How mad is it that more than half the week you have less hrt if you wear patches

[KatyMac]

I mean change every 3 days then 4 days

It should either be 3 or 4 or even 3.5

It's madness

Eh?

I do change mine every 3.5 days. Tuesday morning and Friday night. I’m not sure what you’re getting at?

Well I thought I'd got it all worked out by wearing mine for 3.5 days each - so, new patch Mon am, change Thurs pm: fresh again on Mon am.

But every time I sit and count on my fingers I get confused lol.

What is more mad is not changing every 3.5 days - Thursday morning and Sunday evening here. Simple maths surely!

Oh good, others are doing the same. I'm not losing it then.

Yes...but...how do you maximise the estrogen from them? There's a certain amount we absorb a day (that it can deliver), is that 3 or 4 days worth? Are we leaving precious estrogen in the patches & throwing them away?

Op you’ve lost me!

At the moment I’m thinking it’s not the patch dosage that’s “mad”

Three and a half days here too. Thursday morning, Sunday evening

Each patch is four days worth, no? So you just throw a bit away from one patch and use up the other.

They release so much per 24 hours so for a 50mcg patch they release 50mcg per 24 hours. They have enough in them to last more than 3 days so you are getting the same amount of drug per day. They don't suddenly run out. The reason you change it twice a week on the same days is so you remember. There is a patch that lasts 7 days (femseven) it too releases the same amount of drug per day. (They don't stick as well)

So you are not getting less drug
I change every Sunday and Thursday morning.

Why would you be getting less more than half the week?
you seem to be confused

in any case each patch has enough slow release for 4 days. They suggest 3 days 4 days for ease of use so you remember. You can change every 4 days if you want but it will possible be difficulty to keep track of when to do it

And I totally dont understand how the patch knows how to release the right amount

Surely you get more on the first day and less in subsequent ones

It’s the same with nicotine patches. Don’t over think it. I do mine every 4 days with no drop off in oestrogen.

It doesn’t ‘know’. The patch is designed to release at a certain rate.

are you seriously this confused or is this some made up thing?

I've been on patches for about 20 years - new patch every Monday and Thursday morning.

All is well.

The manufacturers have worked out how the medication is released and absorbed!

I change mine every 3 days

Yeah it's why I switched to oestrogel and progesterone tablets, just wasn't getting enough

@KatyMac it's a good question, with lots of science behind it.

Transdermal patches are either Matrix or Reservoir and both have properties that mean the patch slowly releases the medication at the rate listed on the box. You also have to account for the fact that you body doesn't immediately remove the medication from the bloodstream, and some is held in the skin. So even when you take it off, medication is available to your body.

Ultimately, drug companies have used 3/4 day regimens in their studies to get a license as we have 7 days in a week. There's may be a slight reduction in dose transferred to the skin towards the end of day 4 with some medication, but not so much as to have a clinical effect, and you will get a more stable level with patches than the high and low you might see with oral tablets. Plus you don't have remember to take it that often, avoiding missed doses.

I was struggling with the 3 day/4 day thing

On night 3 I was getting night sweats and day 4 hot flushes and other symptoms - day 1 was a bit pmt -ish and quite annoying

After a blood test my consultant said to trial 1.5 patches but use the half a patch a day to try and even out the dose- but that doesn't match the science if you are supposed to get the same amount every day but cos of the 3 day/4 day thing I only use a quarter on days 3 & 6 to make the maths right

If the patches aren’t working well for you why don’t you try gel?

The progesterone tablets didn't agree with me when i tried them, the gel was fine

I'm about 10 days in to the new regime and everyone loves it, my temper is more even and my brain fog much less; so fingers crossed