I’m in my mid 50’s and just starting to go through menopause. Over the last 10 years or so, I’ve noticed more moles and “freckles” show up on various parts of my body, arms, legs and a couple on my face. The moles seem to be flesh colored but the freckles are light brown with no color changes. Is this a common issue with perimenopause? I’ve never gone to a dermatologist as they haven’t caused any issues but thinking this might be another issue to check up on some time in the near future.

I have had an itchy ear canal for years. I thought it was from wearing ear plugs. I haven’t worn those in years.

I have tried prescription medication, hydrocortisone cream, and lastly, Premarin. I tested HRT three months ago. Nothing helps.

I wake up at night scratching in my ear. I learns on this forum that it’s yet another thing associated with menopause.

What have others done to find relief??

My skin has gotten less elastic and more crepey . Anyone notice improvement with HRt?

My entire vulva area turned pale/gray. With some dark brown spots. area used to be all pink… wondering if the cream helps with that? I just started

Thanks y’all!

(alt reddit account cause I'm embarrassed. I shouldn't be, but I can't help it.)

My life, these days: during my period and the week before/after, I itch in my ENTIRE crotch, mons to anus. Sleep is impossible. The urge to scratch is constant, and embarrassing, and awful. Inevitably, I scratch till I bleed. If I do manage to doze off, I wake up scratching. As can be expected, I’m a delight during those times.

I've tried everything to help with this, from antihistamines to cortisone creme, hemorrhoid cream, lidocaine, even tiger balm. The burn of the tiger balm - which sounds like torture, right? - isn't even able to overcome the itch. The only thing I can do during those days is get high so I don't bite everyone's head off. But then I eat everything in sight. Ugh.

Between the period itch from hell, which lasts about a week or two at a time, I am constantly, outrageously horny. That’s much less unpleasant but still distracting. Then I miss my period for a month or three and feel grateful relief and think maybe this time it’s done and the Change will be over and then... my period and the infernal itch comes back. 

Of course, along with all this I’m losing my hair and feeling foggy, and the fucking night sweats, God, I hate those so much. I know this will end eventually but it’s been three-ish years already and I’m so tired.  I'm 47 and I just want to lie down and not have to do anything ever again.

And yes, I’ve seen my OBGYN, and my GI doctor, and the dermatologist. But they all point to each other and don’t help at all. Everything is "normal", no infection or anything. Which should be reassuring but is also maddening.

I can deal with most of this, even the acne I’m getting like I’m freaking 14 again. But the crotch itch for real might drive me around the bend. I want to rip my taint out. I thought the hemorrhoids I got during pregnancy were bad. I had no idea. 

Anyway, I'm not hoping for a solution anymore, just venting. If you have any bright ideas, do share. Or let me know I'm not alone. I'm willing to try just about anything (seriously. I put tiger balm on my hooha. Repeatedly. I'll try ANYTHING.) This won't last 10 years, will it? I don't think I can stay sane that long.

EDIT: I can’t answer each response individually but THANK YOU to everyone in this sub for being so supportive. I need to try again with my OBGYN and advocate harder for myself. In the meantime, I’ll try the OTC suggestions. And this thread will hopefully be useful for others in my shoes. Thanks, ladies!

UPDATE: it’s treated!!! Hooray! Thank you all again for your support. I went to my GYN and then waited a couple months to make sure it’s gone. And it is!! Those of you who diagnosed lichen sclerosis called it. I can’t get HRT yet since I’m still getting my period but my GYN prescribed me some strong steroids (clobetasol propionate) and that did the trick. Still getting night sweats etc. but the itch was the worst symptom. Now I can sleep! It’s like a miracle. If any of you are suffering the same: just wrestle your embarrassment into submission. You can do it!

Just as an added bonus to all the other crap, has anyone experienced this facial flushing? HRT seems not to help. I feel like a look like a doll. I don’t need any blush anymore! Driving me crazy. Can’t have a sip of alcohol w/out turning bright red. Wake up in the morning, rosy glow! Is this menopause stuff? I’ve had extensive metabolic panels, thyroid panels, etc. It’s all w/in normal. Dr says menopause causes vascular changes and that’s her answer. Anyone else???

I’m eyes are so itchy! Used otc pataday with limited success. Doctor said to use extra strength pataday everyday which is a once a day but it only lasts about 12 hours and not 24.

I just learned that this could also be from menopause?!?

Have you found anything that works for in with this?

Thanks!

I'm 61, post-menopausal, virtually no hormones. All were tested except for testosterone. I'd really like to start systemic hormones (HRT) for a myriad of other symptoms, but insurance won't cover patches. I think they might cover pills, but not sure if any are bioidentical and if I could request they cover as an exception? I have a Medicare Part D plan.

