How difficult was it to get hrt from your doctor?

[BOOTS52PollyPrissyPants]

Was your doctor helpful or not at all or were you told you were too young and refused it. Would love to hear your stories. My doctor said I was too young in late 40's and then refused me hrt again at 52, gave me a lecture and so unhelpful. Just find so behind here in regards to hrt in Ireland. I then went to WellWoman Clinic/Family Planning who were just brilliant and who helped me so much.

I had no problem getting HRT and started it at nearly 49 (mirena coil) and oestrogel a few months later. The two doctors in my practice are a married couple and were very helpful. It was very straightforward and I've found HRT brilliant. Two close friends of mine are on HRT, one locally although she goes to a different doctor and the other one is in West Cork, not near me. It sounds like you are very unlucky with your GP. There is an informative group on Facebook called 'The Irish Menopause' if you don't know about it already.

Thank you my doctor gave me a lecture about the joe duffy show when he had women on talking about their menopause. I told my doctor I did not even listen to it. Male middle aged doctor who is a narcissist but so hard to get a new doctor but receptionist is amazing. Your doctors sound lovely and you are lucky.

My doctor offered me the mirena coil but nothing else unless I persevered for longer. Her reasoning being that I'd have to adjust to changing hormones one day so see how I get on doing it naturally. I wasn't "suffering" enough.

To be fair, I probably wasn't. I had a mashed potato brain and period flooding when they came (which wasn't every month).

I ended up not having anything and working through it over about 3 years. It never got worse and the flooding was 6 monthly- horrible but do able.

Mine were pretty good, one offering me hrt when i was in my early 30s and in peri menopause to protect my heart and bones. I didnt take it at the time as i didnt have symptoms bar skipped periods and that awful womens health study hadnt been entirely disaproved at that point and my mam had hormone + breast cancer twice.
The next GP didnt pick up on my 'feeling like im 90', aches etc as being related when i was a couple years post meno, but to be fair i didnt really push it or go into detail. By the time my insomnia had worsened to me walking between 2-3 am, brain fog at a point i was firgetting my words and thoughts mid sentence and i felt disassociated from the world atound me i did my own research and went to ask fir HRT. She agreed with me and happily gave me prescription - and has prescribed testosterone since - but tbh its me leading the conversation about dosage changes etc (she prescribed cyclical progesterone to begin with for instance) . Im not sure how helpful she d be if someone went in suffering anxiety etc and needing her to lead with suggesting hrt.
My friend in her early 40s was suffering awful night sweats to the point where she was have to change pjs and bedclothes in the night, even twice sometimes, and her gp told her she 'was years off menopause' and sent her away. I gave her the name of a specialist and she was given hrt, sorted out the sweats but other areas she hadnt realised were related. Work had become difficult to manage but now shes back juggling all the balls easily again and memory working fine. Shes stuck having to pay the specialist for 6 month visits and prescriptions though because the gp wont. She can afford it just about, but its an unnecessary waste of money because a gp doesnt know what they are doing

Shocking how women are treated to be honest and we are just meant to put up with it and not many of them know about peri-menopause and the horrible issues with it.

My GP is excellent though it was her colleague I first mentioned a couple of minor symptoms to. He gave me advice on the pros and cons of HRT and emailed the links about it to make sure I was fully informed, he discussed the different options and when I felt ready to start it or other options to get back to the surgery.

I then saw my own GP a while later who had no problem giving me a prescription for it. The first type didn't suit me and I felt awful on it but once I stopped taking it I felt so much better within a couple of days and when I decided to try a different one I got the patch and vagifem and fell my normal self on it.

My friends had no problem getting it.

I had to argue my case quite hard as I was late 50s and a few years postmenopause. But my lovely female GP listened to me then called a colleague in for a second opinion. Eventually they both agreed I'd done my research and knew what I was talking about so agreed to prescribe, but told me I'd have to come off it at 60.

I'm glad I was listened to and that they accepted I understood the risks and benefits. I'll be 60 next year and I feel so good on it I've no intention of coming off it, so I'll have to be ready to argue my case again. My plan is to ask for a referral to the local menopause clinic, despite its long waiting list, to help me convince the GP to keep me on it. Otherwise I'll have to resort to Superdrug Ireland.

