Taking HRT if I don't need it?

[WokeFest]

About 4 years ago (age 47) I was in a really bad peri-menopausal place. I ended up seeing a private consultant and she said I had quite severe symptoms. It was mainly anxiety, depression, periods that lasted 3 weeks with 2 weeks between them and flooding. It was awful. She gave me estrogen gel (yam) and progesterone tablets. I took these for 2 months but the progesterone made me feel really awful and low. I then went to my doctor's surgery and asked for a Mirena coil to replace the progesterone (after reading this). Within days I was a different person. I kept forgetting to take the estrogen and in the end, I stopped taking it.

So, for the past 2 and a half years I have had a Mirena coil and not taken any HRT. I haven't had a period since, due to the coil, and I only very rarely get a hint of a period, not even enough for a tampon.

A lot of my friends are on HRT now and are telling me that it is essential for bone density, reduces strokes, osteoporosis, etc. Along with the coil, I have lost 2 stones, got super fit, and really taken care of myself. I feel amazing, better than I did 15 years ago. Right now I don't "need" HRT.

So, my Q's are;

1. Should I be taking it anyway to stave off what my friends describe?

2. Is it OK for me just to be on the Mirena Coil and have the small levels of progesterone in my system without the estrogen? I know younger women do for contraception, but I am now 51 and I am a bit concerned I am just taking the progesterone and not balancing this out and this could be harmful.

1 Your average GP is unlikely to give you HRT as a preventative treatment anyway. You'd have to say you had menopausal symptoms.
A private meno specialist is likely to prescribe if you want to use it for long term health.

2 What you DO need is a bone density scan. You won't know when you periods stopped as you are using the Mirena. If they stopped well before 51/52 you'd be classed as having a slightly early menopause.

That's a risk factor for osteoporosis.

Bone density can fall off very fast in the first 5 years after the last period.

Again, your GP may not be willing to send you for a bone scan.
But you can pay for one yourself privately. Costs vary anything from around £150-£200 and they need doing every 3 years so it's not a huge cost if you spread it out over 3 years.