Utrogestan hopelessness

[Moredarkchocolateplease]

I have just finished my third round of utrogestan.

I feel absolutely hopeless. Like nothing will ever get better again. I feel numb. I am crying, can barely be civil with my family, am livid about everything and I'm swearing at the dog. I'm utterly exhausted too, the deep sleep makes me so lethargic.

I felt like this in month one and two but then increased my oestrogen for month three and felt amazing for a week and hoped it might over ride the progesterone depression.

This is how I have felt on three different pills and to an extent even in my natural cycle I would have days like this around ovulation. But everyone said body identical is gold standard.

Have you felt like this and if so what option worked best/would you go for?

Vaginal application of the utrogestan
The coil
Another kind of progestin
Stopping HRT despite how amazing I felt for one week out of the 12!

Thanks in advance for any useful feedback!

@JinglingSpringbells the canistan applicator is great, never had an issue as it seems to be a perfect fit. Did by cheaper ones online which were of no use. I never know how far i need to go tho, it says online around 2inches in, i dont feel thats far enough. 🤷🏻‍♀️
Cant you get them through your Gp? Rather than paying privately? Or do you feel you have better care whilst private, scans & bloods etc.
I was on the brink of going private and gp finally prescribed after a few years of nagging.

I read this earlier and have been letting it sink in and I wonder if this is why I feel so awful. I'm irritable and depressed, but not the kind of depression I've experienced in the past, which was a kind of numbness. This is a hopeless, tearful, desperate feeling.

I had assumed it was menopause but maybe it's the progesterone? I don't know which way is up tbh, menopause itself has been emotionally very difficult for me so it's hard to separate that out.

Sorry OP, nothing to add but my solidarity.

@crispinglovershighkick - I think it's highly likely it is the Utrogestan - the emotions you are feeling sound just like how I feel on it orally. And yes very different from my experience of normal depression type feeling, too.

I've been trying vaginally last couple of nights and feel fine again Just need to discuss it with my GP now...

I'm sure I did try that ages ago and it didn't seem to work (Canestan.) I find it just as easy without and go as high as possible.
I'm happy with the consultant I see because I have other issues that he covers.

Ah ok, like everything, what works for some don't always for others.
But for anyone else the (Canestan*) applicators work well for me so worth a try if you dont like inserting them yourselves

Day 6 of Utogesteron and day 5 of vaginal use. I’m not sure how I feel, still quite flat and tired but maybe not as much as usual.

I am concerned about what damage I may be doing to my vagina by doing something off prescription.

@Camdenish It's only in the UK that it's not licensed for HRT vaginally. In other countries, like France, this is the normal way of using it.

My consultant says he prefers women to use it that way as it bypasses the liver, and can avoid many side effects.

It's used in larger doses to prevent miscarriage and support pregnancy, so it doesn't harm vaginas.

Hope this reassures you.

Can I ask why people don’t take the combined patch instead of utrogestan? I find the combined patch much better than utrogestan and wondered if others take their HRT this way instead?

I didn't choose the combined patch as the progesterone in it isn't body identical, so ironically I thought I'd be better off on utrogestan!

Also a friend had never ending bleeding on the patch progesterone.

Some of us don't want to wear a patch. Gel dose is also more easily adjusted (no need to see the dr to ask for a different dose.)

The progestin in patches is Norethisterone. This can have just as bad side effects for some women. It's a 'male' type of progestin and can cause acne and worse PMS.

The research at the moment seems to show that Utrogestan has less risk for breast cancer, especially if someone is on HRT for more than 5 years (Utrogestan has no added risk for at least 5 years.)

Thank you. It’s such a minefield isn’t it!

Yes, thanks @JinglingSpringbells that’s reassuring.

I don’t use the patch as I’ve had breast cancer and my specialist recommended the oestrogen gel and progesterone as Utogesteron

Hope you begin to feel better on it.

@sweetie1980 - this is the thread that might be useful for you

Bumped for @tkkid

@tkkid93

Thank you. Will have a read through

Anybody using utrogestan vaginally have lots of leakage? I use mine at night & worry about how much i am absorbing as i have quite a bit of a leak.

The end of my trial month of vaginal utrogestan is over. I’m going to try it again next month. I felt calmer and less sleepy. The othe positive thing that happens is that I bled at the end of the utogestan which is what I think is supposed to happen. It only lasted three days. Previously my bleeding could have started anywhere within the first two weeks and could drag on and on.

I did have some leaking.

Thanks @Camdenish, i started to worry i wasn't absorbing.
Hope you continue to feel ok on it. I really struggled taking it orally.
I don't bleed tho as take it continious

I am so happy to have found this thread! I was prescribed the 75g oestrogen patch and couldn't believe how amazing I felt .... then Utrogestan went and spoiled everything. I stopped everything and went back to using the Evorel Sequi 50 patches but the oestrogen isn't strong enough.

Eventually, after weeks of trying to get an appointment with my GP, she advised to go back on the 75g patch but take one tablet of Utrogestan for 25 days of the cycle. After I'd put the phone down I read that you only took one tablet a day for longer if you were in menopause (which I'm not). Will I still get a bleed? Obviously I need to as still have a uterus.

I'm a bit confused as to what to do now. I'm starting the 75g patches again tomorrow and I can't wait for the relief which I know will come quickly.

@Newgolddream70 i believe once you've been on hrt for over a year you can move to taking progesterone continuously. You won't bleed as you won't be making a lining.

I've been to see the GP. Not my usual GP but he was v helpful.

He has given me 'utrogestan pessary' I don't know if this means it will be bog standard utrogestan with a different name or actual pessary shaped with an applicator!

I've said I will give it a month, I can't feel the way I felt last month again, I was at my wits end.

I hope it works out for you op. When do you start?

The 200mgs is exactly the same as the 100mgs except bigger.

It's ever so slightly more oval. They come with 30 plastic applicators which is a sheer waste of plastic. You don't need to use the applicators- fingers are fine.