Anyone watching Davina: sex, mind and menopauseon c4

[Meltinthemiddle]

Really interesting and relatable.

To facilitate further research into the effects of menopause and HRT on cognition, mood and dementia, and the wider role of androgens such as testosterone in women."

So they are saying they support further research into the cognitive effects of testosterone (as well as HRT.)

I thought the GP that said we lose 3 hormones but only replace 2 so where’s the logic in that made a lot of sense. The 3 women trialing testosterone and the benefits they noticed were interesting. I think one of the three didn’t mention libido at all? Just increased mental sharpness and clarity. Maybe you just have to persuade your GP that flagging libido is genuinely your top priority out of the 34 menopause symptoms and get try testosterone yourself to see if it benefits you. 🤷‍♀️

Well yes so they should!

@Fififizz thats what I’m intending to do once my thyroid level checks are completed! I’ve been on HRT for 5yrs and when I first mentioned loss of libido I was fobbed off with “oh you just need a weekend away from your kids!” ffs… so when I asked for HRT I went with the nice guidelines and got oestrogen perscribed no issues but didn’t even occur to me to ask about testosterone until recently when I saw it being discussed. It really does feel like at times going to the GP is the last resort after you have done all the research yourself and then ask for the drugs you need!

Yes, I know what you mean. My libido has been missing for a long time and HRT didn’t bring it back. I’m wondering about testosterone too but I’m also wondering about my thyroid. I was great on HRT from 50 to 53, apart from the libido problem, but I’ve recently fallen off a cliff. Brain fog is back, apathy, low mood, dry eyes. I have private HRT and the clinic said previously my HRT was a ‘top up’ of my own hormones but now I’m properly in the menopause and so not producing my own hormones. What I’m on HRT wise isn’t working hence my wondering about thyroid/testosterone too. It feels like a minefield. My TSH is 2.87 so within the ‘normal’ range but I feel rubbish and have a truckload of symptoms for hypothyroidism so I’ve bought a home test to try and gather information to go back to the GP with. I just can’t seem to galvanise myself to do the test now.

Yes I too was reflecting that I feel like I’ve gone off a cliff the last6-month. Tired all the bloody time, my exercise has dropped off, (I did a bloomin 14mile trail run event & 2xHM runs last year & now I struggle to walk 3m with the dog 🙄) I “feel weak” &gained a stone, sleep issues… I could go on. My sister also crashed out of life at this age and it took another 3yrs (not on HRT), for her to slowly emerge out the other side. But she completely stopped work, only has one child and spends her time pottering around her allotment instead. I don’t have that option to ‘drop out’ as much as I’d like to!

Amazing programme and i was shocked that hrt is now seen as the norm whereas i thought it was a risk re cancer.
My friend is on it and feels great. She has a new bf and no dry vagina etc and looks fab .
I went thro menopause about 6 years ago. At that time hrt was seen as risky . I only had a few hot flushes, tiredness( but have thyroid issues so thought it was that) brain fog. Periods just stopped. Sleep not affected Felt liberated from.period dysmorphia so this was a better life than pre meno.. however, in the light of all the advabtages.. is ot now too late for hrt( i was sensitive to estrogen hence my horrendous period dysmorphia ) ?

@Gherkingreen From my experience of being on HRT for 20 months & from being in other menopause communities, it can take a fair bit of trial & error to get to a good place. Especially if in the throws of peri menopause or early post menopause as own hormones are still fluctuating all over the place & haven't settled, which also brings on symptoms & stress to the body. It took me several months of dose increases & changing type to start to feel real difference + adding in testosterone was the game changer. But I've had to take way above the licensed dose to get to the best place :) And still not fully back to normal. For some women, they can be lucky & HRT works brilliantly within a couple of months, but I think this is pretty rare in peri. What I've realised is that it's just important to make lifestyle changes to help with symptoms, along with the HRT, as relying on HRT to fix everything in this stage of the transition is a bit over optimistic. x

I've read the XX Brain my Dr Mosconi (recommend it :) & they omitted from the documentary the third scan she took of a post-menopause women. This shows that the brain does adapt after menopause & energy increases again, although not back to pre-menopause level. The way they only presented the 2 scans, I'm afraid everyone will think the brain stays like the peri-menopausal brain & start panicking that they are doomed. As a former news journalist, the TV producer who made the documentary should have been more responsible & told the whole story. But at least it might spark more debate & research.

*@Worriedoncemore It is true that estrogen can promote fibroid growth. But it's something that should be monitored, rather than HRT being refused.

