Hot Flash Forum!
Comments
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Shannon and Omaz: The menopret was definitely working. I took it the same time each night and found that as the nights went by, the flashes were diminishing. I was at the point that I was sleeping through the night. This was after taking it only 6 nights consecutively.
Unfortunately I decided to stop as I do not know what caused the itch. I will definitely resume taking menopret once chemo is over. Just want to eliminate possible causes of the itch. Good luck!
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Come on Omaz, jump in, we will have our own study.
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DebRox - wishing you don't get flooded with flashes when you quit.
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Ok, Ok!!!
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Wenweb- I have had a slight decrease, I was having a "hot flash" for 4-6 hours at night now it is down to about 3 hours at night. I am on 0.1mg of Clonidine. But get this I also started my period on Saturday. I have been on the clonidine sence Friday.
Hope this information helps you.
Candice
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Thanks Candice. It does help. Since I am quite sensitive to many meds, my Dr. started me on half of the dose you are on. It does not seem to be effecting me in a negative way, so I might ask my PCP if I should take the full .1mg. I don't think the Clonidine would have any effect on your period since technically it's for hypertension. Do you feel that there is a connection?
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jsmiley: rant away, that is what we're here for!
DebRox, hope the menopret isn't what's giving you the rash! 'Cause it sounds promising!
Omaz and Shannon, you are our new menopret case studies! LOL!!
Candice I'm glad your flashes have lessened. Are you noticing a difference with the clonidine?
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NOT A SINGLE HOT FLASH ALL NIGHT LONG - and trust me I am happy to report that. Keeping my fingers crossed, and still ordering the remote control fan.
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Shannon - WOW!!! tonight I'll take the menopret! Do you take it before bed?0
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The worst part for me is that sometimes the flashes come out when I least expect. I had a bad one during my daughters Softball game and it was only sixty degrees out at the time. I was dripping with sweat. They are annoying. I keep a thing of wet wipes in my purse and it helps.
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OMAZ, I take it early evening. They recommend you take it same time every day/night. I hope it is not a placebo effect and will last. I did have one killer hot flash this morning but I was drinking hot tea outside in 95 degree weather...I wont do that again.
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D4hope: we feel your pain!
Shannon...that is actually very amazing.
The past 3 nights I have had hardly any hot flashes. I'm still waking up every 1-2 hours, but the heat of the flash isn't happening. Have only had a few flashes during the day as well. And I'm not taking anything different! I have had a little bit of a tummy bug (thought at first it was food-related but it's been going on for several days). Nothing major. But since that has been going on, my flashes have lessened. Coincidence? Or just a strange case of the "menopret placebo" effect?
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Again where do we get menopret?
Next project can we work on memory?
and then insomnia? LOL
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sas - amazon.com0
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Again, no flashes ALL night ! This is awesome, hope it continues !
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I have a chillow, too! Great in the pillowcase...hot flash, turn to the chillow side.
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I have a chillow, too! Great in the pillowcase...hot flash, turn to the chillow side.
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Shannon - I took it last night. I'll let you know. So happy it is working for you - wow!0
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Shannon, this is very encouraging! Are you sleeping more soundly too?
I had my 4th night without raging hot flashes. So I got to wondering what I can attribute this breakthrough to. I started taking Vitamin D (2000 IUs) a week ago. But about 10 days ago, I started on a different BP med, a long-acting beta-blocker which works by relaxing my blood vessels (thus the surge of my hot flashes). I have to credit my darling DH (who is a pharmacist) for figuring this out!! I was hoping it was the Vit. D, because that is a simple solution for you all! But unless you're in need of a long-acting beta blocker, this is not the magic pill for you. And I shouldn't jinx myself here...4 days is not a very long streak but I hope it continues!
I am still very excited about our little menopret study!
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Renn - Good for you on the Beta Blocker ! I am on 4000 IUs of D right now. Yes, I am sleeping better too. I just have a few warm waves nothing sweaty
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DebRox, if the itch continues, I guess you'll know it's the chemo causing it.
What exactly are the ingredients in this Menopret? Right now my flashes have also stopped, but I'm on a tamoxifen break and recently started accupuncture for insomnia. If I go back on the tamoxifen, I might need to try the menopret myself. My flashes actually were getting worse a few weeks into the tamoxifen break, but this past week I realize that I've had maybe 1 or 2 daily at the most. I've also recently started falling back asleep shortly after I wake up, which is a great improvement. Previously, I would lay awake for hours from 3 am on.
