I'm going to stop HRT

[HoliHormonalTigerlilly]

And see what happens.

I'm so fed up of thinking about it the whole time. Been on it 6 months.

I feel enormous. My aches & pains have come back (despite increasing oestrogen.

I'm feeling anxious, palpitations. I have sore gums again. And I HATE the progesterone phase.

Think I'm going to give my body a break & do loads of exercise.

Then maybe try another type of HRT if I don't feel any better.

Eeek. Wish me luck!

Don’t just stop you’ll feel even worse! Gradually decrease to stop or change. Speak to your doctor it’s not good for your body to stop and start constantly.

I wish you luck whatever you do. And update us? I'm truly interested in how things go for individuals.

There's a book I've just read called the Hormone Repair Manual, which seems very even handed about HRT, but also identifies alternatives for the menopause/perimenopause in general and for specific symptoms. I am also possibly coming off it or reducing it, at least in the short term, because of endometrial thickening and will be trying some of the suggestions in the book.

Hi , I wondered how you got on stopping the hrt ? I have stopped yesterday after 6 months on it … same reasons as you x

Ive been on it 5 months and am going to stop it. I only went on it for my bladder issues and anxiety. I have no other symptoms. The bladder issue has been helped by a tablet from the dr, the anxiety went away for the first few weeks then just returned as normal. My gp said i could increase the patches but i can see it happening again and again and I'll be on the 100 patches and not feel much better. Ive been reading up on if and might try cbt again to tackle the anxiety. Im going to gradually reduce the patches amount by cutting them in half.

@RoRollergirl1974 , how are you stopping? Im on the 50 patches and i thought of just decreasing them gradually by cutting them in half.

Have you had your thyroid checked? Thyroid disorder and perimenopause symptoms overlap quite a bit - weight gain, depression, anxiety, aches and pains, gum and mouth problems could be thyroid -related

I think it's worth a good go and is life-changing for some, but for others, it isn't, I've tried 3 different forms of HRT and given up, it's just not for me, I had tummy pain and nausea all the time, which I never had on the progesterone only pill. Anxiety I had but a low dose anti-depressant has helped hugely with that.

I'm a big believer in knowing your own body and what suits it, what your weaknesses are and so on, I feel better off HRT, I'm pretty sure the oestrogen isn't for me (having had endometriosis). It's extremely annoying as I need the bone protection but so be it. Good luck (and I would wean off, not just stop).

I was on the gel and tablets . Just stopped using the gel last night x

@RRollergirl1974 , are you stopping it all at once? Im on just the patches, for 5 months. Not sure what's the best thing to do, theres lots of conflicting advice out there.

I was just about to start a thread on the same topic. Sat here feeling so worried due to the bleeding and had enough. Meno lady says it's because of a change from gel to patches and my oestrogen probably too high (it was 600-700 in November). I was fine on gel, not a spot in sight.
Went on HRT due to nothing major but thought I should try, I wish I'd never started right now as I've had no benefit from it.
I know I should speak to GP about bleeding (I have an appt next week) but am just so stressed about so many relatives dying of cancer recently that I'm paranoid, and just want to chuck it all in the bin and get my body back to how it was.
Any advice on how to come off it would be great. I was on 4 pumps, just started 3 today to try and reduce oestrogen levels. No idea how long it takes to reduce

I just stopped taking the tablets and the gel at once . My nurse said it was safe to do so. Getting headaches since though 🥺

I didn't stop in the end I changed HRT.
Went from spray to patches, as the amount of oestrogen allowed is higher. Just increased from 50 to 75 and am waiting to see result.

Oh have also added testosterone and oestrogen creme internally.

My chemist exclaimed "good lord lady, if I shake you, you'll rattle!" upon handing over my last prescription. I told her that was an odd thing for a chemist to say 🤣

'My chemist exclaimed "good lord lady, if I shake you, you'll rattle!" upon handing over my last prescription. I told her that was an odd thing for a chemist to say'

Odd thing and massively unprofessional! Wtf is wrong with these people. Glad you've seen the funny side but seriously dispensing chemists should not be saying crap like this.

Reminds me of the lady serving me at Greggs saying to me "Why do you buy coffee everyday its cheaper at home"

Went from spray to patches, as the amount of oestrogen allowed is higher. Just increased from 50 to 75 and am waiting to see result.

The licensed dose of gel is up to 4 pumps.
2 pumps = aprrox the same as a 50mcg patch
3 pumps = approx 75mcg patch
4 pumps = approx 100mcgs patch

All the options are here- the different estrogen only patches and gel equivalents are on page 4 (ish)

thebms.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/HRT-Equivalent-preparations-28.4.21.pdf