CASE STUDY: Barbara Martin, Hot Flushes 24/7 hit me like a steam train
CASE STUDY: BARBARA MARTIN
Age: 64
Occupation: Aesthetic practitioner and physic astrologer
‘HOT FLUSHES 24/7 HIT ME LIKE A STEAM TRAIN’
As a fit and healthy woman, Barbara Martin thought she would be able to manage her menopausal symptoms with lifestyle and homeopathic remedies.
But when the 64-year-old started the menopause in her early 50s, she was unable to control her symptoms naturally and spent years trying to find a doctor who would be able to help her through her menopausal journey.
Explained Barbara: “My perimenopause began when I was about 48 or49. I started getting acne rosacea and being in the skincare business, I just couldn’t understand what it was. I also started getting breakthrough bleeding every month that would last for two to three weeks at a time.
“I started talking to my sisters who went through a similar thing and realised it must be the start of the menopause. I’m a very fit and healthy person – I go to the gym, eat organic food – so I thought and I’d manage the menopause with homeopathy, herbal remedies or acupuncture. But when I headed into my 50s it hit me like a steam train – the hot flushes were 24/7.”
VISITING HER GP AND HORMONE REPLACEMENT THERAPY (HRT)
Barbara, who is married with a son, went to see her GP about the breakthrough bleeding and she was referred to a gynaecologist who gave her an endometrial ablation, which left her in terrible pain and later requiring a hysterectomy. She believes if she had been properly assessed and given advice about hormone replacement therapy (HRT) as a treatment option, she would not have needed the ablation.
“The ablation was the worst thing I ever did – it left me with scar tissue which was incredibly painful. It was pain like I’d never had before and I was living on pain killers. I was still having hot flushes and my sleep was affected. At no time speaking to my GP did they ever say ‘would you like to try any type of hormone replacement therapy’ – if I had been given information about HRT, I probably wouldn’t have needed an ablation.”
HOT FLUSHES AND NIGHT SWEATS BECAME UNMANAGEABLE
Despite trying herbal remedies and seeing an acupuncturist, nothing helped Barbara manage her symptoms and the hot flushes and night sweats were becoming unmanageable. She eventually sought help from a private gynaecologist who told her she had started the menopause and would at some point need a hysterectomy, and prescribed her HRT to manage her symptoms.
“I was desperate at the times and couldn’t function. I used to wake up in the night and my husband would be drying my back. Within 10 days of taking estrogen, my symptoms were under control but then the estrogen made my bleeding worse. I had the Mirena coil fitted but the pain was terrible so in 2013 I had a hysterectomy which was the best thing I did.
FINDING THE ONLINE MENOPAUSE CENTRE (OMC) AND DR KAIKAVOOSI
“I was still seeing my private gynaecologist but it was just becoming too expensive as it was about £900 for the appointment, prescriptions and scans. I found another private doctor who I stayed with for a couple of years but then he retired. He suggested that I speak to Dr Laila Kaikavoosi from the Online Menopause Centre – since then I’ve never looked back”
The Online Menopause Centre (OMC) provides virtual video consultations and individually tailored treatment plans to women going through the menopause and perimenopause – the period leading up to menopause. It was founded by Dr Kaikavoosi – a women’s health and menopause expert who has several years’ experience treating and helping women suffering from the menopause and menopause related conditions.
Said Barbara: “Dr Laila was absolutely lovely and really got to know me as a patient. She’s really easy to talk to and listens to everything so she can suggest the best treatment plan. She prescribed me HRT – DHEA, estrogen in pump form and progesterone – and I’ve been on this for a couple of years and it’s really helped manage my symptoms.
“What I was really pleased about is the cost – compared to other London clinics it’s not at all expensive and because it’s online, it’s very convenient. They are also all women at the Online Menopause Centre which definitively helps and they are very straightforward and clear with the information they give you. I couldn’t recommend them highly enough.”
Around 13 million women in the UK are currently peri or menopausal – equivalent to a third of the entire female population – and its impact can be severely debilitating. Symptoms range from hot flushes/night sweats, headaches, sleep problems and joint pains to anxiety, poor memory, low self-confidence and loss of libido.
Find out how Online Menopause Centre (OMC) can help you with your symptoms by booking an Initial consultation with one of our expert doctors.