Who decided NOT to take HRT? What is your experience?

[Agree]

Please can menopausal / post-menopausal women share their experience of deciding not to take HRT and how it's worked out for you?

I'm not sure it's for me and am dithering.

My main reason for leaning towards HRT is vanity and not wanting to age quickly

Oh, and omega 3 for brain fog! Though I think a lot of mine was actually post Covid, rather than peri menopausal.

I don't take and have never taken HRT. Had menopause at 51, am now nearly 68. Barely any symptoms. My problem has not been menopause, but hypothyroidism. I've not shrunk in height or become overweight, nor do I have joint pains. I would look younger but hypo destroys your looks if it's not well treated. Mine isn't, sadly, despite many efforts to improve things.

I am a huge believer in Omega 3. I find it helps with sleep too and night sweats. My chiropractor told me she's seen some studies that suggest Omega 3 can be helpful in helping with depression and anxiety and that some doctors are now looking at prescribing it alongside anti depressants or as a first step pre anti-depressants (in very mild cases).

There are also very interesting studies that say it helps with reducing the waist measurement of women with PCOS. That's why I started taking it and I think it's true. I didn't lose any wait, but my stomach is slightly less distended/out there than before.

I am considering upping my dose as I've been on a relatively low dose to date at just 1000mg. I think I'll start taking two pills a day instead of one.

Went into menopause at 46, now 60. No bad symptoms so didn’t even think about HRT. Visited the doc and had tests when had post meno bleed a year or 2 after but nothing was mentioned about benefits to heart/bones.
Started with vaginal atrophy about 4 years ago, so now have vagifem which has sorted everything out. So no “proper” HRT.
Probably too late now and probably wouldn’t take it anyway.

There is a LOT of misinformation on this thread but it's not coming from posters who leave links to medical sites and only post facts that are backed up by those sites.

If it helps, estrogen is a licensed treatment for osteoporosis and it's entirely doable for HRT to be prescribed to women in their 90s.

@OSU I think you'd find it extremely unlikely that anyone would prescribe estrogen to a 95 year old. And if osteoporosis is already established, other treatments are needed in any case.

I’m 52 and don’t take HRT. My reasons are both my mother and sister had hormone driven breast cancers (both different types) and before my periods stopped I had all sorts of gynaecological issues with fibroids, cysts etc that cleared up once my periods stopped (all of which tend to be hormone related)

im finding symptoms come and go. I’m currently having night sweats but that’s it. Going to try magnesium to see if that helps. I take other vitamins to help.

my grandma lived to be 101 with no health issues (and no hrt) my great grandma was 97 (again no issues or hrt) my mum didn’t take hrt either and died at 72 from breast cancer - so it’s all about weighing up what you think are the risks / benefits I guess.

I find the whole ‘you’ll get so many other issues ‘ argument unhelpful as many people don’t take it or can’t take it and do ok.

I find magnesium helps a lot with sleep and relaxing, I take it pretty much every night.

Re the elder generations and their longevity, on my maternal grandmother's side of the family, pretty much everyone lived to very late 90s, early 100s. Quite remarkably so but they lived very basic simple lives and right out in the countryside. I don't remember any discussions regarding 'women's issues' whatever and my mother breezed through menopause.

I suspect mine and my sister's severe gynae issues were passed over from the paternal side - descriptions of my grandmother 'struggling' and severe mental health issues and entire days / weeks where she couldn't leave her bed. Also both she and her sister took their own lives, separately, in their 50s, so I was only an infant and never knew them. My father's only sister had awful debilitating autoimmune health problems and was campaigning to have herself euthanised before that was even a thing.

I wonder if anyone else thinks their gynae struggles or meno struggles were in fact inherited from the father's side of the family? (I am not a scientist or biologist so if that makes zero sense, please forgive me).

I tried for 2 months but progesterone and I are not friends. I am going without. Lucky I did as found i have a fibroid and exra estrogen not a good idea for me. I am finding lifestyle changes with diet and stength training a big help. Sleep however is a nightmare...thus awake again at 3am...arghhh.

Why is it always 3am???? It’s bizarre - like the bewitching hour.

Have you tried Aromatherapy Associates ‘deep sleep’ it’s horse tranquiler in a pretty box and will knock you out for 8 hours and some. It’s expensive but worth every penny.

I'm still on the pill but feel as though I'm more hormonal. Is that possible if I'm on the pill or could it be related to life events? I've not felt myself since last year but not sure if that's due to stressful life events. Anyone been through similar?

“Also very many people I have come across gave been diagnosed with BC within a year of taking HRT”

It’s SO irresponsible making comments like this with no evidence! Menopause gave me suicidal ideation & HRT stopped me wanting to kill myself.

Some women have a TERRIBLE time and fear mongering like this is irresponsible

She doesn’t need “evidence”. These are people she knows. It doesn’t have to be statistically significant.

@WashItTomorrow it’s hearsay and irresponsible on forums like this

What if - when I was at my lowest, most suicidal ebb- that’s what I had read? It would have sent me into despair - instead of making an informed choice based on evidence based risk from research.

Very many people might be 5 or it might be 55000.
I would wonder though how you could know exactly when very many people started taking HRT - I can't even remember when I started it myself.

Someone on a thread the other day used "loads" and then backtracked to 2.

Very many people might be 5 or it might be 55000.
I would wonder though how you could know exactly when very many people started taking HRT - I can't even remember when I started it myself

@LarkspurLane exactly. It’s like the ‘my mates mum drank bleach and it cured her of covid’ brigade - pure hearsay

It’s not irresponsible. I’m one of those who got breast cancer after taking HRT. The sort of breast cancer I have is directly related to HRT, though no-one can say it caused it - and it might not have done.

My menopause was mid 40s. I had very few symptoms that I recognised. Occasional hot flushes, no night sweats. But looking back now I realise my anxiety and worries about all kinds of minor things started when I was 50. I didn't recognise it as relating to the menopause, but maybe my increasing anxiety was linked to it. I'm 60 now and still on anxiety meds, but I don't really know whether it was linked to the menopause or not. Reading other people's stories I do wonder.

Absolutely saved me but you can manage without it absolutely go for it. I was a sweaty, hormonal, angry, dry fannied, anxious mess. It worked wonders for me but I gave friends who are doing it completely naturally and thriving.

I know 3 people who got breast cancer and don’t take hrt. What does that tell us?

sadly breast cancer is very common. As ever if you have family history of breast cancer discuss it with your gp

@Newgirls yes unfortunately it is. I know 4 women at the school my kids were at that got it randomly in their early/mid 40’s.

On the flip side, my mum was on old school HRT tablets for over 20 years and was fine. Friends 86 year old Auntie still on it after 40 years and fine!

I think making informed decisions based on the science & research is really important, not on internet hearsay!

My sister in law decided to do it naturally, now at the age of 60 she has osteoporosis really bad, she now wishes she’d taken it. She’s now looking into it and so regrets what she’s done.

I recently started a trial and it has transformed my life for the better. I was suffering symptoms and am young (early 40s) so it took a while to diagnose but now HRT has made me feel totally normal again. Was previously experiencing flushes, anxiety, brain fog, and crushing fatigue.

For about a year after my last ever period I had intense hot flushes, on and off rage, hair loss and felt I aged fast. I hung on and now my hair has grown back, the flushes are mild, I sleep better and feel like the aging has slowed, so I think I'm through the worst.
I use Rosemary shampoo for my hair, exercise or walk daily, take a multivitamin and use cbt.
In my worst moments I really did consider hrt but am glad now I didn't.