My dilemma is, I don't know if it's the tamoxifen completely leaving my system now or the accupuncture which is giving me the most help. I will probably only do 1 or 2 more accupuncture treatments. They told me that once the problem is solved, I don't have to continue the treatments, that the blockage in my body will then be unblocked. I guess I'll have to see if the sleep continues to improve and then I'll know that the accupuncure is probably at least contributing to the good effect. Then when I resume the tamoxifen, I'll see if bad effects start kicking up again.
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Rose: I finish chemo next week, so I'll wait a few weeks before trying menopret again. It really worked for me. Just took a few days to notice full effects. My flashes went from waking me up in the middle of the night and keeping me awake, to feeling a liitle warm in the morning. I was sleeping thru the night with menopret!
The ingredients per tablet are calcium 46mg and black cohosh 32.5 mg. My int onc recommended this as the best thing on market that works. Good luck.0 -
To all-have seen multiple posts re: which new thing is working. Just a phrase to add to all the other info that clogs our brains. A WASHOUT PERIOD. This is a time when you stop one treatment and start another. In studies this washout period can last from weeks to months. It depends on the study. 8- 12 weeks in general. Ren you can ask pharmacist husband.
What the washout does is prevent giving credit or discredit for a treatment response -- bad or good or none, to the new tx. Just as many responders have said, I did 2-3 things different didn't know which one is working. That's how a washout helps. When I quit Arimidex, I did a 2 1/2 month washout before starting Femara. When Femara started with s.e. within 3 weeks, there was no question in my mind they were attributable to Femara. Conversely, when the Arimidex sledgehammar hit. the s.e. were growing for a time, but then I started Celexa. The hammer came down within 2 weeks. I chose to quit both drugs b/c I couldn't tell which one was the offender. Symptoms kept getting worse with a final dx of fibro given in DEC 09. Arimidex started May 09 symptoms started slow, but on pain meds for sx>>>sept got real worse, celexa started sept 29th09>>>...stopped both drugs nov09>>> dec fibro dx. The point I hope is clear ---muddled won't help
We are so desperate for a response, too many things may be changed at once. If something goes bad like an increase in s.e which drug/tx do we blame. Again , conversely, if things go well. Is it b/c of all or only one. Are we then adding something to the regimen that could have been left out. Some may say, if it's all good who cares I'll just keep doing them all. I get that. But all drugs have consequences, we may not be aware at first what they are, but long term could be a problem. For example the D controversy. My Endocrine doc feels excessive amounts of D, We must watch kidney function every 3 months/ and it could adversely impact parathyroid levels and phosphorus. On the D thread I was the only one to mention it and it wasn't mentioned by any of the ONC docs to any of the posters. Well is it b/c the ONCS don't know?. The run to a new tx, must not hurt us in the long term, i.e kidney dysfunction years down the road. So, just a suggestion to try and leave a washout period between new tx's, I know it easier said then done, I have aged visualy 10years b/c of insomnia. I so want to do anything to get it under control. UGH.
So, consideration of a washout or lapse time between new treatments to allow a drug or tx to be able to be given full credit or discredit for the change. Rennasaus' Dh might be able to give us a rough minimum of weeks between adding something new.
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I have never heard of the menopret. My dermatologist who is uses a lot of herbal and vitamins said to try 300mg of Evening Primrose Oil It has helped me some and that his wife found Zoloft really helped her hot flashes.
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Good Morning ! no flashes again.
DebRox - how is the itching ? I hope you are getting some relief.
SAS - my doc is totally aware of the issues surrounding mega doses of D. He is a believer in high doses (my levels are dreadfully low as are most women w/ BC) then tapering down.
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Sas, you are so right about the wash-out period! I am strugglling with this, wanting desperately to find some help for my neuropathy AND hot flashes, getting different meds from different docs, none of whom admit that the med they recommed could cause more problems than they can help, and the pharmacist telling me there is no interaction between all the meds, and then I do a search and find they all interact with each other.
Thanks for some of the suggestions here - I had hot flashes for 5 years before bc, was getting better, now they are back with a vengence - every 60-70 minutes all day long, all night long - nearly passing out with the most severe ones. At least I sleep through a few of them with ambien, but am never feeling like I am the right temperature - either too cold or too hot! Am interested in the aromatherapy results!
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Regarding the Washout, I definitely get it. I had stopped tamoxifen for about a month, thinking this was a long enough time period, before I started my accupuncture treatments and my sleep had not really improved. Now after 3 once a week treatments (and another 3 weeks off tamoxifen), I am noticing an improvement. But maybe I should have waited 2 months before starting the accupuncture to see if the tamoxifen was the main source of the problem as it can take 6-8 weeks to completely clear the system.
