I started taking Tamoxifen 19 months ago. I have had awful hot flushes since starting them, I am drenched, sweat runs down my face neck back, heart palpitations and I feel nauseous. This was happening hourly if not more. I have been taking Venlafaxine and the flushes have been more manageable and less severe.
I stopped taking my tamoxifen 5 weeks ago as I had DIEP surgery last week and my flushes are worse then ever! The Venlafaxine doesn’t seem to be working anymore and I have tried increasing the dose too. I am dreading going back on the tamoxifen in a couple of weeks if I am this bad off them. I cannot make sense of this at all.?? Any advice appreciated.
By the way, I love love love my new boob! I’m recovering well after DIEP and I am hoping to be back at work in 5 weeks.
Hi Vicbee, on the nausea front Imstruggled with this until a lady on here said to take tamoxifen with food or just after. I did this and amazingly it stopped immediately. Michelle
Hi Vicbee, so sorry you are having this extreme SE. It’s really unfair that some people get it so bad isn’t it.
I did read something that one of the most effective treatments for menopausal hot flushes is exercise, so I have been running several times a week since starting Tamoxifen and my hot flushes have been relatively mild and not too frequent. Of course I have no idea whether I’m just lucky or whether it is the exercise, but worth a try if you’re not already breaking a sweat with exercise 3/4 times a week?
I know if you’re not a natural gym bunny or runner it can seem like the final straw to have to drag yourself out to exercise on top of everything else, but worth it if it works!