Ugh, a bit frustrated this morning. Began another period. =((( It's the 2nd one in 4 weeks and the 1st one lasted 2 weeks. Since I got insurance now, I guess I will have to force myself to go to a doctor. My family has never been the kind who run to the doctor for everything. It's like getting a root canal. Prayers appreciated.

Hello Ladies!

Emerald: Could you possibly be in perimenopause? My cousin had the same symptoms you describe. I was completely without a cycle from August until March, then I had three normal cycles in a row, just as if I'd never skipped one. I've had none since. I just recently had a CT of my abdomen and pelvis which revealed a 3cm cyst on my left ovary, which is odd, because most cysts are related to the release of an egg which is, in turn, related to your menstrual cycle. My annual exam is due in November, so I'm going to ask my GYN about blood work to see where I'm at in this strange journey that terminates in "menopause". Let me know what your doctor says. I will pray for you.

PQ: It sounds like you are still having regular, predictable visits from your Aunt Flo! Good for you to lose weight while your hormones are still on your side! Collagen production really slides afterward. I'm afraid if I lose 50 pounds like you did, I will look like I'm 90, because my face will look like the shrunken apple heads that used to be so popular! I want to lose the weight, but sheesh......

Have a great day everyone. I'm off. I think I will crawl around and look for more beans!

It's very possible. Thank you for sharing this info. Since we moved to a new state almost 5 years ago, I have not been to a Gyn. Have asked friends for referrals and nobody has offered any. I am going to have to seriously find one.

Lurch I am still very regular. Back in the winter I was two weeks late once and though t it was the big M, but it was prob due to weight loss and extreme stress (sudden life/death illness w/bro and flying back and forth to FL). I hope I can get the rest of the weight off before it does arrive. I hope the cyst doesn't become a problem for you.

Lurch, I made my appt. with my former Gyn in Michigan. I will be seeing him in November as well. A friend told me she had a cyst and had it removed and it wasn't anything to be scared about. Since my periods had stopped for over a year, this has concerned me a bit, but as long as I am not bleeding heavily (needing to change a pad every hour) then I am going to wait. Gyn is such a private matter, I don't just want to go to 1 that isn't highly recommended and since no one here in Maryland has referred 1, I am VERY leery about going to just anyone. I will wait and see my original doc in November.

Emerald-

I wish you'd consider seeing someone more quickly. After you've been without a period for a year, you are considered to be "menopausal". Bleeding after that is considered "postmenopausal bleeding", which can be benign or serious. Of course, there is no way to tell if you are truly in menopause without blood work, but if you haven't had a GYN workup in five years, I'd err on the side of caution. Everything is probably fine, but just in case there is something going on with your uterus or your other reproductive organs, it's better not to wait. I once waited three years between PAPs because I'd never in my life had an abnormal one, and then, BAM, in my late 40's that one was an abnormal PAP and I had to have some unpleasant procedures. It's not something I'm fond of recalling, but if sharing it helps anyone else who might read this to keep up on those doggone PAPs, then it's worth it.

I did pray for you.

April

Hi everyone - welcome Brie and Love2kwilt!

Emerald - I did a quick search and found these reviews on Yelp for some Gyn doctor's. Maybe you can read the reviews and find someone who sounds like you would want to see. https://www.yelp.com/search?cflt=obg...nnapolis%2C+MD.

April - I have found after losing 80 pounds at age 58, my face doesn't look like a shrunken head, but I do have turkey neck, which is pretty normal for ladies my age. Don't let that keep you from losing. I feel 1000% better now and my joints and heart are thanking me!

Thank you, April and Kat, I just may have this checked out sooner. I have no other symptoms of anything going on, but I just may go. As you all know, having a PAP is so private and I hate going to just anyone. The lady who waxes my eyebrows told me that yelp only publishes the negative reviews unless you pay them. Her business called yelp and said why are you posting all these negative reviews about our company when our customers are telling us they are giving us rave reviews, yelp said, you have to pay us to publish those. =(

Emerald - here is another site to check for reviews https://www.ratemds.com/best-doctors...ologist-obgyn/

Thank you

You are very welcome, Emerald! I hope you find someone close by you like.

Hello Ladies!

Kat: Thank you! That is reassuring! I was a scrawny kid and only weighed 118 pounds at 5'8" no matter how many French fries or blizzards I ate while working at Dairy Queen! I have a small frame and was wondering if I will end up with a lot of loose skin hanging everywhere if I do manage to lose the weight! LOL! Oh well, name your poison, right?

Emerald: I hope you were able to find a doctor you think you will be comfortable with!

I found one that sounds great, near me, on the site Kat provided. He specializes in menopause stuff.

Morning all!

I thought I'd chime in about the loose skin. My friend lost a LOT of weight in a short amount of time (100 lbs in 6 months, even though she never told me her starting weight....just her ending weight). She's kept if off for two years now but has loose skin everywhere but her face. She still looks awesome though. She says the worst is her belly, but that's always covered and her cleavage area is quite wrinkled and loose(but I think that's more to do with sun damage). I have lost a little over 40 lbs in a year and have no loose skin (yet). I still have 10-20 lbs to go. I have the belly fat, upper arms and legs to get rid of. Where you gain first is where you lose last. I never went low fat and started taking hair/skin nail supplements and they do work for me. My face skin feels fantastic and "moist" (for lack of a better term), not oily and no monthly breakouts.

Good Morning Chicks!

Emerald: I'm so glad you found a Dr. and I hope and pray everything checks out just fine and it's "merely" that beast we call "perimenopause".

PQ: I'm more concerned about the loose skin because I waited until my hormones are in "retreat" to finally get serious. I read somewhere that after menopause, the elasticity of your skin diminishes greatly causing an increased likelihood of those issues. I guess at this point in my life it's about health, not beauty! I'm not planning on trying to "rock a bikini" any time soon!

Kat: Thanks for the reassurance regarding the shrunken apple head syndrome!