Im having trouble with menopause symptoms.I just turned 50 but the signs have been there since 45.Im have trouble today with severe vertigo.Alot of people have told me that dizziness goes with menopause.I am also a sufferer of extreme panic anxiety,agoraphobia and depression.I have under control high blood preassure and im treated for thyroid disorder.I cant take any hormone treatments due to my mom having estrogen based breast cancer.So I am roughing it with over the counter soy products.Ive also been told that people with menopause also have periods of shortness of breath.Is anyone else having all these problems.Please write to me.I need advice and a friend to lean on.

Hi and welcome to our forum...

Can you PM me with the names of the high blood pressure meds and other meds you are taking?
I can look them up and see if there are nutrients you are losing because of them. Also some drug interactions may cause dizziness.

I personally did not have much trouble with menopause.
But some women do.

Sorry I did not see you post until today.

Hi and welcome to NeuroTalk!!

Wow, I could have almost written your post myself......although I'm not having vertigo I do have the dizzies most all the time (I have MS, though). I'm 48 so we're in the same age range.

I take Diovan for HBP and Levothyroxine for my thyroid. Just in the past few months I've noticed that I've been short of breath quite often....mostly when lying down on my side.

Now, I do take LDN for my MS and I read that it can correct hypothyroidism and if you're on meds for that they may have to be lowered. I need to ask my doctor about that since he did raise my dosage of Levothyroxine last year. I'm wondering if that could have something to do with the shortness of breath. I'm not taking anything OTC or soy based for my sx, though.

It's probably the additional 20 pounds I'm carrying around..... If I'd lose that I'd probably breathe better!

you don't encounter 'some' issues any more! On the other hand, THYROID is a very, very common issue! And if your doc isn't doing more than the very basic of tests? Well, AsK! or go get another opinion by an endocrinologist.. IF you can find one. They are often hard to find-good ones even harder to find. Looong before all my neuro issues, the tiredness lethargy etc... got to me and I was lucky to get good/great testing. It took about 3-5 years of 'adjusting' thyroid meds to get it right...but you feel soo much better!
As for this being a hormone that affects cancers? NAH! Different hormones, different actions, reactions and so forth. I speak from BC experience.
When I went thru meno I did go on HRT... it's a trade-off in some ways? But It was worth it in the long run for my own self. It'd taken about 3+ years to adjust these meds to do the best for me w/the least short and long term side effects. Learning as much as you can about each med is key to learning about the benefits and pitfalls that you mite encounter. Knowing is power.
Thyroid hormones aren't I believe, estrogen based therapies. Far from it.
Here is a good site to help you get the 'basics'?:
http://www.endocrineweb.com/thyroid.html
Severe Thyroid deficiencies CAN cause anxieties...it's key that you find a doc that listens to you and can treat you! ASAP would be my sense if it were me?
Of course, as I'd said, starting on meds doesn't make things 'go away' rite away. It takes months to feel better, but keepfaith and keep looking for that rite doc! Hope always! - j

PS as for this and it's actions/reactions w/the MS? DO talk w/your MS doc about this soon if you can? It just mite be that he/she could refer you to some endo. sensitive to MS people... You'd be surprised! They are out there - just not advertising?

Hi and welcome. The thing with menopause is it affects everyone differently as you know. I had night sweats and mood swings at first. Now it's just heart palps. Getting them checked of course but more than likely related to menopause. I started menopause early, late 30's which may be related to a hysterectomy I had in my early 30's.

Hope it gets better for you.

I didn't know vertigo went along with menopause but now it makes sense. I had it, too. I woke up the morning of my 10th anniversary of sobriety with the room spinning like crazy. (How appropriate, huh? :P ) Anyway, the doctor had me take meclizine and that stopped it. I took 50mg. of meclizine when it happened and shortly it would stop. But I had the vertigo when lying down rather than when upright.

Soy isn't good if you have a history of estrogen-feeding breast cancer in the family and neither are those herbal supplements. I just toughed it out.

I was raising grandkids (still am, but they were babies during my menopause) and the poor kids were eskimo babies---to this day they don't like having the heat on in their bedrooms and want to go out in winter wearing just hoodies instead of a coat. They'll open the windows thinking it's hot in here when it's the dead of winter, too. I had the air conditioner going in winter sometimes and had a fan on me 24/7. I'm of Native American descent but you couldn't rope and drag me into a sweat lodge. I've had quite enough of that, thank you!