Not yet menopausal at 58 and 5 months

Hello @stephmgfinca and welcome to Connect.

I appreciate you sharing your concern about menopause. Since you have shared that you have been diagnosed with Hashimoto's thyroiditis, I'm assuming that you probably have an endocrinologist that you consult with? Has he or she commented on this or ran any tests? Has any doctor done a blood test to check on your hormone levels?

I found an article On the health line website about the causes of late menopause. Here is the link,https://www.healthline.com/health/menopause/late-onset. As I glanced at the article I did read that thyroid problems can cause either early or late menopause.

Are your thyroid levels well controlled now?

Hi Teresa,

Thanks so much for the welcome!

Yes, I do have an endocrinologist and he's well aware that at 58 I am still having periods. The Hashimoto's is well controlled.
My doctor is very good and I trust him on ENDOCRINOLOGICAL issues. Aside from being Columbia and Stanford educated, he really thinks about what a patient says, really listens.
I have explicitly asked him about this and he has never said anything about the Hashimoto's playing a role in and doesn't seem concerned. He seems to think it's genetics.
However, I have never said "Could this be the Hashimoto's?"
I have said "still getting my period at 58". Next visit if this is still an issue, I'm going to ask him specifically if it could be the Hashimoto's.
Of course, he's not a OB/GYN, but I've mentioned it to 3 (we moved, 1 OB/GYN moved and my current OB/GYN) and none of them seem concerned either.
But, *I* am a bit concerned.
I wouldn't be able to take oral contraceptives so hopefully last month was the LAST month! It *was* 7 months since the period before that (at 57, my periods became irregular and I thought I was done with all of that last July).
Thanks again for reading my post, for the welcome and for taking the time to look this up! I will look at the link that you sent me.
XO
Stephanie
Stephanie

Hi (again) Teresa,

Sorry, I should have read the link BEFORE my first reply!

I have never had hot flashes or mood swings or anything but the irregular periods that started at 57 and really terrible insomnia.

Reading through all the possible causes of this late onset, the only thing left is abnormally high estrogen levels. Since I have a family history of breast cancer, and didn't have kids, this needs to be taken seriously.

I wonder why my doctors were so dismissive of my concerns (?)

Anyway, again, thanks very much, as now I am going to get a little pushy in terms of having them run labs for me.

XO

Stephanie

@stephmgfinca

I'm glad to hear that you have such a good endocrinologist, I have one as well and I think they are the best specialists available. It's good to know that the Hashimoto's is well controlled.

I'm glad that you are thinking of pushing for some more testing. That is probably a good idea. It is important that each patient educate themselves on health issues and also advocate for themselves. There are times when doctors are dismissive and it is important to push for what we need.

I hope you post after your next appointment. I would like to hear if you have any answers.

My last period was at 59. Periods started at age 14, and I was never pregnant.

Hello @desertrider and welcome!

I appreciate you posting in the discussion on late menopause. If you care to share more, were there any hormonal reasons for the late start to menopause?

Also, did you have many menopausal symptoms, such as hot flashes, trouble sleeping, etc.?

There were no diagnosed medical/endocrinological reasons for my being late to menopause.

I have taken birth control pills since age 17, and in my early 50s contraception strategy was switched to estrogen patches and progesterone pills. Since two years ago, the progesterone comes from an IUD, and I have continued using estrogen patches.

Considering that my mother had severe hot flashes (despite hormone replacement therapy) after undergoing hysterectomy at age 48, I was and have remained very determined not go through that experience, ever. Just a few times hot flashes occurred when I had forgotten to change to a new patch on time; so I keep a calendar to stay on schedule; that also applies to the vaginal estrogen cream I started on 2 years ago.

My husband calls me a "professional sleeper"; I have always been a night-owl and like to sleep-in in the morning (my chosen career allows me that flexibility).

My hair doesn't grow as long anymore, so that is my chief complaint about after-menopause (I am now 64).

@desertrider,

I appreciate the additional information. It sounds as if you have handled menopause like a pro. Congratulations. Not everyone has such a positive experience. I suppose the lack of hair growth is something that we all complain about as we age.

Do you plan on continuing with the estrogen replacement therapy?

Yes

@stephmgfinca I started my period at about age 13 or 14. It's so long ago I can't remember. I am now 70 years old. My periods began getting lighter and shorter in duration in my 40's. I had hot flashes, difficulty sleeping, and some mood swings in my early-50's but my periods did not completely stop until I was 58 years old. Compared to my friends I thought this was rather late but my gynecologist did not seem all that concerned that the time.

I think bringing this up again to your endocrinologist is a good idea. They should be able to help with a referral to a physician who specializes in menopause.

Would you please come back and tell me what you find out?