3 weeks into HRT and struggling....

[Clusterfack]

Looking for some advice or maybe i just need to vent. I'm on HRT (2 pumps gel and utrogestan) now for 3 weeks and frankly i'm feeling rotten.

A lot of people seem to have had success with HRT within days or even hours but i'm still crippled with anxiety, digestive problems and fatigue.

Is it worth keeping on with this? I'm 44 so maybe i'm too young for it (?) I'm also on citalopram for the anxiety for last 2 years but it's not controlling it.

Sorry for offloading.

I was prescribed that regime last year. Hang in a bit as the side effects may settle.

They didn’t for me so after 6 months I moved on to patches and I have no side effects.

I sympathise. I felt terrible on Utrogestan and the gel. I also found applying the gel a PITA every morning. I have no idea why it’s so popular

How much Utrogestan are you using? In peri, it's 12 days per month.

If you find it makes you feel down, there are other ways to use it.
1 Use it vaginally. This is how it's used in Europe- you just insert the capsules as high as you can last thing at night.

2 Talk to your dr about using less- some women use it for 10 days only, or you can try extending the estrogen-only part of the cycle to a few more days .

You might also need to increase the gel- 2 pumps is the starting dose but as you are really young you may need more. Maybe give it another week, then increase to 3 pumps. (This is on the leaflet- it says you can go to 4 pumps per day.)

I have no idea why it’s so popular

Because some women don't like a patch stuck on their bum all the time- bit of an 'advert' for HRT, especially if some women are single and maybe dating again. :)

And it's also easy to tweak the dose to get the right fit.

I’ve tried 2 lots of hrt in the past the first was elleste duet (when I was 47) and BHRT 2 years after both gave me horrible side effects I stuck with it for 5-6 months but came off them and not bothered since hrt is not for everyone and I was kind of hoping it was going to make me feel like a new woman but it made me feel crap 😬 I would persevere for a while longer then go back to your dr for advice if no better good luck xx

@JinglingHellsBells thanks for your v knowledgeable reply. Yes i'm taking the utrogestan for 14 days and the gel every day.

The utrogestan isn't making me feel down, fortunately, and i have to say the night sweats that i used to get occasionally haven't troubled me, but i'm still waiting for the magic that a lot of people describe when their tiredness and anxiety dissipates.

Is 44 too young to be in peri? Sorry for my ignorance on all this.

I should add that i had all these symptoms before starting the HRT - they haven't been caused by it.

No you aren't too young :)
Menopause range (periods stopped 100%) is from 45- 55ish.

Just give it time.

The medical advice is to try any type of hrt for 3 months. It's not a miracle treatment for all women and the younger you are the more likely it is you need more estrogen compared to someone 10 or 20 years older.

I’m 57 and need three pumps. Did your doctor say you could tweak the dose?

@JinglingHellsBells

I have no idea why it’s so popular

Because some women don't like a patch stuck on their bum all the time- bit of an 'advert' for HRT, especially if some women are single and maybe dating again. :)

And it's also easy to tweak the dose to get the right fit.

There is that I guess - another reason for me to go back on oral!

@oneglassandpuzzled

she said to give it at least 6 weeks on the initial dose before looking at increasing. I saw a private specialist in the end as I was getting nowhere with my GP.

@JinglingHellsBells I've just spoken to my GP to try and line up a repeat prescription of the gel etc (the first lot i got privately). She refused to do so, she said i am too young to need it and i should instead look at increasing the antidepressant to manage the anxiety. arrrgggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

@Clusterfack Have you had alook at the NICE guidance pinned top of the page? There is a section in 'diagnosis' which says (for drs) that ADs must not be used and that HRT is the first line treatment. maybe you could show her that?

I don't know if you are aware of the website of Dr Louise Newson? There is masses of evidence on there about ADs V HRT and how they should not be used. Worth reading.

If you got the gel privately, can that dr not write to your GP to recommend it's on repeat? Or does she disagree with the dr who gave you that? Usually, if you see someone privately and don't want to carry on with them, they write to your GP and recommend whatever they prescribed.

Thanks Jingle I will do that.

The whole process is just exhausting when you're feeling rubbish anyway, I feel like I'm fighting a battle!

Just been prescribed this treatment and gp said nothing about how to use the gel! No labels on the boxes. Only that I have to take 2 pills in the evening for 2 weeks. Worried this will drive me insane again as what always happened with contraceptives!

