In August last year I had my first injection of goserelin under the brand name of Zoladex. Zoladex (or Lupron is a similar injection that does the same thing!) is a type of hormone therapy drug that’s most commonly used for treating certain types of cancers. It’s also pretty nifty at putting the womb and ovaries into a menopausal state, which in my case significantly improves my symptoms of endometriosis.
I never expected myself to be menopausal at 25 when I was younger, however, 13 months on that’s what I still am. Over that time I’ve had to pick up a few tips and tricks for coping with some of the unfortunately unpleasant side effects that come with it and I thought I’d share those with you today.
1. Wear loose clothing and layer up on thin items of clothing that you can easily take off to regulate your body temperature. You’re going to get hot. Embrace the kimono. My friends will vouch for me that I have an impressive array of kimonos and lose fitting clothes. They’re perfect for adding layers and covering up if you don’t like showing too much skin but they’re also airy and allow the skin to breathe. If I wear jumpers or even slightly thicker knit cardigans, I am mopping at my face and wafting myself with whatever I can find to create some breeze. It’s not a good look in the depths of winter I can assure you and people look at your like you’re mad.
2. Drink plenty of water. You’re going to sweat a lot if you have hot flushes and I find myself with horrendous headaches if I’m having a day where I’m flushing and therefore sweating a lot.
3. Invest in a portable handheld fan! I cannot tell you how much this helps with flushes. My friend recently bought me one for my birthday and let me tell you, it helps massively because you’re not actually having to use any energy (therefore creating more heat!) to fan yourself.
4. If it interests you, talk to your doctor about a hormone replacement therapy. Before I started taking HRT I was having 20 or more flushes a day. I have about five a day now which is a massive improvement. I still get one at 11 a.m. everyday and I have no idea why.
5. Stock up on healthy snacks. If you’re anything like me you’re going to have food cravings and you don’t want to be snacking on a ton of unhealthy food while in a menopausal state, because your body holds onto weight much easier and you may find yourself gaining weight like nobody’s business. I’ve put a stone on in a year and it’s impossible to shift it while I’m still in the treatment.
I hope this helps someone who’s just starting their journey into being in an induced menopause (or even a natural menopause!) because for the first few days of my treatment, I wondered what on earth was happening to me and those days were pretty miserable. Some lucky people don’t seem to get any symptoms at all but of course that’s not me because I like to be awkward.
Editor’s note: Any medical information included is based on a personal experience. For questions or concerns regarding health, please consult a doctor or medical professional.
This blog was originally published on Those Amber Lights.
I’m a 25-year-old preschool-teaching, endometriosis-fighting, nature documentary enthusiast with a passion for sweet tea, boy bands and a good old early night.
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