Why at 60 I wonder? Do they have any reason in their own heads, or just randomly picked 60?

I can hardly believe some of this. I pretty much TOLD my GP I wanted it and that was that. But a 45 year old friend of mine had the 'you don't need HRT because you're still getting your periods' crap despite behind riddled with peri-menopause symptoms. WTF?

My GP and the one before her have both been fabulous
Happy to talk about symptoms and totally agreed HRT was indicated.
Reviewed annually to check I’m ok and suggested a change of type (sequential patches to continuous) when I was older and periods stopping.
suggested I stay on it as long as I feel I want to and will talk through the pros and cons at each annual review
Couldn't be happier with the GP service I got

I said I’d like to go on it, and my gp agreed immediately. In fact I’ve had way better gynaecological care since moving back to Ireland than in the UK. An ongoing problem was solved with several minor surgeries despite it being during Covid.

Great to hear of such positive stories, wonder were they female gp's or male, mine is male middle aged and a total narcissist but is a shortage of doctors but Family Planning Centre have been excellent female doctors but I did read up so much myself so I had as much knowledge as possible.

It was a male GP I first mentioned HRT to and he was very open to it and excellent all round, my own GP female who's around the same age as myself was the same.

However when I went back to renew my prescriptions for a couple of different things the female GP that replaced the male GP just about prescribed it for me. I told her she needed to educate herself on the latest HRT research. Neither my DH, myself or a couple of friends who have seen her for various things haven't had good experiences.

I made a complaint about her to my GP the practice owner after she misdiagnosed my DH with something and he ended up in A&E and off work for a week. He could have died. I also told my GP about the yolk's attitude to HRT. I just see her as an incompetent doctor.

If I cannot get an appointment with my own GP if she's away I refuse to see the yolk and just go to a local walk in GP practice.

Not in the slightest bit difficult.
I've an excellent gp. We had spoken about the possibility of HRT for about 12 months while we sorted out some other issues I had. We both were on the same page the entire time and she worked with me until I reached the stage I knew I wanted to start hrt. We had many conversations regarding it and went through the checklist of symptoms. She discussed the menopause in depth with me and how I would deal with the changes in other ways also.
The menopause and hrt has been and continues to be a very positive experience for me. The self care improvements as a result of realising what stage in life I'm at has been life changing and i can only include my doctors support in helping me with that.
I am currently on bedrest due to an illness nothing to do with menopause and I had a call every day in hospital to see how I am and a call once a week from her to check in.
Even though I am under the specialist care of my hospital.
She's excellent.

Itcwas a female GP that completely dismissed my query about periods in my 30s, told me 'well you ve just had a baby, no reason you wont conceive again'. I wasnt asking about having another child! There wasnt any reason at that point for anyone to suspect what my issue was, but no reason for her to speak to me like she did.
I felt so dismissed and silly for asking what was clearly a stupid question i didnt intend to ever raise it again, but hapoened to be in with a male locum doctor a few months later. He had a lovely manner and asked 'anything else i can help you with' at end of consult and Id blurted it out before i even realised . The attitude could not have been more different, organised bloods and set me on the path to beibg diagnosed with premature ovarian insufficiency in my mid 30s.
Male or female doctors can be as appalling as each other in this area, but I think its affects us more to be dismissed by a woman, particularly one of our own age or older, reinforces the idea that we are weak, its all in our head etc

I called the practice and said to the receptionist that I'd like to someone about the menopause and HRT and she picked the best GP for me to see. Spoke to her over the phone and she was great and all I needed was a blood pressure test and weight taken and then I was given a prescription.

Sorry to hear about the negative doctors and the dismissive attitudes it is shocking. Also ladies if anyone is feeling extremely tired pls get bloods checked for Thyroid and ask for antibiodies test also. I have underactive thyroid and took years to get diagnosed, it was menopause doc at family planning who noticed my bloods as doctor dismissed it years ago and said I was pulling out my eyebrow hair, really when I look back at what I went through for years I should have reported his narcissistic ass.