Anyone choosing NOT to use HRT?

[WandaWomblesaurus73]

Does anyone feel that HRT isn't for them or feel happier without it?

@Newgirls

Was that recently rocking?

That advice would be out of date now for most women.

No it was about 10 years ago. I know this is a regular debate on MN, and have therefore looked into it more recently and discussed with GP friends, consensus being that long term use is still considered to increase the risk. And once you start taking it it can be hard to stop. But everyone has to make their own decisions based on their interpretation of the facts available at the time.

I swore I would never take HRT because I had a bad time with the pill. I viewed the menopause as a natural part of life and we are designed to cope with it.... Then I started getting symptoms. Raging temper, hideous night sweats, insomnia, feeling like I was losing my mind, etc etc, I am a 'get on with type of person' but the symptoms floored me. Eventually I succumbed and gave HRT a try. I wouldn't say it has been a miracle cure but it has drastically reduced my symptoms. I am more 'me'. I am not evangelical about HRT but I would say give it a go if symptoms are making you miserable.

I too had a terrible time on the pill in my early twenties and thought I’d never get on with HRT. I decided to give it a go when I was suffering so much with menopausal symptoms. I’ve been on Everol Conti for about 10 months and it’s absolutely changed my life for the better, my sleep has improved dramatically, hot flushes disappeared, my concentration is better, itchy skin has gone and the most surprising thing- my bunion pain has completely gone.

@RockingMyFiftiesNot - thanks for your posts. Not interrogating your decision at all re HRT but am curious what was meant by 'once you start taking it it's hard to stop' - sorry I don't understand what is meant there?

@JinglingHellsBells

It's a really promising document as it addresses everything being discussed here and was published 3 day ago! How exciting! :)

Read pages 3 and 4, and look at their ideas for all women to have a really thorough MOT at 45, and make them aware of everything that they can do to improve their health.

There are also stats there on osteoporosis, which confirm a lot of what I posted earlier.

Do read it as it's great to see something like this actually out there, at last!

That would be great! A proper mot at 45. I think mine was a phone call at 50 which was rubbish really. What can they work out from that?

An MOT at 45 is such a brilliant idea. I would happily have taken HRT if it had been offered to me when I needed it most which was perimeno - from 50-55. My life absolutely fell apart. I thought it was depression and GP wouldn't offer HRT - still not sure why when same GP offered it to friends. I survived the symptoms and came out the other side feeling amazing but honestly 5 years of my life and DC's adolescence were wiped out with brain fog and exhaustion.

I also wanted to share ( only if it helps anyone who is already inclined to look into HRT but who has had a bad experience with hormonal contraception)

I had not a great time on various combined and mini pills in the last ( 20s / 30s) and assumed that HRT would be broadly the same since it is after all oestrogen and progesterone.

The difference ( which o hadn't appreciated) is that the type of oestrogens and progestins available in HRT can include a type called 'body identical' ( made from yams weirdly).

It is a different composition to the very potent synthetic hormones in my oral contraceptives and is metabolized properly by the body since it is identical to the natural oestrogen and progesterones that your body made by itself.

It's so much better and I hadn't appreciated that there was anything to distinguish different oestrogens and progestins.

Only sharing not to persuade but to reassure anyone that was already interested but had similiarly had poor experiences with contraceptives

Does anyone else get invitations to general check ups? Just due to being in forties

@MarshaBradyo - no ( 45) I get invited to asthma reviews and smear tests - that's it

Got one at 40
A few years ago now !

Just popping in to reiterate some points as people are piling in having not read the full thread or have forgotten what they have read.

*You don't need a private bone scan. They are available on the NHS if necessary.

*If your GP is unhelpful all you need to do is insist on a referral to a menopause clinic. It is your right to be referred and no fees are involved.

*You have not "sailed through" the menopause. The major menopausal problems appear in the late 60s and beyond by which time going on oestrogen is no longer an option.

*Why would someone say it is difficult to stop HRT? You simply taper off the dose, so you half the amount of say gel then half it again then use that amount every second day and so on. However if you are taking oestrogen and feel wonderful then on reducing your dose you start feeling dreadful you won't want to stop. Your "dreadful" is what those who have gone cold turkey have been living with but you have experienced a better quality of life. Unless contraindicated for you HRT can be for life.

^^ so useful thanks

Also worth reading Maisie Hills book Peri Menopause Power. She covers this whole topic in detail inc diet, exercise, supplements, hrt, how to talk to your GP etc.

@Esspee, reading it and believing it, though, is a different matter.

I can't remember any discussion on methods of taking oestrogen. The scare stories of yesteryear relate to high dosage oral HRT.
When you take it by mouth the medication first goes through the liver. It removes much of it so you need a high dose to cope with the "first pass through the liver".
If your doctor is up to date you will most likely be prescribed transdermal HRT so usually gel - a few scooshes rubbed on your thighs every day or patches - something like a corn plaster placed on your bottom and changed twice a week or an implant where a tiny pellet is inserted under your skin twice a year.
Other methods pop up from time to time but these are the most common.

