OP, have you talked to your doctor about Catapres? It's an old drug that was used to treat high blood pressure, but at very low doses it helps some women with hot flashes. I am taking Arimidex to prevent a recurrence of breast cancer. That drug causes horrendous hot flashes, so I started taking Catapres in March, and it has eliminated about 60% of the flashes. My insurance charges me $4 for a 3-month supply.

Anonymous wrote:I will be 50 in less than a month. I have 2 elementary school kids. My period totally stopped 2 years ago, never had one again. My problem is that for the past 2 years, I have had the worst hot flashes, several times per day and night, more than anyone I know. My older sister had nothing like this, my mom had a hysterectomy years ago. I take the one a day vitamin for menopause that helps a little (only because I once ran out and found out the hard way!). Is anyone else going through this -and if so, what are you doing. I feel very alone in my suffering! Also, my dr. is hesitant to prescribe hormones since they are cancer causing.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/9595745/HRT-is-safe-and-cuts-heart-deaths-significant-study-finds.html

Read the above. Apparently HRT is safe if taken in low doses and starting at menopause. It is only cancer causing if started >10 years after menopause. HRT also protects women from significant heart problems.

I had about 10 to 20 per day. Went on Evamist spray and am doing well. It should be for a short time, but I will stay on it until I can get over these flashes. They are so awful!!

I get at least 1/2 dozen a day, and have over the last year. I so hear. They are made worse by stress, and part of my job is getting up in front of large audiences and doing presenations. I don't have any sisters or female cousins and my mom died of cancer (2X breast cancer) so I'm not comfortable going near hormones.

I'm actually going to start a medically supervised de-tox/cleanse next week and one of the outcomes I hope to get is relief from hot flashes.....19:55 you give me hope!

OP, I hear ya' and I feel ya'!

My doctor offered to prescribe antidepressants, as those can help, but I declined. I only get the flashes now when I drink alchohol.

I had major major hot flashes and I went to my regular doc, and GYN, but got no help, and of course refused hormones. I went to an integrative med doc and a nutritionist, and did get help.

I took a blood test that showed I'm intolerant to a whole bunch of foods. The integrative med doc told me to "avoid" those foods, but the nutritionist told me to stop eating the entire list of about 25 foods for two months. At the end of two months, I felt great. Zero hot flashes, none, nada. I also felt like I was starving, so I went back to the nutritionist, who told me to rotate the foods I am intolerant to, eating them no more than once a week. I've been doing this for about six months. I still get hot flashes, but only about one a day now, fewer if I stop eating eggs and chicken, which seem to be the worst problem foods for me.

I know this sounds crazy, and I never would have believed it if I hadn't tried it, but I feel so, so much better. If I'd stayed off all those foods completely, maybe I'd have even fewer hot flashes. But I can manage one or at most two hot flashes a day. When it gets beyond that, I get very irritable and start feeling extremely tired and ill.

Good luck, OP. You have my empathy.

I will be 50 in less than a month. I have 2 elementary school kids. My period totally stopped 2 years ago, never had one again. My problem is that for the past 2 years, I have had the worst hot flashes, several times per day and night, more than anyone I know. My older sister had nothing like this, my mom had a hysterectomy years ago. I take the one a day vitamin for menopause that helps a little (only because I once ran out and found out the hard way!). Is anyone else going through this -and if so, what are you doing. I feel very alone in my suffering! Also, my dr. is hesitant to prescribe hormones since they are cancer causing.