Jeanne, Withania (W. somnifera)is a herb specific for fatigue states due to bleeding...it is high in iron, and has a tonic effect generally. Try 3-6g of dried root divided into several daily teas. May be useful until you are feeling stronger. The fruit of the Chaste Tree (Vitex) is used. This is a very effective menopausal herb if taken for a prolonged (more than a month)_period. DO NOT take this herb with any HRT therapies your doctor may prescribe such as progestrin.Also DO NOT take Dong Quai if you are bleeding heavily, as this is sometimes found in health food store menopausal "blends", as is contraindicated for such. For hot flushes Sage is very good, especially if night sweats acompany them, if you are unable to attend an herbalist, just a handful of fresh leaves in a teacup, add hotwater and steep 10 mins, then drink as required. 3-4 cups/day should help. Depending on your case presentation, other herbs to be entertained may include; St John's Wort, Helonias Root, Wild yam, Black Cohosh, Ladies mantle, Shatavari, Oats, Motherwort, Licorice, Rehmannia. Of theses herbs, only 4-6 would be given at any one time depending on your case evaluation, history and hormone test results. John.

I work for a company that makes a natural herbal based menopause relief formula. It's got ashwagandha (sensoril), HMRlignan, vitamins, and minerals. I'm around a 30 year old male so I haven't tried it, but what I'm reading makes it seem pretty good because it's non-hormone based and ashwagandha seems like a pretty good adaptogen to use overall. My personal feeling, again as a man, is that menopause should not be painful and difficult and my mother said that she didn't have a bad time other than night sweats but she doesn't really associate that with menopause. She was a very healthy eater though and always had a rich garden of greens she'd eat from and was active and not overweight. As a nutritionist, I believe that most problems people are facing are from general lifestyle mis-steps such as not eating enough fruits and vegetables, not sleeping enough, not exercising enough, and being stressed. I would look at those areas before self-diagnosing myself as suffering from any malady because those are much more impactful than anything else. I hope that helps, David

I do have some of those symptoms, but they are not in any way associated with post menopause. I think my dizzy spells were caused by stress of caring for my husband who had AZ. I had heart palpitations but it was just a fluke and before menopause. As for painful legs....do you take a lot of calcium? I hurt like ***l when I first get up, it's arthritis and it helps to walk more during the day. My husband had that problem following surgery and it was just sitting to much. My grandparents said, "I'm stove up this morning". LOL And, I feel it is just part of the aging problems, the people in the neighborhood that I talk to are going through the same thing. If you were 20 and having problems like this you wouldn't think anything of it.

Yes, I've had periods of very sensitive, swollen, uncomfortable breasts. When I had periods it would go away in a day or two, during perimenopause, lasted much longer and more severe. Got really bad when I was adjusting progesterone up and down. Now that I've gotten my progesterone dosage smoothed out, they are always a bit swollen but not terribly uncomfortable. It seems odd, I always thought that they would shrink to nothing when I went through menopause!