Worsening moods in 40’s - please explain hrt

[Ceetee23]

Hello
My main and disabling symptom is depression, often quite severe, which hits over ovulation then I get a reprieve until the week before my period and into period until the reprieve happens again.

I haven’t always been like this. It’s getting worse as I age and I’m now 42.

I have the Mirena coil which I’ve had since 2018. I doubt it’s this as I get the times I feel good/ok in my cycle. I tried Cerelle the mini pill and it made me feel suicidal.

I was wondering about trying oestrogen. Could someone explain whether this is what tends to happen as you enter peri, that the lows or changes in hormones become more pronounced and can affect mood? As I say it’s not all the time.

Would adding oestrogen make these lows less pronounced?

It doesn’t feel like I get oestrogen spikes yet and no flushes. Periods regular as still get a scanty bleed on Mirena and I have a 25 day ish cycle. It just feels like the lows are a hell of a lot lower than they used to be.

My FSH has measured 6 and 8 at different points over the last year.

My oestrogen (know unreliable but they checked due to my age) were 79 pmol on day 3, 432 just post ovulation and 102 just before period

I’m 39 and perimenopausal and have just started on hrt (almost 3 weeks ago). It’s early days yet, but already I feel like I’m not having the massive hormonal swings like I was before, am sleeping better, and have a bit more energy. Actually woke up cold in the night too once rather than hot and sweaty, which was good!

Hi were you confirmed peri by tests or how you felt? Did you get low moods too? I don’t feel like the term low mood cuts it but that’s the term always used isn’t it! Mine is more god awful hopeless depression.

What hrt are you trying out? Thanks for replying.

I guess I’m trying to work out if the huge lows can be boosted with oestrogen or if just the fact the levels lower is enough to make women feel rubbish. I wasn’t sure if this was the pattern women usually feel in peri

I think all you can do @Ceetee23 is try it. We all react so differently, so personal accounts only go so far to help.
With the Mirena all you need do is add estrogen. Maybe try it for 3 months and see how you feel? You can't work it out by thinking about it, really it's a case of suck it and see.

@Ceetee23 my gp was happy to do bloods because of the combination of my age, family history of early menopause and symptoms. She’s new to the practice and this was my first interaction with her. I’d actually phoned up to ask for a blood test for iron deficiency (tried to give blood and they rejected me due to iron levels), mentioned peri and she was happy to add the blood test on (had to have 2 as they do it over a couple of months). She was fantastic- knowledgeable and helpful, but more than that I felt really listened to.

For me, my lowest point was a couple of years ago - when I saw my gp then I had some of the early symptoms, but some others too, and she recommended I speak to someone before we investigated further.

I ended up having EDMR therapy for PTSD, which has been life changing for me. It’s also meant that for me, I wasn’t living in a continuous ‘fog’, and could really pinpoint the hormonal ups and downs as they ‘felt’ different.

I’ve found CBD useful for stress and anxiety. I thought that I could manage the menopausal symptoms naturally, so for me it was more the long term benefits that I wanted the hrt for, especially as I’m so young, but I feel like it’s making a positive difference in my life now too. I supposed this could be all in my head, as it’s only early days, but I don’t really care if it works!

Have a look at the Daisy network - they have links to the NICE guidelines, which I think is useful to have in front of you when talking to a GP in case they don’t listen.

I’m on the oestrogen patch (continuous), then also take progesterone for 21 days a month so I should still have regular periods - it’s been prescribed this way because of my age. I’ve also got vaginal oestrogen, which there was a 2 week loading dose and is now twice weekly.

@oreosoreosoreos can I asked which cbd you found helpful for anxiety please? I've had a look online but it's hard to know where to start!

Thanks all. It does seem to be suck it and see as you say.
I’m glad it’s helping you Oreo!

Do moods around ovulation and pre period generally worsen with age and when you’re in peri? I wasn’t sure if hrt would just make the highs higher but the lows not any better.