Hot Flash Forum!
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My kids gave me a personal fan last mother's day that clips onto the headboard and I point it directly at my bald head and turn it on as soon as a hot flash starts. They also gave me a flat, blue, gel filled pad (don't remember what it's called but they ordered it off Amazon) it's about 12 inches by 24 inches or so. It somehow gets very cold just lying on the edge of the bed. When I get a really big hot flash, I pull it over toward the center of the bed and lie on it. It literally absorbs the heat from my body and cools me down. You can't sleep on it because once it absorbs your heat, it's hot. When my hot flash subsides, I move the pad back to the edge of the bed so that it can cool down for the next hot flash. It's wonderful - I use to have to get up and walk off the hot flashes until the bed and I cooled back down.
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The apple cider vinegar made me sick. I just accepted the fact fans will be my new bedroom item.
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I couldn't stand it either. So far,, still just waking up a lot.0 -
LOL re: apple cider vinegar. It was waaaay worse than the hot flashes. So I too gave up on it! Yuck!0
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I even mixed it with honey. It helped,, but not enough.0 -
yeah, I didn't enjoy the ACV cocktail either. I just use the Bragg's organic raw ACV in salad dressing/marinades since it has a much nicer flavor than regular old Heinz and the probiotic benefit. I'm not sure if it would have helped with hot flashes even if I could tolerate drinking it.
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my MO prescribed Effexor for the hot flashes, so I tried One. Little. Pill. 37.5 mg. I had nearly every side effect listed on the box, including massive headache, tremors, dizziness, strange dreams, loss of appetite (that's putting it mildly; I never wanted to eat solid food again), blurred vision, gastrointestinal disturbance, and anxiety out the whazoo. I also had symptoms NOT listed on the box! My arms felt too long. My insides vibrated.
It took two complete days to get back to normal.
So no more Effexor. Hot flashes are back.
My MO had wanted my hot flashes under control before we start with an aromatese inhibitor. He also recommended acupuncture. I'll give it a try, I suppose.
Did anyone else have as bad reaction to such a teeny pill? Does this suggest I will also have problems with an aromatese inhibitor?
And did anyone have hot flashes BEFORE taking an aromatese inhibitor? If so, did they get much worse with treatment?
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Early60s - I was on Premarin for years for hot flashes until breast cancer this past March. I had to stop taking it cold turkey and Ive been back to hot flashing and night sweats. My onco tried me on Effexor and I had the jitters, insomnia, anxiety (every side effect listed). I asked if there was anything else to try and he said no. I dread taking arimidex.
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There are other meds you can try. I'm getting ready to start Prozac,,, and you can also use Paxil for hot flashes. They are both available as generics so not too expensive also. I'm starting with Prozac 10 mg for a few days, and if I tolerate that OK, I'll go up to 20 mg which is the treatment dose for hot flashes. Paxil 10 mg is the treatment dose for that med..These meds are all classifed as anti-depressants, yet they seem to help hot flashes in some women. They are all different,,, you may not have a bad reaction to a different one. My friend couldn't tolerate Paxil, but she is fine on Prozac. It could be worth trying. Also,, you may have a bad reaction, (nausea) the first few times you take it, and then it wears off. If it causes insomnia, take it in the morning,, if it causes drowsiness, take at night.
I hate taking meds, but I'm so sick of the hot flashes, that I'm desperate. I have sworn to give it 2 weeks. Starting it Monday night.
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Early60s: I also had an immediate bad reaction to my first Effexor pill. I found my post describing the experience:
Argh! Barely 24 hours since I took the first effexor pill, I now feel pretty horrible. I have a headache that has developed into one of my full-blown migraines, I feel dizzy, have a horrible taste in my mouth, and feel "spacey" mentally. I know it would seem this is too soon, but this is very similar to how I felt on Zoloft after one day. I guess I'm just very sensitive to these types of serotonin inhibitors.
I realized after I took the pill last night that my MO recommended starting with half a pill ... I took the whole pill. It is the lowest dose, 37.5. I am not going to continue this medication. I doubt I'll have withdrawal this early, right? I'm loath to taken even a half a pill again.
I'm disappointed, but the headache and dizziness make hot flashes seem preferable! I might try it again in a few weeks, but I just want this out of my system and feeling my normal, headache-free self ... sweat and all.
So you are not alone! I see that many tolerate Effexor very well (and get good hot flash relief from it). I've just learned to live with my hot flashes because the rx remedies don't agree with me (my MO also prescribed Ativan for nighttime, so I could "ignore" my hot flashes during the night while sleeping, but I felt too dopey the next day). I carry a hand fan with me in my purse at all times, and I've gotten really good at detecting the symptoms of onset so that I can peel off my layers before the flash goes into full swing. Pajamas made from 100% rayon viscose are the most comfortable for sleeping; they are good at wicking moisture away from the skin and also dry quickly. (I slept in a cotton t shirt last night and was struck how damp the fabric was all night). I have shoulder-length hair that I wear pulled back or pinned up about 75% of the time -- that way my neck doesn't get soaked when I heat up. Little workarounds, and I'm also just used to them.
