First, I have to say that I am diagnosed with recurrent depression. what I am having now though seems different than the "normal" bouts of depression I have. sometimes I feel fine and then other times I feel very emotional and on the verge of tears. I sweat buckets, not really so much at night, just sort of whenever, I'm tired alot, not much interest in sex, terrible memory problems, cant seem to focus/concentrate, my periods will be regular for a few months and then I may skip one. Can any of you ladies that are going through or have gone through menopause tell me about your symptoms to reassure me that I am not losing my mind.

I sympathize with you. my periods stopped years ago in my early 40s and over time I started having all the things you are talking about – hot and cold sweats, loss of memory, lack of concentration, just even feeling mean. I think that menopause is an extremely trying time for a lot of women. I always think,"getting hormones was fun, having them taken away is so NOT." after quite a few years and a lot of thought, I think the best thing to do about it is to just regard it as a part of life and deal with the symptoms as best you can. for the memory problems – make notes and to do lists, reminders. for the sweats – wear layers that you can peel, have a fan nearby. for the lack of interest in sex – think of how good it feels to pick a partner based on things other than raging hormones. I think that soy milk helps a little. People have recommended soy milk and soy powder to me and I just think the soy milk is better. I drink a couple of glasses a day. You are not losing your mind – you are just going through a transition. And you certainly are not alone.

When I turned 48 I left my husband – moved out and took my 7-year old son with me. I started having alot of intense emotions, crying, grief, anger – which I thought were related to my marriage break-up. I also started having migraines for the first time. I was tired also. it took me about a year to figure out that my symptoms were related to pre menopause. I didn't get hot flashes until I reached menopause (when your periods stop for good), but they can vary greatly in the way you experience them as well. for more info on symptoms, see natural-approaches-to-menopau…