[quote whowhywhenwhat]**@Esspee, reading it and believing it, though, is a different matter.[/quote]
I don't understand what you are referring to. PM me if you like. Can't answer until evening as very busy today.

@Esspee, not much really, apart from you present the quotations as if they are fact in every case. Some people just need to discuss individual complexities more to ascertain how relevant / believable they are for every individual.

[quote missfliss]@RockingMyFiftiesNot - thanks for your posts. Not interrogating your decision at all re HRT but am curious what was meant by 'once you start taking it it's hard to stop' - sorry I don't understand what is meant there? [/quote]
There are lots of benefits of HRT in alleviating the effects of peri menopause. If you then stop you have to deal with all the symptoms again when you've spent a few years having them managed by medication. So I'm guessing that's what the GP meant by people finding it hard to stop.

You have not "sailed through" the menopause. The major menopausal problems appear in the late 60s and beyond by which time going on oestrogen is no longer an option.

Is this true for everyone on a blanket basis?

@RockingMyFiftiesNot I don't think that's entirely accurate ( but accept I could be wrong). Taking HRT doesn't take you back to square one if you stop - it just means that you experience any symptoms that you would have done anyway at that stage ( so you might well have bypassed a long period of peri symptoms for example - and some people seem to say that post menopause they were ok).

But - full transparency from me - I will take it as long as possible

Last post from me -

I know there have been some opposing views and challenging statements on this thread.

Clearly your body your choice is number 1 foundation for any engagement with HRT or not.

I hope at the very very least that this thread has helped people want to find out more for themselves whatever they choose to do.

Self advocacy is a powerful thing.

@whowhywhenwhat

*@Esspee*, not much really, apart from you present the quotations as if they are fact in every case. Some people just need to discuss individual complexities more to ascertain how relevant / believable they are for every individual.

Absolutely. Everybody is different. My worry is that the people who decide to go “cold turkey” and put up with the early symptoms - flushes etc. will later regret it as the truly negative results of low oestrogen levels are the ones which you become aware of in your latter years. NOW is the time to do your research.

My friends suffer from osteoporosis, vaginal atrophy, prolapse, low libido, depression, sleep problems, osteoarthritis, vaginal atrophy and incontinence. Most of these things are rarely spoken about but good friends discuss them. We are of the sixties generation with the advent of the pill etc and more likely to discuss such things unlike our mothers for whom menopause was a taboo subject.

If you learn the facts now then you can never say as you hit your 70s “if only I had known this could happen”. Not everyone will be affected but so many are. From my small sample of friends most have at least one issue connected with oestrogen deprivation. The three of us still on HRT have none.

HRT isn’t for everyone. Only a medical professional can guide you but please don’t take the ostrich approach and hope it never happens to you. You will get old and quality of life is so important.

@MarshaBradyo

You have not "sailed through" the menopause. The major menopausal problems appear in the late 60s and beyond by which time going on oestrogen is no longer an option.

Is this true for everyone on a blanket basis?

No but the number of older women suffering from the conditions I listed, (I should have added dementia/Alzheimer’s) is vast. Not everyone gets them but most seem to suffer from sleep problems - which they willingly discuss, and many suffer from stress incontinence - which fewer discuss due to embarrassment. Osteoporosis is extremely common. What I would ask is that you do the research before you decide then listen to a medical professional who is sympathetic to your concerns. Don’t dismiss menopause as natural. It’s a killer in the long run but may be contraindicated for you.

[quote missfliss]@RockingMyFiftiesNot I don't think that's entirely accurate ( but accept I could be wrong). Taking HRT doesn't take you back to square one if you stop - it just means that you experience any symptoms that you would have done anyway at that stage ( so you might well have bypassed a long period of peri symptoms for example - and some people seem to say that post menopause they were ok).

But - full transparency from me - I will take it as long as possible [/quote]
Yea fair comment. Too late for me now! I made the decision I did based on the information available to me then and that's all any of us can ever do.

Don’t dismiss menopause as natural. It’s a killer in the long run

@ArabellaScott

Don’t dismiss menopause as natural. It’s a killer in the long run

Yep get your point @ArabellaScott. I went over the top there.

My mother died a horrible death and had extremely poor quality of life in her latter years as her bones crumbled and my aunt died of dementia. Her last 10 years were horribly undignified as she didn’t know who she was and everything had to be done for her as she was as strong as a horse.
I made sure I took advantage of all the medical advances and because the subject is still not widely talked about I try to alert perimenopausal women to the fact that if it is appropriate for you HRT is life changing.