Perimenopause and Tamoxifen--Can't lose more estrogen!

The thing is, you'll never know how your body reacts to Tamoxifen until you take it. It doesn't actually stop your body from producing estrogen, by the way, it just behaves like estrogen to your cancer cells, binding with the estrogen receptors. In fact, there is some speculation that the reason premenopausal women tend to get ovarian cysts while taking Tamoxifen is due to the body thinking it needs MORE estrogen and the ovaries get a bit carried away. Try not to worry too much, I had severe side effects from it but they didn't start for a few weeks and they also went away a few weeks after stopping. Whatever happens it's worth a try - as long as your doctor has cleared you for taking it.

Breastquest...this may sound superficial, but here are some suggestions to try...look up Lisa Eldridge on Youtube. She has a brief segment on facial masques that is great. Experiment with a few to try to get that natural glow back to your skin. I've had good luck with the Dermalogica Age Smart masque for instance, and some of the others she recommends. Try taking biotin supplements for your hair and nails. You may need to experiment with a few strategies to see what works. I too had the palpitation thing but it only happened occasionally and was totally gone after a few months. The thinning hair seems to have slowed down almost completely now too. So.....hang in there, it seems like none of these annoyances are permanent.

A simplified explanation: Tamoxifen stops particular cells from letting estrogen in--think of it as a doorkeeper. Estrogen can get into some cells, but not the kind with the doorkeeper. The aromatase inhibitors decrease the production of estrogen, but there's no cell doorkeeper, so any estrogen that's around can get in. That's why people with functioning ovaries get shots--to keep them from producing a lot more estrogen.