Also, the part of the programme about dementia was very sketchy.

I do believe that estrogen helps the brain in many ways BUT the interview with those US drs was sadly lacking in any real information. They didn't discuss a trial, numbers of women, brain changes that might show a reduction in dementia- nothing. I found them rather annoying TBH as they seemed rather short on real science AND they also mentioned that they were developing a pill ( a supplement) so that raised my suspicions of their intentions.

I think if you raise it with your GP they are likely to say the jury is still out on the benefits to dementia, and maybe even quote the latest Finnish study which I think was a meta analysis and showed nothing conclusive.*

@JinglingHellsBells thank you. I saw the gynacologist yesterday. She hadn't seen the programme but said she will probably watch it even though it might make her cross! She had heard about the Alzheimer's link and was very sceptical as still much more research to be done. She added her own mother has Alzheimer's and took HRT for years, as did mine (as my sister reminded me) so certainly didn't work for them! She said she's a big fan of HRT and wouldn't rule it out for me although the fibroids make it more complicated so it's a case of weighing up the pros & cons. She's writing to my GP as something to consider instead of bloody anti-Ds!

I just started watching it. Very interesting.

Wish she’d stop gurning though, and I think it was a eyerolling move to shoehorn in the compulsory comment about ‘non binary and trans people’ comment in at the end. You just don’t mess with peri woman.

Have recorded it. It's about time the whole topic is discussed more.

Gosh, that’s exactly how I feel. I was chugging along ok and it’s all just ground to a halt. I feel tired and lethargic, have a ‘weak’ feeling in my muscles, sort of dragging my backside through the day. Interesting what you say about your sister and her age.

So glad I watched the documentary, really fascinating to understand more of what is coming for me, and so I can help other women in my team too. Very proud of my male boss for giving me the nudge today to watch it as he gained so much from it.

@Worriedoncemore Read the XX Brain by Lisa Mosconi (the Dr in the programme), as the book goes into more detail about the research. She also did a Ted Talk which is available.on You Tube. X

@Worriedoncemore Mosconi in her Ted Talk actually says there isn't enough scientific data & evidence that HRT prevents dementia, & further research is needed into HRT. But the documentary I think missed this out for the sensationalist aspect they wanted to provoke from the doc & due to all the headlines around this now, it worked!

She's also in this pod cast

https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-doctors-kitchen-podcast/id1316938642?i=1000483424285

A lot of this one is about research about diet and the brain and menopause; essentially "plant forward" with plant based foods that are high protein and fibre. She's not fully against meat and touches on full fat dairy seeming to show some positive effect and thumbs up to dark chocolate and red wine

I got her book after hearing this and her Ted as I found it useful to nudge me into some better eating habits before I knew I could get hrt.

There's so little evidence hence why they've set up the woman's brain health consortium. A lot of it is observational.

We have to be careful saying ‘there’s not enough evidence’ and conflating that with ‘so maybe don’t take hrt’. The scandal is that there isn’t enough research for something that impacts 50% of the population. We know for a fact that dementia affects women more than men. The research needs to speed up and fast.

Is there much coming out if other countries does anyone know?

in terms of research and impacts etc and HRT

Watched it. Found it ok, just. Agree with sensationalist of American Doctors.
"The research needs to speed up and fast." Bet that won't happen.

Surely even women that dont need hrt should be taking it for the health benefits then?
I dont take it as ive been mainly ok, but am i increasing my risk of alzheimers etc by not taking it??

Im really confused.

Unless other countries have better studies I feel like we are the substitute trial group

we’ll know in a couple of decades what this upswing in HRT brings

I feel equally stuck on this

*Surely even women that dont need hrt should be taking it for the health benefits then?
I dont take it as ive been mainly ok, but am i increasing my risk of alzheimers etc by not taking it??

Im really confused*

me too. This whole narrative seems to be hrt is so amazing and the benefits are x, y, and z, nobody seems to be addressing the negatives.

if you are struggling with menopause and symptomatic then it would appear that the positives clearly outweigh any risks.

but I can’t figure out whether for women like me, whether I should be demanding hrt. It would be purely because I’m 50, rather than any signs or symptoms of menopause yet.

Ahh to get a GP appointment is the first challenge. As for HRT .

Had symptoms- nausea, retching, intense tingling in hands & feet, passed out in the bath for half an hour due to hormone rush. Female GP sympathetic but just prescribed anti sickness tablets for the nausea .