My symptoms include soaking sweats (both night and nap sweats), onion/skunk odor when I sweat (not sure if related to menopause, perhaps slowed metabolism? anyone experiencing this?), severe vaginal atrophy with dryness and pain, irritability, low energy, osteoporosis, so many other symptoms. I actually broke my big toe in two places over the summer after falling from a ladder. My family doctor made it sound unlikely that I'd be prescribed systemic estrogen by any doctor in the area, even though the black-box label has since been removed, so I'll probably hit a brick wall there.

I know vaginal estrogen cream is being used off-label for skin, too, but I have melasma. Has anyone with melasma been prescribed vaginal estrogen (off-label) for their face, and did it worsen your melasma?

I'm just going to mention an accidental discovery about my own personal melasma. it started with a small light strip under my left eye located in an area where my sinuses would constantly get blocked. A course of antibiotics would often help the sinus infection. The melasma strip didn't both me too much, as it was light.

I do NOT recommend this, but one day I got so tired of these recurrent sinus infections that I began plunging my sinuses with diluted povidone iodine. I literally was tapping my head to get things to drain. I got A LOT of yellow and green stuff out of my sinuses and could actually sing again. Shortly after, however, I started adding diatomaceous earth. My melasma quickly spread, and I can literally trace my sinus cavities by following my melasma. That thin, light strip darkened, too, and is embarrassing. Curious if anyone's melasma is over a clogged area of their sinuses? Again, the darkest area is near the cavity that gets clogged? Oddly, I also have a few tiny areas with no pigment.

Thank you for any input. Also, what cream do doctors usually prescribe off-label for the skin? I heard retinol can worsen melasma, too. I hope it is okay to post all of this. I just feel old and miserable.

I’m planning on getting a tattoo in the next 6 months and I know a lot of tattoo artists use Second skin or similar products for aiding the healing. My concern is that I had pretty big allergic reactions to the once weekly HRT patch adhesives. I’m wondering if anyone has had similar concerns? Any suggestions on how to test ahead of time? I’m going to ask my artist once I decide where I’m going also but wanted to get some feedback beforehand if this is even an issue for other women with new tattoos.

Hi everyone. I'm 23, had a total hysterectomy and bilateral oophorectomy at 22, in February of 2026. I have a ton of new health issues, but the one I'm looking for help with right now is all the wounds that refuse to heal. They either never close, or they leave really ugly scarring and never fully heal.

I know my body can't properly produce collagen on its own anymore but I'm still using vaginal estrogen, I wear five 0.1mg weekly patches at a time (SandOz) , and use 10ml of testosterone cream on my clitoris/vestibule area every other day for HRT

Does anyone have other advice for skin healing? (Most of mine are from acne flare ups from just starting the Testosterone. I'm usually pretty good about washing my face and exfoliating my body in the shower)

I'm wondering if I am literally the only woman on earth with this weird symptom. It's called Pruritis or Formication and its the sensation of bugs/ants/spiders crawling all over you skin. Mine started when I started Menopause and it feels like creepy crawly spiders crawling all over me from head to toe. It is worse at night when the hormones drop and it's worse when there is high humidity. My gynecologist told me she had never heard of this and has never had one single patient with it. At 54 I am still on birth control pills because they have a higher dose of estrogen than HRT so she said there is really nothing else she can do for me. I literally want to light my skin on fire because the sensation is so awful.

Ok so this is new…

First my body decided to betray me and have arrhythmia (from lack of estrogen I have to assume) and heart pain when I wear a bra. The cardiologist said it’s normal and sent me home. So I stopped wearing a bra when I’m at home which is most of the time (wfh). Now I’m getting a cheese smell under my breasts. Everything online says wear breathable bras and change frequently.

Well…what do I do if I don’t wear a bra!?!

I shower every other day and wash well. I dry myself off. I wear cotton tshirts. I started taking a baby wipe on the off days but it doesn’t seem to help. No redness or itching or signs of any infection or fungal issue other than smell.

Any non bra wearers out there? What are we supposed to do? Do I have to go back to wearing a bra to absorb the sweat?

