u/Kwyjibo68

I've (58yo) recently developed what I believe are cervicogenic headaches. They are one sided, start at the back of the head and move up and can include ear/jaw and eye. One cause or contributing factor can be looking down at phones/pads.

I've never been one to get headaches much, for which I'm eternally grateful, so when I do, they tend to freak me out. I've has psoriatic arthritis since I was a teen, so I wasn't surprised to learn there is arthritis in my neck. While that may be contributing to the situation, I believe looking down at my phone has been the main culprit. I've started doing some neck exercises and working on keeping my head upright and it has helped a lot. I still would like to investigate this more, especially if I need some kind of treatment later on. So far I've only seen the ortho PA. I was already there for another issue and mentioned the headache thing and she ordered an xray and confirmed arthritis. She also prescribed PT (starts in 2 weeks) and a muscle relaxer. I'm wondering if I should be looking for a neurologist though.

I figure age and menopause could also be affecting this issue. I am on 0.025 estradiol patch (planning to move up soon) and 100 of prog. Joint issues haven't generally been a problem for me as a menopause symptom, plus my arthritis and psoriasis are treated with Skyrizi.

The worst part of all of this is that every time I get sick or anything, I end up having an emotional breakdown at some point because I feel like no one will help me or care for me.

If you read this far, thank you. It helps to get all of this out.

I’d really like to drive on Beartooth during our trip next week. We are staying in West Yellowstone and I’m not sure the best way to do this. Should we just drive to Tower Junction and start there?

Does this sound like something we’d need to devote an entire day to? Thanks!

We’re leaving Saturday morning for our first trip to Yellowstone (from the mid Atlantic). I’ve been watching the weather forecast for a few weeks now and thought I’d settled on mostly wearing pants/jeans with different shirt options for layering. Also bringing jacket and raincoat.

But now it seems the temperature forecast has gone up a bit - upper 70s. I know that temps there can swing wildly, but how does one pack without bringing too much? You’d think after our trip to Alaska I’d have figured this out. 😂

I’m trying HRT again, this time with a lower dose of E2, plus 100 prog. Yesterday was the last day of the patch I was wearing and the effects start to fade. I was almost to the point of feeling suicidal. The emotional rollercoaster is why I quit before.

This is why I’ve always been ambivalent about HRT. I felt awful every month before menopause, and mentally I’ve felt better since becoming menopausal (peri was really bad, but a med change helped). Maybe I had PMDD. I was never diagnosed, but the symptoms sound similar. I don’t want to get back on the hormone crazy train.

I would like to get the CVS benefits of estrogen, but it hardly seems worth it if I will feel this emotionally labile. My dr will Rx whatever I want to try so I’m thinking about maybe trying the gel instead.

I already take meds for anxiety and depression, iron supplements for IDA, Vit D, B12, CoQ10, fiber.

I’ve had anxiety and depression for varying degrees for a long long time. I take medication that mostly helps. I was depressed to the point of suicidal ideation in my late 40s (currently I’m 58) and changing antidepressants worked great.

I’m only just recently officially menopausal. I was feeling ok physically, felt much calmer emotionally, but was still interested in HRT for CVS benefits. My gyn is great and will rx anything I want to try. I previously tried .05 patch and 100 promethium. I felt like it increased my emotional lability in a bad way, so I stopped. Also blew my face up with acne. Recently I decided to try a lower dose patch and see how that went. It took 6 weeks for me to get it and it just started this week.

I feel like I’ve reached a tipping point recently. I’ve finally started having hot flashes. But I also feel very fatigued and not interested in anything. I have an autistic child who is almost an adult and I feel a like I urgently need to get him to be more self sufficient before I die. I can sense myself withdrawing from everything . Depression is ramping up and I’m having that precursor to suicidal ideation - seeing no path forward. I know there are lots of options with hormones, but I’m not sure how to get past this phase. If you read this far, thanks.

ETA: thank you for the responses. ❤️ I’m on the last day of my patch, so maybe that’s contributing to my down mood. Fortunately I found some klonopin in my purse and that helped me get through the workday.

I came across a mention of a new game -- it's a finished word search where you slide the words around to make new words that are then eliminated, until you eventually clear the board.

Anyone else heard of this? Thanks!

I’ve been on MJ for a long while - about 2.5 years. Most of that time I’ve had severe constipation, but it was manageable. Over the past few months, I’ve needed less and less of the MgO7 I was using to manage it, and now to the point where it’s almost diarrhea, which seems unmanageable. Nothing has changed in my diet.

I’ve increased fiber, gradually but taking a fair amount now. It helps some, but not consistently. I’ve also tried Imodium, which typically works well for me. Now it doesn’t seem to work at all.

I’ve seen the dr - of course I was feeling better at that point - and we talked about fiber, etc and I figured I was doing ok. But I’m not. This situation has continued. The MJ does seem to still help a little with slowing things down, but by the time my next shot is due, it’s getting bad again.

Anyone else experienced this? My anxiety is through the roof. Thanks.