I had the best of
intentions when I set up this website to post regularly on all the
menopause things, but like all the menopause things, it's unpredictable
and my life has been...challenging.
To start, there's so much to talk about and so much to update, but I'm going to go easy and only do one topic at a time. As a reminder, these are my experiences and I do not have any medical, clinical, or professional training in health care, medicine, or science. I'm researching as I go, talking to my doctor and other healthcare professionals. I feel I am fortunate, living in Australia, that I do have pretty good access to affordable healthcare services. Also, I don't Dr Google. I will google to research, but I will fact check by talking to trained medical professionals.
So...on to what I wanted to talk about today.
Pain!
Oh man, so much pain. All of it random. Why? It comes and goes, and none of it has an explanation.
I get random pain in my fingers and joints that makes me think I have arthritis. I don't. It's here for a few hours or a day, then gone for weeks. Same with pain in my hip, my abdomen, my head, shoulders, neck. All random. It comes and it goes and it's so confusing.
The first time it happened (this was months ago), I was due for a visit to the doctor the next day. I made a note to talk to my doctor about it when I went to see him. Guess what? When I want to see him, there was no pain. So I couldn't even explain it or point it out. And that's just the way it has been. There's no consistent pain that I can point to and say to my doctor, hey, this hurts, so he can send me for an ultrasound or do some tests to check it out. The only exception to that was when I felt like maybe I had a toothache, but it turned out to be a cut in my jaw from my mouthguard from clenching too much while sleeping. Another gift from menopause.
Yes, so pain. There's been a lot of pain. Everywhere. Randomly. At weird times. The best I can do is take some Advil to alleviate the pain when it comes on. Otherwise, there's no way to treat it. Because, how do I get it treated when it's not present when I'm seeing someone?
Honestly, aside from a bit of a whinge about the pain, I just wanted to say that the random pain is "normal" and it sucks. I hate having to live with this constant pain that I can't pinpoint and I can't get treated. I can't make it go away. It's an effect of menopause. It makes life very unpleasant and some days it's hard to function because of it. I'm grateful for a flexible work schedule and a very understanding and supportive hubby who has to deal with me in this state.
So, if you're experiencing random pain that seems to have no apparent identifiable cause, I empathise. It's not fun. And I feel you. I get it. The best I can say is, have some Advil handy, but talk to your doctor if you feel you need to take it regularly. I did talk to my doctor about it and he told me that the amount I take is fine. Plus I'm totally paranoid about getting addicted to painkillers, so I would hold off taking them for as long as I can until the pain is unbearable. That's me though. And yes, don't take my advice for fact. Talk. To. Your. Doctor.
Be well, and remember to be kind to yourself.
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