So what does a hot flash feel like?

[Cathyclysmic]

I think I just had one.

[MuseRider]

1. LOL

I get very hot, sweaty, shaky and have a hypoglycemic feeling. I MUST eat something. I have been known to tear into a box of crackers in the middle of a grocery store. Only once did someone say anything to me about it and she was sorry she did after she took one look at me. I was lucky, they were bad but did not continue to be frequent. I only rarely have them now but I am not done yet I fear, sigh.

What happened?

[mtnester]

2. Sometimes they can alao be accompanied by what I can only

call heart palpitations...my mother had that and so do I. Scary stuff cause you wonder if you are having a heart attack.

Massive caffeine (triple expresso-ish) brings then on in me in a quick minute! Different from the caffeine rush...and for me anyway only involve my upper torso and face...from just below the sternum upward.

[lukasahero]

3. Mine weren't/aren't near as bad

as what the folks upthread are describing. Thought I'd chime in because it might be good for you to have a range of experiences to compare yours with.

Mine tend to feel like I'm sunburned or flushed in the face, chest and hands. I'm small and notoriously cold (I wear sweaters in the summer kind of cold) so maybe that's why I feel them differently than others. I can say it's darn uncomfortable - felt like I had a fever randomly all the time - but it wasn't near as bad as the two responders above me.

BTW - hi Muse - I owe you a PM. ;)

[MuseRider]

4. Hi back!

Mine have mostly gone, wish the rest of it would follow, I'm too old for this crap and I would like someday to be able to wear white pants again without fear! At this point I am afraid I might die first. :eyes: Things tend to run long in my family.

I hope things are going well for you. :hi:

[shanti]

5. depends on the woman

i am in menopause now (no period since march), and didn't have hot flashes during perimenopause. i'm getting them now tho, but they're not too bad. annoying, but liveable (for me). i was the person who was ALWAYS cold in the office. i can't remember when i have put on a jacket now. it's kind of like when you're pregnant and always feeling warm. i liken it to getting a flushed face from embarassment and i flush easily anyway.

sometimes i wake up during the night wanting to just rip my covers off, but i have a ceiling fan and that seems to help. i've never had that "drenched in sweat" feeling that some women get (thank god). sometimes i can will a hot flash on just by thinking about it (wierd but true).

[LiberalinNC]

6. I think everyone experiences them differently.

I just get a hot feeling on my skin, whereas my insides feel cool, I get a little sweaty and then freeze!!! ugh!!!

[LaurenG]

7. For me they start out slowly

and if I'm not paying attention I'll suddenly be perspiring. They gradually heat me up. Sometimes I'll throw all the covers off in the middle of the night only to pull them back up a while later.

My face will turn pink every time and most of the time I think I'm thirsty so I keep water with me almost all the time.

Also, I've noticed a pattern in myself. Refined sugars/carbs and white flour products will at least double the number I get in a day. A small bit of sugar won't but several cookies or some chips will heat me up all day long.

To me they feel like a slow warming that turns into a roasting that suddenly goes away.

[FloridaPat]

8. I enjoyed them. I work in air conditioned buildings and freeze all the

time. It was great having the hot flashes. I would get warm enough to not freeze at work. I miss them now

[shanti]

9. self-delete

[SemperEadem]

10. it feels like someone turned up the heat to 1000 degrees

and no one else knows what you're talking about--it feels fine to them.

I call them 'my own personal summer'.