With the hot flashes just about completely gone this week (along with some other annoying side effects), I don't know if I even will want to go back on tamoxifen. I did stick it out for 2.5 years and don't feel that worried about a recurrence with my early stage cancer.
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Sas: Thank you for that info! I don't know how Vit D can interefer with the thyroid-can you go into more detail?
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Shannon---okay thats good y
our doc knows------please ask him to monitor kidney function specifically calcium.. Not trying to offend any one just want to make sure the right things are being done . Great on the sweats 0 -
mbj------- best I could do on short notict------- thisis from WEBMD-------the bottom line is it effects the parathyroids. Parathyroid balance calcium and phosphorus with D as help. All of wihich work on the bones. Parathyroinds sit on top of thyroid, but are separate form it.
WEBMD____-Vitamin D is a vitamin. It can be found in small amounts in a few foods, including fatty fish such as herring, mackerel, sardines and tuna. To make vitamin D more available, it is added to dairy products, juices, and cereals that are then said to be "fortified with vitamin D." But most vitamin D - 80% to 90% of what the body gets - is obtained through exposure to sunlight. Vitamin D can also be made in the laboratory as medicine.
Vitamin D is used for preventing and treating rickets, a disease that is caused by not having enough vitamin D (vitamin D deficiency). Vitamin D is also used for treating weak bones (osteoporosis), bone pain (osteomalacia), bone loss in people with a condition called hyperparathyroidism, and an inherited disease (osteogenesis imperfecta) in which the bones are especially brittle and easily broken. It is also used for preventing falls and fractures in people at risk for osteoporosis, and preventing low calcium and bone loss (renal osteodystrophy) in people with kidney failure.
Vitamin D is used for conditions of the heart and blood vessels, including high blood pressure and high cholesterol. It is also used for diabetes, obesity, muscle weakness, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, bronchitis, premenstrual syndrome (PMS), and tooth and gum disease.
Some people use vitamin D for skin conditions including vitiligo, scleroderma, psoriasis, actinic keratosis, and lupus vulgaris.
It is also used for boosting the immune system, preventing autoimmune diseases, and preventing cancer.
Because vitamin D is involved in regulating the levels of minerals such as phosphorous and calcium, it is used for conditions caused by low levels of phosphorous (familial hypophosphatemia and Fanconi syndrome) and low levels of calcium (hypoparathyroidism and pseudohypoparathyroidism).
Vitamin D in forms known as calcitriol or calcipotriene is applied directly to the skin for a particular type of psoriasis.
If you travel to Canada, you may have noticed that Canada recognizes the importance of vitamin D in the prevention of osteoporosis. It allows this health claim for foods that contain calcium: "A healthy diet with adequate calcium and vitamin D, and regular physical activity, help to achieve strong bones and may reduce the risk of osteoporosis." But the US version of this osteoporosis health claim does not yet include vitamin D.How does it work?
Vitamin D is required for the regulation of the minerals calcium and phosphorus found in the body. It also plays an important role in maintaining proper bone structure.
Sun exposure is an easy, reliable way for most people to get vitamin D. Exposure of the hands, face, arms, and legs to sunlight two to three times a week for about one-fourth of the time it would take to develop a mild sunburn will cause the skin to produce enough vitamin D. The necessary exposure time varies with age, skin type, season, time of day, etc.
It's amazing how quickly adequate levels of vitamin D can be restored by sunlight. Just 6 days of casual sunlight exposure without sunscreen can make up for 49 days of no sunlight exposure. Body fat acts like a kind of storage battery for vitamin D. During periods of sunlight, vitamin D is stored in fatty fat and then released when sunlight is gone.
Nevertheless, vitamin D deficiency is more common than you might expect. People who don't get enough sun, especially people living in Canada and the northern half of the US, are especially at risk. Vitamin D deficiency also occurs even in sunny climates, possibly because people are staying indoors more, covering up when outside, or using sunscreens consistently these days to reduce skin cancer risk.
Older people are also at risk for vitamin D deficiency. They are less likely to spend time in the sun, have fewer "receptors" in their skin that convert sunlight to vitamin D, may not get vitamin D in their diet, may have trouble absorbing vitamin D even if they do get it in their diet, and may have more trouble converting dietary vitamin D to a useful form due to aging kidneys. In fact, the risk for vitamin D deficiency in people over 65 years of age is very high. Surprisingly, as many as 40% of older people even in sunny climates such as South Florida don't have enough vitamin D in their systems.
Vitamin D supplements may be necessary for older people, people living in northern latitudes, and for dark-skinned people who need extra time in the sun, but don't get it.0
