go. So I've worked hard at staying in shape. I think all that exercise helped with the menopause symptoms (I was an exerciser before the surgery so it wasn't like I made a big change and decided to start working out or something).
YES I definitely feel better than before. Whatever menopausal symptoms I had they were NOTHING compared to what I used to deal with every month, and after 10 years (since the surgery) they're gone now. Like you said -- I feel free to go and do whatever the heck I want.

I still have hot flashes, but my mom had them up until she died in her 80s. I find too that I'm hot most of the time; heat bothers me much more than it used to. I used to hate cold weather, but now I can wear fewer clothes - no heavy coats or sweaters - when it's cold and don't have to bundle up like I did. I did natural hormone replacement for a while, but it got too expensive as my insurance would only cover Premarin, and there's no way I wanted to take something that made horses suffer so much!

So now I just put up with the hot flashes, and the hairs on my chinny chin chin! Those hairs are awful, too, not the soft downy type I have on the rest of my face, but thick, stiff, and black - yuck!! I've also noticed that there is the occasional thick, black hair curling out of my eyebrows - where were they when I needed thicker eyebrows is what I want to know.

Good grief.
I seem to get a short hot flash or 2 ..per month. usually when I'm lying in bed. For about 2-3 min. It's very mild.

That's all. Periods are just slowly getting less intense/heavy each passing year. Am pretty normal..meaning a lifetime of very few noticeable menstrual cramps (so far).

Regular exercise is a good overall. For certain it would be a distractor. It doesn't stop many women whom I aware that bicycle /jog regularily --even intensely/long.

Well, what an interesting topic to jump into. I had breast cancer when I was 48, and the chemo started what was called "chemical induced menopause." I had my first chemo treatment on Nov 2, the first day of the last period of my life. Prior to that I was on mood-modifiers, not for a mental illness mood disorder, but for hormone related mood swings, what is now called PMDD: pre-menstrual dysphoric disorder. I too planned vacations around the menstrual cycle. So, one of the best unexpected experiences of cancer was to go through menopause within chemo treatment. I had hot flashes, night sweats too for six months to a year, but no telling if it was hormone or chemo/radiation related. In a younger woman, studies show that chemo might interfere with menstrual cycles but then her normal cycles will return. Good to know for a younger woman who wants to have children despite cancer/chemo.

Anne, that was a hot flash!

I have been in menopause for 10 years now. From the age of 40 until 55, I had nights sweats every single night. I also had hot flashes during the day, but not to the extent that I had them at night.

I love menopause, except for 2 things. My waist line is lost and hairs pop up in the craziest of places - chin, mustache, toes....

I had menopause for about 10 years. All symptons went away around the age of 59-60- Honestly, I think the 60 years are sooo much better than the 50 years. Menopause was a pain in the ...name whatever you want; ... that's where it was.

Edelweiss, your post helps me a lot. I'm there. I went for 18 months without a period and was declared to be officially post-menopausal...then was hit just last week out of the blue while away on the west coast. Thank goodness I did have emergency supplies (thanks to my doctor...apparently the same thing happened to her, but in a 3rd world country where she had to go around and beg for supplies from fellow tourists! So now she always warns me to keep emergency supplies in my suitcase.)

Pain in the...name whatever you want...yes, that would be me this week. It's especially disappointing having thought I was finally free.

After 18 months, you would think you were done for good. What inconvenient timing! Is the losing of the waistline inevitable? Or perhaps a matter of genetics and/or exercise? No, I know a lot of women who exercise post-menopause and still have the vanishing waistline.

I went through menopause fairly early, in my late forties. I've been 'over it' for years now and don't miss my periods a bit. During the change, I had hot flashes but not the night sweats, and my, er, libido went WAY up. For a while there, I think I knew what it was like to be a man and not able to ever stop thinking about IT. My husband was thrilled.

Now, things have settled down a bit. (DH NOT as thrilled..) My heating/cooling facilities are completely whack and I have to pluck a few hairs, but other than that, I feel great. As for the waistline, four pregnancies blew that to bits already, so....

Carolyn

I had about 7 bad years. Now at 56 I'm all done and feeling great again! My moods were so bad all those years and the physical stuff was draining. I felt like I was in a fog for 7 years. I never thought it would end but I'm so very happy to say that it's over and the fog has lifted!

Fantastic Fiona, and now you can do whatever you want to do whenever. It is so good to be finished even though I didn't suffer any of the normal garbage. I felt like a new woman just the same and still do pretty much of the time even though I am a relic...!

IMO the only good thing about getting older, is not having monthly periods. I haven't found any other advantages to the aging process, however, unless you consider not having to work.