AIBU to give up HRT

[chittyshittyohffs]

Been on it 2 months, the estrogen part makes my breasts sore (2 pumps per day of gel) and the progesterone makes me seriously depressed. It's not helping the symptoms I started it for (exhaustion, crippling anxiety, headaches) tho night sweats have improved but tbh I could live with those.

Is it worth pushing on or os this just not for me?

It's not unreasonable for you to give it up for any reason that is suitable for you. Can you discuss with your healthcare provider? Maybe you need the dose or type tweaked? Maybe there are other options?

Sadly I can't discuss it - was prescribed by Newspn during their June reduced price offer but can't afford another £230 now. My own GP is useless.

Imo it's not worth bothering with, but then everyone is different. You sound the same as me. I had the same symptoms and was told again and again by the menopause nurse that you have to give it at least 9 months before you start seeing any improvement. I did a year and told them it wasn't doing anything but making my boobs really swollen and painful and my mood swings get ridiculous and also did nothing for my all-over aching, so they upped the patches from 50 to 75 and my symptoms went through the roof! I told them I'm coming off it and they said that's fine, you can always go back to it later and I thought not bloody likely!

I've been on it two months as well. I'm finding it really helpful but am going to ask if there's a more local option for what I need, rather than systemic. I don't mind a few symptoms if it means I don't need to medicate myself.

Same as @BooseysMom
Been off my patch a week. It does zero for me I've been on all doses and types.

It's not for all women.

Why not think about reducing the dose?

Too many women are pushed into starting on 2 pumps when it's better to start low and build up. (I was told to start on 1/2 pump by my consultant and build up gradually over a few weeks.)

Also, there are other options apart from Utrogestan. Again, this is being offered as the only choice when there are many other types.

Norethisterone (as tablets or in patches), the Mirena coil, dydrogesterone (in Femoston- tablets) and another type in Kliofem (tablet).

There is also the tablet from Tridestra which has progestogen in for only 14 days out of 84 days (it's 3 monthly cycle). OR you can use any type on a 3-monthly cycle if you are intolerant to progestogens.

Your GP should be capable of writing a prescription for any of these!

Femoston is the one closest to body-identical Utrogestan.

I started with Oestrogel and a Mirena coil in January. My boobs were very sore at the start as well and I hated it, and I bled on and off for 11-12 weeks. I was on the verge of asking my GP for a change of HRT but it finally settled down and has been good since then, no more sore boobs or bleeding.

I would say it’s worth sticking with it a bit longer, and if you do decide this regime isn’t for you please see if you can get something else. My first experience of HRT was the combined pill which was great from day one (I was advised to come off it because of a small change in my cycle but that was a precautionary move).

if your GP is useless can you change GPs? Personally I have found HRT hugely positive overall and it’s made an enormous difference to my mental health and my ability to function day to day.

For me HRT has been positive from the word go and apart from a few months of spotting I have had no issues and it’s helped with all the symptoms I was experiencing. I started on 50mcg Evorel patches and 100mcg Utrogestan daily but am post meno so no breaks at all, have settled at 75mcg Evorel and daily Utrogestan.

If after a couple of months you’re not significantly better than you were then something needs tweaking.

I did loads of research and asked for what I wanted. My GP was happy to prescribe on that basis.

You are not BU at all. I tried it for 3 months and then gave it. It made me feel extraordinarily shit. Awful anxiety on the oestrogen days, bleak bleak moods on progesterone.

I came off it and felt loads better than I did before I went on it, weirdly. And I haven't had another period since. No hormones works better for me. But we're all different. And I'm not against trying it again in the future if/when I start getting any difficult symptoms. But for now, I feel absolutely fine without it.

It's not for everyone, but before giving up on it, I would discuss with your GP, Health practitioner or memo nurse. There are so many difference versions of HRT out there. I was never prescribed gel, but everyone I know on HRT has the Gel.
When I first started taking HRT my breasts hurt sooo much. I would cry putting my bra on and cry taking it off simply because the pain was so bad. In the end I saw a nurse at my GP surgery. She said it's perfectly normal and it's the body's reaction to hormone changes, in much the same way as we would get sore breasts before our period. The nurse told me it can take 6 months before the HRT fully settled into your heart dy and it can take 6 months before the painful breasts stop. Mine stopped hurting about a week before the 6 month point.

I'm on the gel and also had sore boobs at the start but that went after a couple of months.

Also had depression, but am grieving so not sure if that's life or HRT causing it.

I'd say give it another month, my gp said it takes 3 months to settle.

I gave up after 3 months. Was on patches.

Headaches, nausea, bloating, string of migraines. Basically felt ill all the time. But my sleep and aches did improve.

Since I've come off my sleep is fucked again, back to the 3am Ealing's even taking magnesium which used to really help. So not sure of next step tbh.

Waking not Ealing!

My symptoms; sleeplessness, anxiety, low libido, vaginal dryness and hot flushes all stopped within first few days. But the horrible breast soreness, and they got bigger, was awful. My nurse said it would take 3 months for my body to get used to it, and it was 3 months to the day when the tenderness stopped.

You've come this far, give it 3 months xx

Thanks all, strangely now I've had a bleed (not caused by progesterone so lord knows what's happening there) I am less sore so will keep on trucking with it.

Really appreciate your responses.

I'm waiting for mine to appear as I stopped hrt about 3 weeks ago. Had a bad day yesterday when my mood suddenly dropped. I could have murdered DH! Today it's back up again. It's bloody annoying not knowing when it's going to happen.

I've started taking magnesium supplements for the aching joints so will see how that goes.

Good luck with it all!