Published on 12, July, 2020
I'm 52 and currently undergoing an extremely traumatic perimenopause. I had pretty much accepted that I have always been autistic and experienced adhd, but never felt any inclination to have an official diagnosis. However changes in hormonal activity have thrown me into a spiral of chaos and despair - all my coping mechanisms have disintegrated and I find myself overwhelmed, desperate and suicidal. Lots of the drug treatments my GP has provided are entirely unsuitable for me and in fact, make matters worse - SSRI's and SNRI's in particular. HRT also seems generally ineffective, synthetic progesterone has a terrifying effect on me, despite this I was prescribed continuous Norethisterone patches - I did express opposition to this, citing past experience, but was made to feel I wasn't commiting to getting better if I didn't "give it a try" Needless to say, I had a very bad physical and mental reaction and am stopping all HRT
My own research suggests that autistic people living through menopause have generally similar experiences to my own, so I asked my GP if I could start the process for ASD assessment, as I felt this might lead to a more considered and appropriate treatment of my menopause. I realise the waiting list is long and it might be too late for this, but thought it was a positive step. My GP dismissed my request immediately - stating I was "not well enough" to undergo the process.
I've read of a few people gaining a diagnosis as a result of experiences in menopause/perimenopause and wondered how they negotiated this process? I don't have the funds to seek a private assessment, especially as I feel my combined adhd/asd means there's a risk I may not come away from the process with a positive diagnosis.
Would be very interested to read of other's experience in this area
I never got on with HRT, ididn't get on with the pill or any other hormonal interference. Are yo sure that at 52 this is perimenpause? I went to a medical herbalist for peri and menopause help, she mixed me up a batch of stuff that I had to drink twice a day, it tasted horrid, but it was worth it. Not only did her choice of herbs help with the symptoms I described, but a few I'm not sure I was properly aware of, I just felt better all round.
Personally I didn't find being diagnosed made any difference to my treatment options with normal doctors, HRT is such a blunt instrument and sdo many people are tricked into believing its some kind of magic bullet, I found it even worse for perimenpause than for full menopause.
Thank you for your reply. Throughout my life I've been reluctant to resort to mainstream Western medicine. As you say, it's such a blunt instrument that attempts to treat a symptom in isolation, without taking an holistic approach to the individual subject and their vast differences! I equipped myself with a working knowledge of herbal medicine when very young and know several people with professional qualifications and practices in that area. However, I felt obligated to seek mainstream help as I was entering into a spiral of extreme meltdowns and suicide attempts. I'd also pretty much stopped being able to sleep at all - had lifelong insomnia, other parasomnias which were an accepted part of my self, but this was unmanageable. I was losing touch with reality - this happened before when I was in my early 20's and was very frightening.
In an ideal world, I would remove external stress factors, like having to work, extreme financial pressures, care obligations to those around me etc, take myself off and find a natural solution with diet and time spent on my beloved research areas. Unfortunately, this isn't an option as, like many other people, the menopause coincides with other high stress events in their lives and my financial situation is awful due to my not being to succeed in the mainstream world of work.
I think I'm seeing diagnosis unrealistically as a sort of 'magic wand' that will lead healthcare professionals to treat me differently, when really society needs to needs to change to give everyone the space and opportunity to manage their menopause individually!