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Early60- I have been on Effexor for nearly 2.5 years now. I love that it helps me for the majority of the time. I too started off with several of the same symptoms, I was told to try it for several weeks and give it a chance to start working. There were numerous times I wanted to give up, but was very glad I didn't. It takes several weeks for your body to build up a reserve in your system. I take 2 effexors in the morning and 1 gabapentin at night to control these miserable hot flashes. Some days I can go without 1 and some days they last for hours, like Saturday. Have you talked to your MO about trying it for longer?
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Am starting Prozac tonight ! Will see how it goes.0 -
Thanks, Blownaway and glennie19 and gemini4 and Chrisrenee77. Chrisrenee, I am an instructor who has 35 pairs of eyes trained on me at any point. I had such a headache and dizziness and tremors that I couldn't do my job. I had to stay home. How could I try it for two weeks? That's what my MO wanted me to do, but I don't see how I could pull it off
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Early60s: just suggesting trying one of the other meds, like Prozac or Paxil,,, and starting it when you have a week off,,, or a long weekend off?? Get over the first few days and see how you feel. I took my first dose of Prozac last night,, and nothing major,,,,0 -
glennie - I did prozac post dx, and before my second attempt at Tamoxifen, I loved it. It helped with HF and made me more at peace. Switching from it to Effexor was a snap, my onc said to stop P for three days then make the switch. I had no SEs that I noticed. I had tried Celexa a year earlier along with trying T for the first time and it was a disaster. Note to self: never start new meds at the same time.
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Early60- yes I understand about having eyes on you. I work in a hospital and seeing patients is what I do. I still get dizzy if I get up to quickly or turn my head quick. Check with your MO and see if there is another option out there for you.
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Farmerlucy,, totally agree,,, only one new med at a time!!0 -
I started anastrozole in September, 10 days after having my ovaries out. Was having several hit flashes a day. I've been on Prozac for a few years, so that didn't help me at all. I went to a naturopath recently who gave me a supplement (aromat-8, https://www.xymogen.com/products/product-detail/347/Aromat8-PN%E2%84%A2), my hot flashes have all but gone away! Ok, maybe they aren't gone, but they have significantly reduced in number.
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I'm hoping Prozac will work for me. It's my first time trying it. If not, I can try Paxil. My doctor was ok with using Black Cohosh, but I haven't looked into that yet.Jenwith4kids: That product is a phytoestrogen. Is that ok for you to take since you have estrogen pos BC and are on anastrozole?
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Good question, Glennie. I shared it with my oncologist yesterday and she said it looked fine. But maybe she doesn't know it's a phyto estrogen. I will call the naturopath who gave it to me. Thanks for the heads up. Jen
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I am on my second bottle of Tamo and the hot flashes and night sweats are really, really bad - its embarrassing sometimes. I did see my onoclogist about it a week or so ago and he told me to just try to deal with it. I dont see him again until Feb 2015 and if the hot flashes/night sweats are still bad, he will have to give me something!
I took Zoloft for about 6 months years ago (before I had breast cancer) and hated the way it made me feel so I got off of it. I decided I didnt really need to be on it in the first place, it wasnt me mentally, it was a situational thing - someone was making me think I was crazy, lol . Anyhoo, I am just wondering if I start taking an anti-depressant, will have have the typical feelings you get from being on an anti-depressent. I felt like I had no emotions, just felt like a big bag of dugh. I remember having a difficult day at work one day and I told my husband I would probably cry if I could feel something. I just dont want to have the lack of emotions again. Has anyone experienced this taking Effexor while being on Tamo?
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The doses of the anti-depressants meds that you take for hot flashes are lower than the doses prescribed for depression. So it is possible you could get relief from the hot flashes and not have the flat emotions that you previously had on Zoloft. I'm only on my 2nd day of Prozac, so it's too early for me to report in on the emotion side of the med. Since you had that issue with Zoloft, it might be better to switch to a different anti-depressant. Paxil, Prozac and Effexor are ones that have shown results with hot flashes. You could try one,, and if it doesn't help with the HF's or you don't like the side effects, you could try another one. My friend tried Paxil first,,, it didn't help, so she went on Prozac and it did.I really tried to suck it up and deal with it. But so many nights of interrupted sleep with the night sweats just did me in. If you feel you want to try something,, call your MO or one of your other doctors. I got mine from my GYN.
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I certainly am not as emotional as I was but for me that is not a bad thing. When my PCP saw I was on the lowest dose he said that was the grandma dose. Personally I really like it.
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I have a phone call into my oncologist now to discuss, just waiting for someone to call me back. I really hope he will suggest something.
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good idea, Cidney -- don't wait until February. I hope you find relief
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Glennie - thank's for the info the other day - I called my oncologist and told her what exactly was in that supplement that she had said was okay. Once she realized it was a phytoestrogen she nixed it. Back to flashes for me. Ah well....... THANK YOU!!
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Sorry, Jen! We want you safe! Have you tried one of the anti-depressants, like Effexor, or Paxil or Prozac?0 -
I take 75mg. of Effexor in the morning and 900mg. of gabapentin at night. Although I've been encouraged by my oncologist to take the gabapentin during the day as well, when I tried it I could not tolerate the groggy feelings, so I just stick with the nighttime dose. It works well at night and although i still experience hot flashes during the day, I've figured out how to cope and just live with it (which,believe me, in South Florida is a challenge).
Although it was probably mentioned in past posts it bears repeating that it is not recommended to take Paxil with Tamoxifen. Keep cool everyone.
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