Gel dosage

[Gerijrich]

I have been using the gel 2 pumps for 3 years but i have recently noticed that my anxiety is gettig stronger. I wonder if my gel needs upping or maybe I don't need as much now any thougjts

Hi! I think that we need less estrogen as we get older, so maybe upping your dose isn’t a good idea. Is possible your anxiety is due other causes, not hormonal?

Dont think so as just wake up shaking for a few mornings and then it goes

Why do we need less as we get older? I would have thought the opposite was true.

Cause our estrogen receptors decline and our body start to need less estrogen to function. The younger the lady is the more and potent estrogen needs for her health. The treatment for very young ladies with POI is sometimes with BCP and not hrt cause they need higher dose of estrogen for their bodies. Higher doses of estrogen at older ages are more dangerous for breast cancer and gyn use the lower doses of hrt.

So I am nearly 3 years post meno and am on quite a high dose of estrogel at three pumps but can go up to four if needed, symptoms are sorted on my three but if I go down to two the awful symptoms return.
So what do you do if you can’t manage on lower?

I think it's important to have a holistic approach to this stage of life. HRT can be brilliant but it's not a cure-all for everything. If you are anxious can you say why? Have you thought about trying CBT or other forms of therapy?

Younger women going through peri tend to need more estrogen to replace what would be their natural level . Older women tend to need more of a maintenance dose to give the benefits but their own hormones have plateaued and they aren't getting the rises and falls so much.

There is no research as such yet which shows the dose of estrogen equates to a higher risk of breast cancer. The risk of BC appears- and you can look at all the research discussed online by consultants here to be linked to synthetic progestogens. The NICE guidelines has tables with the rate of BC linked to the different progestogens but you will need to dig around to find it. Estrogen appears to fuel the growth of existing estrogen-receptor positive cancer that is already there - not cause it (blog on Menopause Matters home page from Dr Currie on this.)

polly thank you for BC info, i can’t control my awful VA without the dosage of estrogel and vagifem I am using, but can now exercise regularly and have lost weight so hopefully that will reduce cancer risk.

well done

Have you had your thyroid checked?