Kliovane - tell me your exoeriences

[Hueandcry]

Just started on this & I'd like to hear any experiences - good or bad.

Kliovance sorry

Anybody? Day 2 today & feeling very very sick

Everyone reacts differently so it's not much help asking what we've experienced. The type you're taking is conti so you've got 2 hormones in one tablet- are you post meno? ('cos this HRT if for post-meno.)

Sometimes it's better to use 2 hormones separately so you find out which one and how much you need to control your symptoms- what were your worst symptoms?

The sickness is like morning sickness- or it was for me- but after a week or so it did settle down.

I started on gel- Oestrogel- so I could manage the dose from a very low one to higher if need be. I still have a cycle ( a 'period') with my HRT because I don't want to take progestogens every day.

You might find you get on better with a patch than pills which are known to cause tummy upsets in some women. Or you could always try sequi HRT- there is no 'rule' that women post meno have to have conti- it's personal choice really.

Thanks Polly I am 49 & post meno. I don't know anyone who has taken hrt so I have no-one to ask & no idea what to expect. My symptoms are night sweats, hot flushes, bloating & insomnia. My go said it was a case of trial & error & I've been given 3 months to see how I get on

sorry you feel isolated in all of this.

Does your GP know you get bloated? Might be worth having an earlier review. I was told that pills can be the least good choice for anyone with digestive issues because they have to pass through the whole digestive system. You might get on better with a patch or gel, and take sequi progestogens for only 10-12 days each month. That would mimic a natural cycle so you'd get a period - which you might not want! But pills are considered not so safe longer term (higher risk of blood clots) so if you want to stay on HRT for a while it's worth thinking about other options.

I'm using oestrogen patches (Estradot) and Utrogestan capsules as the progesterone. I also have some gel to use to top up if I feel I need it.

I did experience some mild nausea and as Polly describes it was like morning sickness. A bit like, hmm I'm not sure if I feel sick or I'm hungry. But it was very short lived and I've not had it since.

I'd give it a week or 10 days and if you still feel rough I'd go back to your GP and say that you're not tolerating it and ask for something else as it'd be awful to swap one set of awful symptoms for awful side effects.

Have you done any reading up on the different types and formats? Might be an idea so that if you do want to change you can ask the GP for what you want. Try Nice Guidelines on Menopause, Menopause Matters website, British Menopause society. I found these good sources.

I didn't want tablets because of the (small) clotting risk plus you need less of a dose if you use transdermal and you can tweak it.

Are you getting relief of your meno symptoms? I hope it settles for you and you feel better.

Something else. Polly is way more knowledgable than me but my understanding is that it's the progesterone element that causes the sideffects not the oestrogen. Many women are intolerant in varying degrees to progesterone.

There are different types so maybe one with a different type of progesterone would suit you better.

This explains it a bit more. www.menopausematters.co.uk/progestogens.php

I think all you've said is right Deux. But the sicky feeling does tend to be oestrogen-based at first. I noticed the sick feeling also when I increased my dose of gel and the way I got round it was to divide the dose into a morning and evening application.
I think if I'd swallowed a 2mgs dose right from the start I'd have felt terrible. (2 pumps of gel is 1.5mgs.)
Progestogens can cause lots of side effects but they are usually PMS type - bloating, anger, irritability, mood swings, appetite increase, and headaches.

Thanks for the replies. Sick feeling is persisting and have leg cramps too but on the positive side I'm sleeping a lot better & the night sweats have almost gone. Will persevere as at the moment sleeping well is such a positive but will also read up so I'm clued up when I go back to go. She's given me 3 months to start with but not sure if I'll last that long if the sickness doesn't improve.