Hi folks,

I'm happy to find this thread. I'm 45 years old and haven't had a period in nine months. I made the doctor do blood tests because I have a fear of cancer (too many people close to me have been diagnosed lately), even though the doctor assured me that at my age it was almost undoubtedly just menopause. My estrogen levels were 25, which the doctor said meant I might or might not get a period again (apparently 100 is "normal" and anything below 10 means menopause -- yes, my gynecologist, who is a fifty-something year old woman, actually used the word normal -- what are menopausal women, abnormal?) My FSH levels were also elevated -- another sign of menopause.

Aside from the fact that I can't remember anyone's name and I can't sleep more than five or six hours a night (I keep waking up at 4 or 5 a.m.), I don't have any menopausal symptoms -- no hot flashes, no mood swings, no nothing. I had terrible PMS my entire life and was miserable during both my pregnancies, so I expected that menopause would cause me major problems. Is it possible that I will get through menopause without hot flashes, mood swings, and all the other PMS-like symptoms? Did anyone else go nine months without having a period and then have annoying symptoms start later? Am I out of the woods or could I have trouble down the road?

Thanks for any information you can provide me.