Hi Harriet--ah, I'm glad you remember. I would definitely suggest getting seen soon, although it's not an emergency situation (or even urgent care). But I would make clear at the earliest possible opportunity that you want meds to get your bp down to 120/80. Every day that it's high does permanent damage to your organs :(. If you exercise and get it lower, and you find you can go off the meds, that's great. But IMO (and of course this isn't official medical advice, just my experience and what I've read, so do more research--I'm just a lonely data point : )), getting it down as early as possible is what's important. The meds may very well knock you for a loop until you adjust to them, too. The docs said no driving for a month but I was back behind the wheel of a car, no problems, in a week and a few days. terri, that was another odd thing - my cholesterol is beautiful. I'm not the highest in HDL, but my LDL was *quite low* (blanking on the #s) at the time of the heart attack. As much as I believe in taking bp meds (within reason), I was *staunchly* against statins, and got out of it only by digging my heels into the ground and saying I'd take red yeast rice. I took that for a while and then stopped. My LDL isn't bad enough for me to worry about. There's also debate over what numbers are o.k. and what are worrisome wrt cholesterol anyway. But this little lonely data point would encourage you to take action on the bp as soon as you can (non-rush).

Many of your symptoms are all too familiar to me, especially the loss of sexual interest. This was troubling to me not only for my husband's sake, but for mine also, since I truly enjoyed our sex life before this all started happening. The advice posted above is good. The main thing is to get started and not give up. I eventually whipped this problem and I have my life (and especially my sex life!) back. I had to realize that the "ME" I knew loved sex with my husband, so I knew this wasn't "ME". I knew that my sex drive at my age should actually be increasing, not decreasing, which made it even more disturbing. I tried so many things, I don't honestly know what (or what combination) worked, but my husband is back to being satisfied and I think a little tired! and my kids like me a little more. For the first time in years, it was me who was wishing I could sneak home from work for a "quickie." I encourage you to not suffer any more and find some answers, as much for you as for him. Sometimes it's full-time work buy you have no choice but to do it. It's great to act like a 20 year-old (at least in the bedroom) again! Once I got the PMS under control and delt with the depression medically and through counseling (I think I had at least some of this problem before peri-menopause), I was happier and the desire for sex returned. Once it returned, it started a cycle of making everything better. It was a strong signal that I was getting better. It's not just men who are happier with a good sex life!!! Sorry for telling you more than you probably wanted to know about me! Hope this helps and hope you feel better soon. Amy

I had a sleep study last May, which showed I had various sleep problems (apnea, alpha wave intrusion, no REM sleep). It makes me wonder if lots of women going through menopause begin to have these kinds of problems. I guess I'm finally going to think about trying a cpap machine, but I think it will be a challenge. In retrospect, I really think its been my sleep problems that have made the past 10 years pretty much a constant struggle. I think sleep deprivation can cause all sorts of craziness. Even if you think you've had a good night's sleep, it doesn't mean you have.

Oilpainter,I sincerely appreciate your response. I did a little bit of research this evening, and I found a list of symptoms that could be caused by menopause. Hopefully, this will help others, too. Some of them are not the "normal" symptoms that our doctors or others tell us about and can be obscure,so it makes me feel a little bit better. Some Typical Perimenopausal Symptoms *Changes in bleeding (heavy bleeding, irregular cycles, missed cycles, light bleeding, clotting) *Anxiety, fear, depression, irritability, rebellion, crying jags, panic attacks *Fatigue, loss of energy *Low self-esteem *Suicidal thinking * Inability to tolerate tension *Inappropriate emotional responses *Low noise tolerance *Sleep disturbances, insomnia, sleepiness *Inability to concentrate, short-term memory loss *Drying and thinning of the gastrointestinal tract (causing constipation, ulceration, stomach pain, colitis, diarrhea, gas) *Bladder infections, frequency and urgency of urination, burning, incontinence *Vaginal dryness *Low sex drive, painful intercourse, reduction of fantasy, lack of lubrication during sex, diminished orgasms, lessened skin and nipple response *Hot flashes, night sweats, chills *Dizziness *Low blood sugar, trembling *Numbness, tingling, crawling feelings on skin *Dry, wrinkling skin; loss of collagen, sagging breasts *Dry, thinning hair; growth of facial hair, male pattern of hair on body *Brittle, slow-growing, and grooved nails *Osteoarthritis, bone thinning and loss, loss of height, shifting joint pains, joint degeneration, backache, mid-bone pains, muscle cramps and spasm, muscle weakness, and loss of strength *Rapid heart rate, palpitations, heart pain, increased cholesterol levels, high blood pressure, shortness of breath *Headaches, migraines, nausea *Dark gloomy circles under eyes *Weight loss or gain