[aquillen]

After browsing here at this great group here (and now that I don't *have* to post any old thing here I am adding something), I found a bunch of interesting articles about menopause and insomnia at the menopause journal. At least I can read the abstracts. Even though they are working in public health (and as is obvious from this site, lives are involved here), this journal is managed by an evil publisher (Kluwer) and so you can't reach the articles without subscription. Nevertheless the abstracts (the ones available online) are pretty encouraging. If anybody wants the articles I can probably get them at the university — I will see tomorrow if they have a subscription.

Insomnia may peak at late peri-menopause! That's like a light in the darkness for those of us who think our insomnia might be due to our raging hormones (or lack of them) as it suggests that life might get a little better in a few years (though I think everyone agrees that sleep is never as good as it was when younger). Somehow this is extremely encouraging to me — some kind of *hope* (though it would not be to those reading here who are men or are young or old enough that they are not associating their insomnia with menopause — sorry!)

The rate of women in perimenopause reporting insomnia might be as large as 50% (seems high to me based on my friends). Not sure if I find a 50% level reassuring or not. And not every article relates that to sleep indexes, and I haven't yet read up on those anyhow so don't yet know what they are about. Is the 50% just mostly women who are a couple of hours short of sleep every once in a while or seriously without sleep chronically.

I guess I am now more interested in managing bouts. I read about things like soy (and yes an article about that in the menopause journal too and other places, with mixed or weak findings). My experiences so far are that insomnia lasts longer than a migraine (36-48 hours) but about the same length of time as a period. All three for me are (or mostly were for migraines) probably hormonally triggered (I could be feeling shame about that, but why not be clinical and just suspect it?). I think I get insomnia when I come home with extra energy, and I feel hot– not hot flashing but feeling hot, not needing a sweater or socks or blankets hot. And it last for 3 or 4 days. It's like PMS with extra energy but no sleep. I wonder during that time if there is anything I can do to help me sleep. Or I can just think: it's like a migraine and maybe nothing is going to help, I just need to wait until it ends.

I have read quite a bit about various medications for sleep but am wondering is hormone replacement therapy a better bet? Medications for sleep all have problems. Hormone replacement therapy has a cancer risk.

Irritatingly I don't see any pointers on the *oodles* of menopause sites about insomnia, sure it's listed as a symptom but that's it. No lifesaving pointers. All these health experts seem oblivious to the fact that insomnia is a life threatening condition and that 50% of women going through menopause are reporting some kind of insomnia — I guess the health profession is just full of idiots. Hormone replacement therapy I have never seen anywhere said that it is prescribed because of insomnia (reasons given are bad hot flashes, and osteoperosis, and early menopause and menopause due to other things like surgery). I mean could I go to the doctor and report that my brothers all have osteoperosis (true, unfortunately) and go on hormone replacement therapy to try and see if it gets rid of my insomnia?

Well hormone replacement therapy seems kind of extreme. If I only have to deal with 3-4 day bouts of insomnia at a time because of some kind of remnant hormonal dip or peak, then medications that stop working might help. They only have to work for 3-4 days at a time right? When they wear off then you don't need them anymore. This might work if the 3-4 bouts were widely separated (that might happen if a true monthly cycle were causing them) but might not be so helpful if the 3-4 bouts are separated by very short periods, say 2 days. So far I haven't had that happen, bouts don't come on a cycle but seem separated by at least a week (at least so far).

Go to go, interested in comments if anybody has any…

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