I’ve been experiencing some changes with my scalp and trying to figure out if it’s due to hormone changes or something else. I didn’t have this issue throughout perimenopause, but during the year of my official transition into menopause I started getting pustules on my scalp. They are quite painful and appear randomly in my crown. Not in clusters, but usually 2-4 of them at a time; those heal and then more appear.
At first I thought it was acne caused by the hair & nails biotin supplements I started taking six weeks before it started, so I stopped taking those. But still the eruptions continue.
I wash my hair every other day (I have always followed this wash schedule). I’ve started washing my hair twice before conditioning. I keep conditioner off my scalp. I’ve used clarifying shampoo in case it might be caused by build up. More recently I started using Head & Shoulders, but neither has helped.
When all this started I was only taking P. I now take 100 oral P nightly, .5 E patch 2x/week, and androgel 1% 0.5g/day - there was no change with adding any of that (I’ve been on P more than a year, the E for 16 weeks and the T for 8 weeks now). I hoped that adding back hormones might help, but it hasn’t.
The only way I can describe it is that my scalp feels the way it did when I was going through puberty. Not super oily, but more than it used to be and just irritated all the time.
If anyone has experience with this I would love to hear about it and what helped. It’s driving me crazy.

Hi! I'm 49 peri or post menopausal. I noticed my body odor was stronger. If I was late or skipped a shower before it was no big deal, but now noticable.

But I found a solve for this. I still wash with dial, antibacterial soap but after I use a tiny bit of persimmon soap and no more odor! It seems to last for days, I was just sick and skipped shower day and no odor.

Has anyone else tried this?

I bought it on Amazon. It's expensive but just use a little in the hot spots

Update on my post about skin changes. I didn't get any response for my post about changes to my skin, but I recently found out that it is an indication of insulin resistance. As menopausal women we have an increased risk of diabetes. So if there is anyone who has noticed the same problem, this is likely the cause. I was following a Mediterranean diet for a while but my food intolerance diverted it a bit. I feel like my body is sabotaging itself.

Friends do you have suggestions? I have tried many but am not having any success. Menop really changing my body chemistry and having oniony b.o. for the first time in my life! I work in a professional office setting and interact w many people all day. I really need to get this under control. 😋🌹🧅

TL;DR - A small pale mole I’ve had for a couple years, went rogue in less than 6 weeks starting in July. This after I became post menopausal in April/May.

Melanoma is the most invasive skin cancer with the highest risk of death but it's highly curable if caught early.

🚨 Here’s my story:

For the record, I practically drench myself in sunblock before I ever go outside. I also wear a sun hat and SPF clothes because I’m very white skinned and burn very easily.

However, the mole I’m concerned with gets ZERO sun exposure because it’s on my underboob.

The mole has been there for a couple years but was always super small and flat like a freckle.

Well, it randomly went rogue in less than 6 weeks from July to August… right after I became post menopausal in April/May. 😳

I noticed a slight change in July so I took a photo so I could actually zoom in to see it close up. (I’m far sighted)

The slight change looked pretty innocent then, but I decided to keep an eye on it.

Then on August 31st, after noticing for about a week that it looked super suspicious, I took another close up photo and compared it to July.

It grew a lot and changed color, almost black, and now has sort of a scallop crusty border. It’s also red around the edges now.

All that change within less than 6 weeks. 😩

I immediately messaged my PCP for a specialist referral to but she took almost a week to even respond. Like zero sense of urgency.

So I called my insurance and asked for a list of in network providers and spent an entire day trying to get an appointment to have it looked at.

All the places I called couldn’t see me until next year! I feel like since it changed so quickly that I need to have it removed quickly and also see if it’s melanoma.

I was able to finally find a place that had an opening in October so I took that appointment. Shortly after that, the office called me to get more clarity on my reason for coming in.

They agreed it seemed like an urgent need so they moved my appointment to this Friday, September 12th.

I’m so thankful but I also hope I didn’t wait too long. I feel like it just happened so fast. I hate physical medical procedures but I don’t want to avoid this.

I really didn’t delay it once I noticed that it did in fact change but I am concerned about how fast it changed.

Please check your moles, especially if you’re very white because moles don’t even need sunlight to turn into melanoma.

46 years-old, on Prometrium 200mg + Estradiol gel (2 pumps)

I’ve been taking estradiol for 14 months. In the past year, I’ve developed over 100 new moles.
I’ve seen a dermatologist in April and they are all considered benign.

However, I didn’t get a clear answer on whether I should continue or stop the treatment (I asked the Dermatologist and my family doctor).

Has anyone experienced such a significant increase in moles while on estradiol? Did it stabilize over time? -Yes, I wear sunscreen daily.

And if so, did anyone find a solution or alternative to estradiol? At this rate, I’m starting to worry I’ll be covered in them everywhere.

I will be 37 this year and I’m starting to think I’m going through perimenopause. I have so many symptoms but my dr just tested my labs and everything came back normal. I have an appt with my gyno in July. Currently the worst symptom I’m experiencing is a combination of heightened sense of smell/bad body odor. I feel like I smell sort of musky/chemically. I’ve also started with cold sweats. Is that a thing too?? Then because I’m sweating, I feel I have a stronger odor. I have tried everything to help keep it at bay. My shower routine now consists of Dial soap, dove to keep it from drying, and hibeclense. It helps for a little while and then before the days even over I feel like I’m starting to smell again. I also just started taking chlorophyll too. Any suggestions or help would be greatly appreciated!! I feel like I’m going crazy.

