Hi Lilli22 I UNDERSTAND. If you have not had your heart tested with an echocardiogram, I would consider that on my high priority list. This way you will rule out any heart disease. (Remember: Heart disease is the number one killer of women. Now that I have scared the daylights out of you, take a deep breath and keep reading. I KNOW what it feels like to suddenly out of the blue start having irregular heartbeats. April 11 2007 my world, as I knew it, came crashing down, when early one morning I stood up from my desk, climbed the stairs and when I reached the top I could not breath, my heart was pounding in my ears,my thigh muscles were quivering and I was near fainting. I am a retired nurse. I calmly found my blood pressure cuff and noted that both B/P and Heart Rate was rapidly accelerating. I called the rescue squad. Long story short, I was sent to a cardiologist where they proceeded to do a 24 hour holter monitor test. Diagnosis: non-specific tachycardia (rapid heart rate) that is "not to be concerned with." August 2007, I found myself back in the ER with the exact same symptons. This time my cardiologist ran the Echo. My heart is in fine working condition. While laying there having the test, I had a nice conversation with the technician who is about 47 and a very healthy runner. She told me she too has non-specific tachycardia and her heart will race up to 177 beats when she is sitting still and then will immediately drop back down to her normal resting heart rate. She works in the cardiology department and there is no reason for her racing heart, other than the theory that has yet to be "proven" by what appears to be an ignorant medical research society. That theory? Estrogen flucuation. If you go to reputable websites you can read this theory.. irregular heartbeats are connected to estrogen flucuation..there is just no proof. As far as your herbal usage I think it is wonderful that you are open to other means of treatment, however I have found that sometimes the very herbs we take can have a negative effect. By taking so many one would never know which one could have that effect. I do know from speaking with other ladies that Don Quai has negative side effects for some. I also know from personal experience that taking yam extract natural progesterone can have a negative side effect too. What I am saying is: I believe if I wasn't sure an herb was working I would want to know which ones were and how would you go about finding that out? By eliminating one at a time..just a suggestion. But first I would have that echo..just another suggestion and then if your tests are fine..perhaps you might need your thyroid medication adjusted. My mother had thyroid disease and she had to have her medication adjusted many times over her lifetime. That little "butterfly" at your throat can make ones heart flip flop unmercifully.It is such a powerful mechanism that is so readily overlooked by the medical profession. Now for what I do..sometimes I am like my name "serenely frantic" meaning I may look calm on the outside but on the inside I am going batty with the racing heart...but now that I know it is "the change" and I know that I am not going to die...I exercise..eat right...dropped my coffee to a small cup in the a.m., stay away from simple carbs, colas, negative people, anything containing stimulants, (over the counter cough, cold, or even prescription drugs) I also take time for me. It is a MUST as it appears that irregular heart beats are the norm for a lot of peri and post menopausal women. Now it appears that you are an educated researcher and advocate for yourself, so please make sure you have a doctor who takes you seriously. If they do not then it is time to move on. Hope this has been of some help and that I was not too blunt.

I do have some of those symptoms, but they are not in any way associated with post menopause. I think my dizzy spells were caused by stress of caring for my husband who had AZ. I had heart palpitations but it was just a fluke and before menopause. As for painful legs....do you take a lot of calcium? I hurt like ***l when I first get up, it's arthritis and it helps to walk more during the day. My husband had that problem following surgery and it was just sitting to much. My grandparents said, "I'm stove up this morning". LOL And, I feel it is just part of the aging problems, the people in the neighborhood that I talk to are going through the same thing. If you were 20 and having problems like this you wouldn't think anything of it.

My gosh. I thought I was the only one in the world, and here you all are! I'm 55. I had an hysterectomy when I was 41 and my ovaries removed at 43. I have been on estrogen only HRT since I was 44 with no issues. I had a normal mammogram six months ago. I started taking methotrexate for arthritis six months ago and my extremely sore and swollen breasts seemed to start when I moved to the higher doses of that drug. I even had some evidence of lactation from my right breast. My GP ordered hormone tests and they all came back in the normal range except SHBG which is a protein that binds to sex hormones to carry them around in the blood stream. I also had a mammogram which showed enlarged ducts with some debris. (My boobs are trashed after breast-feeding five kids but nothing they did is anything on this pain and tenderness.) I missed a couple of doses of methotrexate (taken weekly) and my breast pain seemed to start to diminish. I also stopped my HRT because I was so desperate for some relief. After a month, the pain has substantially subsided but I still have a residual tingly burn and they haven decreased much in size. I am yet to have repeat hormone tests or a repeat mammogram. I will try the flaxseed recommended above and post anything else that changes.

So I stayed on the pill until from 16 to about 55. I went off and immediately kicked into full-blown Menopause. I said, "Screw this!" and went onto HRT. Whew. This summer, my prescription expired and being on vacation, I again said, "Screw it." At 61, I was pretty confident I'd be through it. Well, I am to a degree. I still get this flashes, that although are intense, are also short-lived. How long should I probably plan to have this continue? I had really hoped I'd gone through Menopause while on the pill and my body just wouldn't notice, but no such luck. Thanks for your info.