Estrogel is FREEZING COLD!!!

[Pegs11]

Hi, does anyone else find estrogel really difficult and uncomfortable to apply in winter because of how friggin’ COLD the gel is? I find the whole thing really unpleasant. I’m on 4 pumps, twice a day so that’s a lot of very cold gel on my thighs to be dealing with. I find you can’t even warm up straight away afterward because you can’t get dressed properly until it’s dry. I don’t know if you can warm the bottle of gel up first on the radiator or by running it under a warm tap, or if that would compromise the ingredients. Has anyone found the same issue and have you found any solution?

PS - I know it’s not winter yet but this year I would like to be better prepared if possible!

I hate it. My flat is freezing so in winter it’s a shock to the system. It takes so long to dry as well. Do you rub it in? I rub it in as much as I cam to try shorten the drying time but it still takes ages. I only apply two pumps once a day so don’t have to face the zone of cold twice.

Vagifem pessaries are good. Could you use those instead? I am guessing this is for vaginal atrophy/oestrogen replacement. I was prescribed some sort of cream to begin with. What a mess! Complete nightmare.

@BajanB I’m sorry you are having this experience too! It really sucks. It’s worth it for the quality of life it’s given me but it’s the only thing I’ve found so far that works.

That being said, @endofthelinefinally I haven’t tried the vagifem pessaries. I did try the patches a few months ago and they were completely ineffective and I got quite unwell on them. I’ve just started feeling better again after going back to the gel, it took months to get back to where I was and so I don’t plan on potentially rocking the boat again by experimenting with other HRT types.

I only changed to the patches in the first place because of how fed up I was with applying the gel! But as said above, it’s totally worth it for my well-being. Just wish there was a way of avoiding the cold as it’s horrid! I put up with it but wonder if I can warm it up first…

I’ve tried so many forms of HRT since the one I happily used for 6 years stopped being manufactured. I’m on utrogeston Tablets and oestrogel but this combo has started giving me periods again complete with PMT which at 60 is ridiculous. If what you’re using works for you you’re definitely wise to stick with it. I wonder if you phoned your pharmacist they could tell you if you can warm the gel first or store it in an airing cupboard or somewhere else warm. It is a shock to the system to apply and as you say you can’t get dressed (and by extension warm) till it’s dried.

@Pegs11 The leaflet says store under 25C so warming it is not a good idea. It's also full of alcohol.

You're using a lot.

Have you thought about dividing the dose, am and pm?

I use a small amount- 1 pump some days, 2 on others. I apply am and pm. So all I'm spreading is 1 pump between two thighs. I pump it into my palm and divide it then spread on my skin.

i have started rubbing mine in very vigorously, there was a link on another thread with the HRT expert giving it large rubbing hers into her upper arms and recommending that

when i was smoothing it on inner thighs it took forever to dry so I was blasting it with the hairdryer.

I must say I’ve thought about speeding the drying process up with the hairdryer but thought I’d better not. I do rub it in well but I have very short arms so it’s still quite a lot of gel in a small area. The instructions said to apply it to forearms which seemed a bit odd as the instruction leaflet doesn’t mention that area.

@JinglingHellsBells I do 4 pumps in the morning and 4 in the evening. That’s the therapeutic dose for me, after a lot of trial and error. If I take any less, I get symptoms 😕

It’s not that big a deal, in the big scheme of things, putting up with the coldness. It’s just that if there was any way of making it easier on me, I’d want to find out about it 😊

I was told to apply it to my thighs so it can get to where it needs to go, I haven’t been told I can use it on my arms but if I could spread the gels between my arms and my thighs this might make things easier for me.

Oh god l stopped using it for this very reason OP
Went on tablets instead so no advice but you have my sympathy x

[quote Pegs11]@JinglingHellsBells I do 4 pumps in the morning and 4 in the evening. That’s the therapeutic dose for me, after a lot of trial and error. If I take any less, I get symptoms 😕

It’s not that big a deal, in the big scheme of things, putting up with the coldness. It’s just that if there was any way of making it easier on me, I’d want to find out about it 😊

I was told to apply it to my thighs so it can get to where it needs to go, I haven’t been told I can use it on my arms but if I could spread the gels between my arms and my thighs this might make things easier for me.[/quote]
Good grief that's loads!