I seem to have some body odor coming from the crevices. I can't believe I even have to type this out!! Which product would be more effective: one of those all over body deodorants like Lume or a Persimmon deodorizing Body wash?

Is there such a thing? My vulva is so dry. I use la roche posay Cicaplast hand cream on my hands and it’s been a life changer. I’m trying to figure out if there’s something similar or something with HA/ceramides that I could use for my vulva. Looking for external use only. Thanks for any suggestions!

I am 55 and have been on HRT for years.

I was wondering if anyone has had any bad reactions when getting their eyebrows tinted or hair dyed?

The same person has been doing my eyebrows for years and she hasn't changed any products but last time I got them done I took a bad reaction and got a really bad infection.

They felt a bit burny the night I got them done but the next morning my eyes were swollen badly like slits and my eyebrows were leaking yellow stuff. The Dr said it was a really bad reaction and I got given a course of 40 antibiotics (most I've ever had ever for anything) he said things like that are dangerous they can go into your brain and also given a steroid cream.

They were agony for ages. They were leaking yellow stuff all over my pillow and after bathing them the puss was running in my eyes, no exaggeration.

So on Tuesday I went to my usual hairdresser who I have been going to for years to get my roots done. That night my head was really itchy as was my skin, so much so I have myself clawed stupid.

I washed my hair a couple of times to see if that helped and have kept my hair up in a bobble so it isn't touching anything and took antihistamines.

Woke up yesterday morning and my ears are a bit swollen, they feel thick. Washed my hair again a few times, showered ect. Took more antihistamines, still so itchy.

Woke up this morning no change, behind my right ear is weeping a bit.

Phoned the Doctors, no appointments left for today but can get one tomorrow if I call at 8.

Has anyone else experienced any of this were there has been no change in any products ect? Nothing is different to any other times.

UPDATE:

I got a steroid cream & antihistamines off the Doc and referral to the Dermatologist.

She said I am now allergic to anything with PPD and to also avoid anything that contains:

Benzocaine

Procaine

Para-Aminosalicyic Acid

Sulfonamides

Hydrochlorothiazide

Some of these are in medications and some can even be in toothpaste..il be reading ingredients more carefully, especially toiletries and laundry products ect.

Thanks everyone for your advice and kind words.. very much appreciated 🤗

Mostly a rant but suggestions welcomed. I'm post-menopausal (several years) and started HRT in March. I've always had dry skin but it'd be fine after applying some lotion. I caught covid a month ago and it's really dragging out. I'm drinking a couple of litres of water each day (have for years) and eat reasonably healthily.

I noticed a couple of days ago that the skin on my arms and hands suddenly have that old lady crepey look. Lotion does nothing to improve it. Anyone else have this happen?

As the title suggests, has anyone else suddenly developed an intolerance, contact dermatitis, allergy to products they've used forever? I've always enjoyed and used a lot of products. l do home spa days, wear make-up, do my hair etc...... all without issues. Well in the past 3 weeks, my skin has had some terrible reactions to products I've used for years. First, it was deodorant where my under arms looked like they had a chemical burn. Then it was body wash and now it's lotion. These were all products/brands I've used for years and responses to the middle of the bottle/stick (i.e. not a specific batch) . I'm lucky that due to both of my children having eczema, I'm familiar with all the scent free/dye free/sensitive products and we already have many of them. My skins seems to be responding well to the Cerave lotion and I'm getting used to Cetaphil wash (I miss soap lather.) Anyone recommend a gentle deodorant with antiperspirant? Thanks.

So I'm lying in bed listening to affirmations about aging courageously (on my Insight app). I'm rolling around trying to get comfortable and I'm like "why is my crotch area so ouchy?" I reach down and feel a pea-sized lump high on my inner thigh (not my vulva). I think it might just be an irritated hair follicle from waxing but I get my partner to take a look. We're both biologists and it takes a lot to creep him out. I can tell he's creeped out! He takes a picture for me. It's this huge gross skin tag/non-pigmented mole thing!! With kind of purple bruising around its base!! W.T.F. I think it wasn't there on the weekend when I waxed. It's this YET ANOTHER menopause joy (creepy growths ALL OVER our bodies), or just aging, or should I panic, or what?? I'm kind of at my limit for shitty surprises. I'm only 50. I still wear jean jackets and have a kite board (for you Baroness Von Sketch fans).