To think my HRT patches have led to weight gain?

I came off HRT in January, for various medical related reasons, I'm 54, and I am finding it easier to lose weight than when I was on it. I put on about 2 stone while on it. Thought life was also fairly crap at the time which had something to do with it.

I'm doing more and eating less now so it should be shifting anyway, but it seems a bit easier and I've lost a stone. That's my experience.

On the other hand I was much happier being a bit heavier than being the utter mess I'd have been without HRT at the time I really needed it.

Also even with what I'm doing it is still much harder to shift weight than it was in my 40s regardless of hrt for me.

*also the mirena made me gain quickly which I believe was water rention causing bloating etc. Unless this is removed my weight will not drop.

Just to add to my previous post.

15000 steps a day
2-3 x weight training/ body weight training a week
For example 20 - 30 full press ups etc

I could not lose any weight! My diet was OK. I wasn't restricting but eating fairly well.

I was 9 stone before HRT. I put on a stone quite rapidly - within a few months. I put on another stone and half after a couple of years. I then halved my dose and lost a stone. I then came off the patches and lost another half a stone. I am now on 2 pumps of gel and am a stone over my original weight. I haven't changed anything apart from my HRT dose.

For some people it does increase weight. It is mainly on my stomach, bottom and chest.

Yes people do add weight during menopause but there is no doubt in my mind that if I stopped everything tomorrow, I would lose a lot of weight but I will continue because my joints are much better and I can now exercise and have a lot more energy so will take a stone over for that benefit.

I think as PP said for some people our bodies do not tolerate the hormones as well as others do.

@Movinghouseatlast

Maybe try reading my post, it’s clear I’m not dismissing your experiences. For some women the menopause does cause weight gain and women experiencing this should not be dismissed.
Neither should women be subjected to the bullshit that HRT isn’t the cause of their weight gain when it clearly can be! I see people’s experiences dismissed on here all the time especially when it comes to weight when they are judged for weight gain when they are doing everything they can to prevent it.

So you tell me not to dismiss other people's experiences then you do the same to mine!

I'm not dismissing people's experiences actually. I explained what my menopause specialist explained to me.

I put on 2 stone in 6 months in perimenopause. It happened to me. I changed nothing, exercise or diet and kept putting on weight. I ended up nearly 4 stone heavier, no HRT. It was lack of oestrogen according to my menopause specialist.

People have different reactions to menopause but I would hate for women to be put off HRT because of putting on weight as it can be a total lifesaver.

That might be true for you but look at all of the evidence on here from lots of us saying otherwise. It’s definitely not just the menopause causing my weight gain given that my weight kept increasing when I was on it. As I said within a week of stopping it, I lost a pound and since stopping it around 7 weeks ago, I have lost close to 2 stones and am back to my pre HRT weight now. I am eating exactly the same as I was (following WW) and have not increased my exercise. I’m definitely still menopausal so how exactly do you explain my weight loss if nothing else has changed except stopping the HRT? It affects people differently, weight changes is listed as a side effect on the information leaflet. I also gained weight when I was on the pill when I was younger too. There are some people who have that side effect when taking artificial hormones. You can’t dismiss other people’s experiences just because you didn’t have the same side effects!
I do agree that the menopause definitely makes weight loss harder but it isn’t generally responsible for people gaining stones in a short period of time.

No, I don’t do any of those things. I want the body I had before HRT without any effort, just like pre-HRT!

Do you lift weights? Eat high protein? Testosterone? They may help if you want to change your shape. I do both, the weights really heavy/progressive overload/close to failure so I’ve got more lean muscle than I’ve ever had.

But I wouldn’t have the wherewithal or the energy to do that without HRT inc testosterone.

It depends on so many things, doesn't it? I have lost weight on HRT because HRT gave me the "oomph" to actually do something about my weight rather than sitting on my arse and eating doughnuts. Also, some women can't function without their HRT, before I started it I was suicidal, an anxious mess, not sleeping and quite unwell, mentally. I would rather be 2 stone heavier than go back to that shell of myself.