It's absorbed by fat cells so that is why they say inner thigh and back of upper arms.

Read the info sheets on Dr Louise Newson's site- I think she says it can be put anywhere almost (not breasts) but like tummy and bum cheeks.

@JinglingHellsBells yes, it’s a lot but I was told both by my private menopause specialist and an NHS consultant that this dose was ok. If I take less than that, I tend to bleed all the time and get fatigued.

It may be different for me than for some other ladies, as I am 41 and went through surgical menopause aged 32, and at my age I apparently still need a lot of the oestrogen hormone in order to keep well, have enough energy etc.

Not sure I’d enjoy the cold gel on my tummy but I think my bum could handle it 🤣 I certainly think it will dry quicker if I can spread it over a greater surface area.

Could you give it a quick blast with the hairdryer to dry it and warm you up? I know the bottle has to be kept below 25 degrees
but surely once it's on your body that's not relevant?

I never knew that about the fat cells @JinglingHellsBells, I'd been applying mine to inner arm thinking the skin was thinner there!

Also, why apply twice a day? Does it help with sleep if applied at night?

@BajanB surely if your periods have stopped, you shouldn't be in utrogestan,? That's for premenopausal women who still have periods and makes you produce then shed the lining. Sounds like you are on the wrong stuff. Only need estrogen post menopause ( and maybe testosterone, depending).

Every woman who still has a womb and is taking estrogen MUST take progesterone @Opentooffers. Estrogen makes the endometrium thicken, the progesterone keeps the thickening under control by either causing a bleed in cyclical HRT or counter acting the daily estrogen in continuous HRT. If the endometrium thickening is not kept in check it can become cancerous. Lots of women are progesterone intolerant (like me) but if they have a womb you have to still take it regardless, as either the Mirena coil, combined patches, combined HRT tablets or Utrogestan. The only women who can stop/don't need progesterone are those that have had a hysterectomy.

I put it on my upper arms - only 2 pumps though.

@Rina66 I'm not on progesterone - I still have regular periods so my consultant said I didn't need to take the progesterone yet.

Are you using the estrogen everyday @HelenHywater? I was given 50mg patches for PMT 5 years ago by a consultant but only for the two weeks after ovulation, so no progesterone was needed, but I was led to believe if you are taking it daily you had to have progesterone with it? I would love not to have to take progesterone but because I use continuous estrogen now no doctor has ever agreed to that for me.

Yes every day.

Initially he put me on progesterone every day, but when I questioned him about this, he said I don't need it because I'm still having regular periods and to give it a try without the progesterone. I use 2 pumps a day of the Oestrogel. I feel really good actually, but it's the first month of oestrogel only so I haven't had a period yet.

@HelenHywater

Yes every day.

Initially he put me on progesterone every day, but when I questioned him about this, he said I don't need it because I'm still having regular periods and to give it a try without the progesterone. I use 2 pumps a day of the Oestrogel. I feel really good actually, but it's the first month of oestrogel only so I haven't had a period yet.

@HelenHywater This isn't right.

Estrogen as HRT is only licensed for use with a progesterone unless you have had a hysterectomy.

Just because you are having a period doesn't mean you are ovulating each month or that enough progesterone is being produced to control the growth of the lining.

You need to query this with your dr. He doesn't sound as if he knows what he's doing.

I'm getting really worried about this doctor @JinglingHellsBells - he's the one you recommended!

Really @HelenHywater? Is this maybe a short term thing to be adapted later on? I guess he must have made a judgement on your situation knowing more details than we do. I will PM you.

Well he just said see how it goes this month. I feel fab actually, but slightly concerned my period won't ever come now. Maybe he thinks I've got enough progesterone?!

That makes more sense now @HelenHywater.

@Rina66 Thanks for that explanation, shows I obviously have a lot to still learn around this

Me too @Opentooffers! I think we're all just learning as we navigate our way through this. There's so much conflicting and inaccurate information and we're supposed to believe and trust in what our GP's are telling us, when the reality is lots of them know less than we do re menopause.