Hello, I have a 51 year old sister who was diagnosed at age 19 with schizoaffective disorder. Her symptoms are auditory hallucinations primarily. For many years, with the help of clozaril and a few added apparently required anti-depressants she held several very good full time jobs. But over the past ten years her symptoms have become worse, gradually. Medications altered off and on and something new added - intense anxiety leading to panic attack symptoms which then in turn bring on her regular schizoaffective symptoms. In the last two years these attacks have incapacitated her so that she feels dizzy and too afraid to drive home from her job. This completely coincides with her mentioning to me her scanty and now non existent periods. She also mentions “waves” coming over her. I am several years older and have been through menopause myself and know what it feels like. I have brought up the topic frequently and she listens but really only listens to doctors handing out anti anxiety pills on top of her many other medications. Not a single one of her doctors, family, psychologist or psychiatrist has mentioned to her that there could be a correlation between what is going on with her change of hormones/menopausal stages. Is anyone else familiar with this or know of a doctor who is interested in exploring this idea? Have you had any luck addressing it? Thanks
I would think they could be correlated. But I had surgical menopause and that didn’t happen to me. I do believe however that fluctuating hormone levels could affect a person with sz/sza negatively
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