For the Ladies - Treatment pre- menopause

[rjs]

O.K. guys... this may be TMI for you but I have to share with the ladies.

So I have mentioned having PMDD (pre menstrual dysphoric disorder)  Well it is like PMS in a rabid Lion.  O.k. so you get the point.  I had mentioned last week how horrible the muscle aches had gotten and the migraine would not go away.  My head was in a vice for like 5 days straight.  Once mother nature brought her blessing I felt about 50% better. So I started doing some research on HCV treatment of premenopausal women and there was not much out there cuz... duh it is often diagnosed later in life.  I did get to read some posts from other women who claimed to have significant PMS symptoms while on treatment.  So I met with my GYN today and discussed what was happening.  He is going to just shut down my cycles so I do not have any periods, so hopefully any PMS and in my case PMDD symptoms would be lessened.  I think this is a great idea and am waiting to see if this helps.

Anyways, if anyone else ever has these types of issues, I would recommend talking to your Dr., there may be a way to manage this beyond Tylenol.  It is not a side often talked about but it completely dehabilitated me this last cycle and I do not want anyone else to have to feel that way knowing there is help.

rjs

[alice]

Good point, rjs. Migraines on tx are very common. My hepatologist said about 30% of her patients experience migraines on tx; she blamed ribavirin. I agree and will add that Procrit made them worse for me. Unfortunately, hormone replacement therapy (HRT) was not an option because I have advanced cirrhosis- HRT can stop monthly cycles but it can also be very rough on the liver, so it has to be considered on a case by case basis. (Believe me, I would have taken HRT in a heartbeat if they would have let me and was actually planning on doing it when the time came.)

TMI alert: gory details follow....

While I was on tx, I started bleeding again in spite of a successful uterine ablation 10 years ago. I did not bleed after the ablation for 10 years but I started again a few months after I started tx. In addition to this insult, my cycles became completely unpredictable, more frequent than usual, I got super nasty tempered, and suffered completely debilitating migraines, usually around my cycle, which was happening a couple times a month. Inconvenience aside, the bleeding was a serious medical problem: I had dangerously low platelets so I wasn't clotting really well-- I was also severely anemic. So, my doc sent me to an OB/GYN to check for tumors. Turns out I did have benign tumors and they wanted to stop my cycles but, as I mentioned earlier, I can't do HRT because I have advanced cirrhosis.

So, I was stuck with the bleeding and the God-awful migraines, which were the absolutely worst side effect I had on tx, only thing that ever made me want to quit. I ended up seeing a neurologist and taking multiple meds daily to lessen the frequency/severity, meds to stop them when they started, and I still needed to go to my doc office repeatedly to get shots to control the migraines and nausea that accompanies them. I just finished 80 weeks of tx and, in spite of all that medication, I still had 3 migraines last month. Fortunately, however, they were manageable, not the knee-buckling nightmares I experienced earlier in tx.

Heads up to everyone: If you have migraines, I strongly encourage people to tell your doc before you start tx and stay on top of those bad boys. See a neurologist if your doc can't help you. My hep doc agreed with what my neurologist gave me: amitryptilene (Elavil) and gabapentin (Neurontin) to prevent them. I switched from Imitrex to Maxalt to stop them when they started. They increased my max dose of Maxalt. As a last resort, I took shots of toradol and phenergan when they got the better of me. And drink your water!! Dehydration is a common  migraine trigger.

alice (aka sharona)

[rjs]

Thank God, It isn't just me.      You just described what has been happening perfectly.  They are knee buckling. Have an appt with my Hep Dr. Tues, will push for help for the migraines.

rjs

[ipaqgps]

rjs,

Think this sounds like a good idea.  I am HRT's, stopped taking them (my idea) to relieve my liver of them.  Two weeks later hot flashes every 30 minutes and went back on them.  I was taking Indurol (sp) for migraines and it helped they also use it for varices.  They are not allowed on the trial drug so we shall see what happens with them.

I started this with it sounds like a good idea.....LOL and then you tell how I messed up on another one o my  good ideas....  

Dear Alice how you have done what you have done is a miracle!!!!

Hormonal Hepper Hugz 

ipaq