I too don't know what medication to ask for.

I only started HRT 2 or 3 months ago. After years of fighting. I should have been on it years ago!

Initially, I was on evorel patches (rubbish, don't stick) and estradiol pills. Worked for a month or 2 and then seemed to stop.

New GP suggested Estrogel and utrogestan. Gel 3 times a day? That's not gonna happen!

Why are all GP's suddenly prescribing this? Is it the new 'thing'? Why the interest in gel and utrogestan?

Or rather, what else can I ask to try?

I need something no hassle. Like an implant, that is just put in I forget about. It would seem that this is a total no no.
Pisses me off that it's assumed that rubbing gel in 3 times a day suits most. It doesn't me!

You don’t have to rub it in three times a day. I do am and pm but most people just do it once a day.

@Oblomov21 You were on an estrogen-only patch (evorel) and estradiol pills?

If you have a womb still, you would need some sort of progestin with an estrogen-only patch, or an estrogen-only pill. If you have had a hysterectomy, you don't need Utrogestan.

The implant is only estrogen (so women with a womb need a separate progestin too) and the side effects are that it's very hard to remove if it doesn't suit.

Thank you hells.
Yes I was on patches and estradiol.
I didn't know I needed a progestin.
Yes I have a womb, no hysterectomy, haven't had periods for years.

I would still prefer an implant. I want something no hassle that I don't have to remember to take every day and an implant would suit me much better but they don't seem to be very common or favoured or very easily available.

it's because it suits everybody else to have a Gel or a pill every day? It doesn't suit me : I have diabetes which is very complicated and I have lots of other medical things to think about each day : and I don't want the Faff of HRT thanks! and no one seems to understand this.

@Oblomov21 If your dr gave you an Evorel patch and estradiol ( as a pill) that is incorrect prescribing. Are you sure that's what you were given?

This fact sheet from Dr Newson explains it well.

HRT the Basics

HRT types

The implant is very complicated and rarely prescribed. It's hard to remove and there are other complications around it.

The combined patch (estrogen + progestin) might work. Or you could have an estrogen only patch (Evorel) and a Mirena coil (so you don't need worry about taking a pill.)

Actually Hells, now I've checked it was patches. And Estradiol AND norethisterone.

Do maybe that was ok?

Here is my old. And my new.

No. I don't want a coil. My periods have stopped, years ago.

plus I had a sterilisation straight after Ds2, donkeys years ago, for health reasons.

Why is the implant so poor? HRT feels like is isn't given any financial backing, no technological progression.

The combined patch (estrogen + progestin) might work.

Which one is that please? I could ask for that.

@Oblomov21

Actually Hells, now I've checked it was patches. And Estradiol AND norethisterone.

Do maybe that was ok?

Here is my old. And my new.

You have had a combined patch. Evorel conti :) You have also had a combined pill- Kliofem. The medical advice is you give each of these 3 months to see if they work. You shouldn't have been given a new type so quickly, if that's what happened (ie after a month.)

It would take far too long to explain about the implant and I'd only be posting what I've read, written by consultants- you might like to google and find that. Even if you were to have an implant you would need to take a tablet, or have the coil as the progesterone part.

Have you read the links in my previous post? They might be helpful.

Hi I’m new to mumsnet but reading about side effects of HRT is a little helpful for me as I only started mine a week ago but feel awful.
I’ve been started on 2 pumps of gel in the morning and progesterone tablets for second half of my cycle but I’m not sure I will get to that part as the gel is making me feel very poorly, so tired and body aches which I had before but I think the gel has made it worse.
Please can someone tell me it gets easier 🥲

I'm perimenopausal now for 5 years and jus lt 40. I was taking hrt gel for a year and not working as was hoping it would reduce my night sweats and stop making me so emotional and angry. My gp put me on het patches 2 months ago and now I have piled on a stone and a half in these months mainly around the stomach area. Feeling so rubbish in myself and still getting night sweats amd depression. Does anyone recommend any herbal remedies that may help with night sweats and even digestion ?

Hi guys. I’ve been taking the gel and pill form of HRT. I have the continuous pull I take all the time for a about 10 weeks. The only thing I have been experiencing is breathlessness and a heavy chest. Is this anyone else has experienced??