Also people on this site have such an unhealthy attitude to weight in a lot of ways, if you're not a size 6 and fitting into the same wardrobe as you did when you were 14 you're a total failure. People talk about "putting on weight" without saying how much - if you're 8 stone and have gone to 8.5 stone then that's obviously a different conversation than if you started off at 9 stone and have gone to 15 stone, isn't it?

Also to add another variable into the mix - HRT is not one thing. I just use estrogen as I've had a hysterectomy. Others have progesterone too, some have testosterone. Patches, gels, sprays. Different doses.

I’ve GOT a waist since going on HRT but only because my hips have bulked up. And my BMI is 21.5. But I’m a 12-14 now and when even coats you’ve had for years don’t fit it’s depressing. I was a 10. I didn’t change. I look like I’ve been blown up, even my face is bigger. A steroid sort of look.

Don’t despair, it’s not inevitable. I haven’t gained weight on HRT, I’ve still got a waist, BMI 23.

@Movinghouseatlast its definitely HRT that caused weight gain for me. I have been off and on it three times, it’s very clear. Different for everyone.

It really is the menopause that does this, not HRT. Look at women's body shapes throughout history and they changed over 50. Not for every woman, but for many.

Lack of oestrogen does strange things to our bodies. HRT doesn't make up for the full amount we have lost.

I only need to eat 1400 calories to maintain my weight these days. No wonder I put on 3 stone.

Sounds like loads more research needs to happen on this. If GPs tell us ‘it doesn’t cause weight gain’ do the GPs write down what they are being told? Anyone keeping track? Surely it can all be coincidence

It’s a really hard phase. Walking and Pilates is not enough exercise really though good. You could add in hiit, cycling, swimming etc + walk everyday.

Only way I can manage my weight is hardly drinking any alcohol - it’s the calories but also impacts my sleep and make me want to eat loads of carbs the next day

Well nobody needs high intensity cardio.

I’m on Citalopram and HRT, and despite eating healthier and doing more exercise than I ever have, I’m a stone overweight.

I don’t drink, either - if I did, I reckon I’d be edging into obesity.

It’s difficult, but my menopause symptoms were awful, so it’s swings and roundabouts, really.

I have had a lifetime of hormone problems stemming from a dodgy pituitary gland. Over the last 40yrs science has caught up and there is a wealth of research now available that explains some of the problems I’ve had.
The main thing I have learnt is that hormone levels can and do affect weight, fat deposition and fat storage regardless of what and how much we eat
My personal problem was a prolactinoma which produced high levels of prolactin. The hormone is needed for milk production and longterm in a normal lactating woman will cause the body to store fat in specific areas such as the top of the back causing “buffalo hump”. There is a suspicion that prolactinoma are far more common than stats suggest since if they develop after 40 women assume they are menopausal, they stop menstruation and other symptoms mimic those of the menopause.

I think that we need much more research into peri and menopausal hormone levels with relation to weight gain with and without HRT.

Until recently HRT was only available to peri menopausal women if they were diagnosed with premature menopause or if they had ovaries removed. Otherwise you had to be 12 months post meno. Very little research has been carried out with HRT during perimenopause. I do wonder, because most hormones are subject to complex feedback systems, maybe HRT is actually speeding up the shut down of the ovaries. In a lot of endocrine glands if you take a supplement the feedback loop is overridden and the gland no longer produces the hormone. Shutting down our ovarian function may be lowering natural post meno hormone production necessitating increase in HRT dose.
Starting HRT post meno after the ovaries have shut down naturally may avoid messing up the feedback loop. WHO knows? So little research has been done, hopefully, in the future alternatives will be discovered.

I 100% put on weight on HRT

Its infuriating they deny it.

I suspect my oestrogen dose was too high and it creates oestrogen dominance, which makes you put on weight

I decided to stop, the doses are all too random for my liking. There’s no rhyme or reason to the doses and I’m pretty sure that at different stages of the menopause you are lacking in different hormones, eg: I suspect it’s progesterone that you need more in early peri. Until the tests are better, I’m not doing it

Huge weight gain due to menopause fatigue. Loosing again as I have more energy and feel so much better. Took two years to get my HRT dose level. Take all three hormones not the patches though. Couldn't live with out it