Hormones…

Warning! This blog discusses women’s issues, periods etc!

Last week i went to see what i thought was a hormone specialist… it turned out to be the sexual health & contraception clinic – which was ok as my main query was about my periods…

My main issue is that my periods really drag me down. This is nothing new, but the last 6 months or so i have seen a definite pattern in my symptoms, in that i have a “better” week (or sometimes just a few days) just before my period (when i can feel pretty good “at rest” and even manage to go out and about a little bit without major payback) and then just before my period i start to feel bad, feel very low in energy and everything is a struggle during my period, with all my bad symptoms of headaches, dizziness, muscle weakness, achiness, sensitivity to noise, etc etc and then it seems to take another couple of weeks to gradually get over the event and it all starts again.

The doctor i saw was a little confused as most people feel worse the week before, but has given me Norethisterone, a progestogen only pill to take, starting on my 5th day of my period and to take continuously (i am going back in 6 weeks or so for a check up). If it seems to agree with me, she said we could consider the Depo Injection… (very scared of that as heard it can have bad side effects and once you have it it can’t be undone). The idea is that my periods will cease and won’t drain me so much, although there may be some spotting and side effects (weight gain, bloating, spots, dizziness – just what i need!). They don’t know how it will affect me until i try so i am giving it a go, although not without some concerns. I am just hoping i don’t miss out on my few good days a month as a result!

I am willing to try it now as what i used to consider to be an ok/average day is now the highlight of my month and my general level of functioning has gone way down. My hormones may not have much to do with this but my period seems to be just one more burden on top of all the others that i really could do without. Unfortunately there does not seem to be a magic answer so i may be making things even worse but don’t know til i try.

Progestogensare like natural progesterone but are synthetic hormones and are not without controversy and i am not entirely comfortable with “polluting” my body and messing about withit when it is evidently already struggling to function, but it is worth a try. I also hate taking things then wondering if my odd symptoms are due to side effects of a drug or if they are the ME, and not knowing how i would be feeling without taking it…

Dr Sarah Myhill does not recommend people with ME take the pill, but she does not really talk about what to do about period hell either so i don’t see any obvious alternatives! She talks more about contraception, which is irrelevant to me as a lesbian. She does say Progestogens can cause depression. I have not been depressed the last couple of months so will be suspicious if i suddenly get down. I have been taking Agnus Castus for a long time, which is a herbal remedy and which definitely helps with keeping periods regular and i think make mine last for less days as well. I had stopped taking it last month in case the hospital wanted to take any blood tests and my period was late this time, which has not happened in a long time, so i think it certainly is worth a try for anyone not on the pill who has issues with PMT etc. (Kira brand has seemed best to me).

So, my period came today! I am so happy as it is 3 days late and have been feeling very premenstrual, as well as having bad (and different to usual) leg pains – from my hips and down the sides into my knees and beyond! Also i usually get bleeding gums when i clean my teeth around the time of my period (who knows why) but yesterday when i got out of bed in the afternoon and sat in the next room chatting to my girlfriend, my gum spontaneously started bleeding into my mouth! It stopped quite quickly but was quite copious there for a minute. Yuk. I even started looking through the kitchen cupboard yesterday and throwing out all the out of date rice, dried beans, etc. “Nov 2007? looks ok… 2006 throw it out!” typical PMT behaviour…

This means that i need to start taking the new tablets on Saturday… 3 times a day! Better make a ticky chart or i will forget whether i have taken them or not… I am just hoping that i will never have to be that woman again who constantly talks about her periods, when she is due, how bad she feels, blah blah so boring, but recently whenever anything is happening (an appointment, visitor, etc) i have to check my diary and say whether there is any chance i will be feeling even half up to it… but how much of a long term solution is taking this pill i wonder? Surely i can’t just take it forever? How messed up will my hormones be after taking it? Hmm.

The other thing that i wanted to talk to the hormone specialist about (turns out i need to see a separate Endocrinologist for this) is to discuss the chapter in Fatigued to Fantastic! about hormones and ME (see previous post). The doctor i saw at the sexual health clinic said that there is a doctor at a local hospital who is interested in people who are slightly sub-optimal in various hormones and the effect that can have but that she did not think they would try treating me even if i am as they tend to have a “hands off” approach. This means “do nothing in case you are sued” approach, or a “NICE guidelines say NO if you have ME” approach, i can only assume… So if Dr Teitlebaum is right about hormones and ME/CFS then i will probably never know. I could try to get referred to that doctor but i don’t expect there is a lot of point in wasting my energy and taxi money. This is a bit disheartening as i am doing everything else in the book (taking supplements for my mitochondria etc) but if there is a hormonal problem holding me back i can’t do anything about it myself… what is the point of trying to help myself if i can’t get any professional support/expertise?