The first thing that helped me, and everyone is different, is changing up my birth control. I have been "fixed" so the only reason I take BC is to regulate my periods. The one that I was on for years was the kind that for 3 weeks each week had a different level of hormones and then a week off. My doc told me that when you have whacky hormones already the last thing you need is hormones that change every week. So she put me on a BC that gave the same level of hormones every week for 3 weeks and then the week off. This did a world of good for me! On top of that, after doing full blood work, she gave me what she called a "vitamin cocktail". Women don't get enough of certain vitamins. Vitamin E is a big one. Also, B12 or similar types of B in high doses can help your energy that can come with unbalanced hormones. After my triplet pregnancy I was told that pregnancy sucked all of my calcium supply so I'm on high doses of that as well. But all women need to take calcium supplements, with Vitamin D for absorbsion. On top of that I take Centrum vitamins appropriate for my age. There is a menopause formula out there when you can find it. I also take Black Cohosh daily. It's not a cure all and doesn't work for everyone but for me it helps some. This is what works for me. I think your best bet is to go to your doctor and ask for full blood work to see where your hormone levels are and to see if and where you may be lacking so you can see what vitamins you may need a boost in. Trying BC can help, especially if it's the right one for you. I can tell you that after a while you may need to change up things as I had to add Black Cohosh for me and may need to do more tweaking. I was fine for several years and then things change and tweaking may need to happen. Add lots of water and exercise when possible as well, and eat healthier with more fruits and veggies. You know the routine.
*I wanted to add that my hormones levels were fine after the blood work. The thing is, my symptoms weren't 24/7. So the day they drew blood I wasn't having problems, of course. The doc said that even though the blood work didn't show higher hormone levels to officially say I was in peri-menopause, I have symptoms and problems that couldn't be ignored and she treated me appropriately and as if I were going through peri-menopause, as blood work isn't always conclusion.
Peri-menopause is the accurate term for the whackiness we go through DURING "the change". This can take years for many women.
Menopause is the accurate term AFTER the change if final and complete.
We all just call the entire process "menopause", lol.
K. B
mom to 5 including triplets
