Does anyone else feel mis-sold where HRT is concerned?

[HRTeetotal]

I got to 56 without HRT and then went on it last year. Having read all the eulogising from Davina et al, it sounded like this was the answer to everything and I was utterly sick of the hot flushes, joint pain, loss of libido etc.

Anyway, I just feel totally let down by it. I started on oestrogen gel with utrogestan tablets. After 3 months I couldn’t stand the bloating they caused so switched to using vaginally (without discussing with my GP). After few weeks of this I had some bleeding so I switched to combined patches (femseven conti). Two weeks in and the bloody things keep coming off so I’m going through them at quite a rate, and I can feel
my stomach bloating again already. I just don’t get on with progesterone I think.

i just feel like crying with it all. It feels like the amount of trial and error we need to go through is crazy and it seems to be accepted that several months of awful side effects are needed before the right solution can be found (if it ever is).

in addition to all the above, the hardening and bloating of my stomach just makes me feel fat.

Is It just me?

Try a mirena coil instead

For joint pain I’d get a good quality omega 3. For libido I’d ask for testosterone
And my hot flushes stopped when I quit alcohol

I'd go back to the GP and tell them what you've told us.

I was the same op. I gave up. Didnt want to but felt i had no choice.

the problem with the Mirena is it contains the same progesterone as my patches so I cannot see why the side effects wouldn’t be the same? I can’t manage anything with norethisterone either as it causes horrendous drop in moood.

I already drink very little alcohol.

@DustyLee123 that’s reassuring about omega 3 which I’ve just started taking.

If she doesn't get on with progesterone this is only going to cause further problems.

I thought the mirena was localised, so didn't have the same side effects? That's why I have it, anyhow, not sure what side effects I get or not from it, though. The bloating was meant to wear off after a few months, but I think I still have it.

I don’t get on with progesterone but am fine with the mirena. It’s a lower dose with a localized rather than systemic action. I’d definitely say it’s worth a try

Everyone I know who doesn't get on with progesterone has had to have their mirena removed due to bloating or mood issues. And despite assurances when it is fitted, there can be a wait to get it removed.

I have a Mirena coil and started Ostrogel when I was 49 or 50, I’m 55 now and still using it. I found the changes that came with HRT were very subtle and it took about three months for me to notice much difference.

For quite a few of my friends it was trial and error for the first year trying different patches and gels etc and some took a low dose antidepressant as well.

I’ve given up in HRT. I’ve tried it three times in different ways. I’ve had awful nausea and bloating. Could barely eat. On utrogestan I was utterly suicidal. It was very sudden and extremely frightening. I’ve never felt so low, saw my GP who said I was likely to be progesterone intolerant - I had the mirena some years ago and had the most dreadful migraines, acne, constant bleeding. So it’s definitely not just you. I am pleased for those who get on with HRT but it’s absolutely not for me.

Mirena works for me too, no bloating.

the problem with the Mirena is it contains the same progesterone as my patches so I cannot see why the side effects wouldn’t be the same?

The Mirena doesn't have Norethisterone in it. It's a different one. (starts with L!)

You will usually always get bleeding for up to 6 months on any combined continuous type of HRT . It can take that long to settle down.

GP should tell you that.

You can also use a 3 month cycle for women intolerant to progestogens.

Read the NICE menopause prescribing information.

3 monthly cycles are 12 weeks, 10 of which are just estrogen, then 2 weeks of some sort of progestogen.

I tried patches but came off them due to intolerable side effects (bloating, depressed and irritable).

I don’t get on with progesterone but the mirena has saved me. Oestrogel has stopped joint pain and testosterone has given me back my sex drive, brain function and orgasms!

I too am so intolerant to Progesterone, my body hates hit, and I’m not going anywhere near the Mirena coil, again this does affect your mood.

My saviour has been a HRT called Tridestra, it’s an estrogen patch for 3 months followed by two weeks of medroxyprogesterone then a bleed. Then start all over again. I still don’t look forward to the progesterone part but it’s the only option for me. I have M.S and without HRT I’m in a real pickle, the knock on effect is horrendous.

I also have Tostran testosterone for lack of energy and to give me my libido back. Ask your G.P for it, my menopause specialist put me onto it and my Drs are happy to prescribe it. I refuse to suffer a miserable menopause, I’m so much more content now.

bone and cardiac wise it's certainly worth giving it a solid try but in the end not everyone uses it.
for most women the hot flushes decrease and go away.
how is your weight and how much fitness/exercise do you participate in?
use lots of lube for sex.
what had you tried prior to trialing the hrt?
you can always discuss other bone and cardiac health options with your doctor.

Also forgot to say, I too had horrendous bloating, to the extent that it hurt and my skin just couldn’t stretch any more. After various tests my Dr recommend a probiotic called Optibac and I have a teaspoon of turmeric in a little hot water with a touch of honey and a drop of coconut milk first thing in the morning. I no longer get any bloating. I also believe that taking the turmeric is the reason that I haven’t caught any of the bugs this year, my daughter and husband have had loads.

It’s taken 3 years for me to get to where I am now, if only I’d known about Tridestra sooner. By the way, Utrogestan was the worst of the lot for me, I was suicidal and couldn’t stop crying, absolutely feckin awful. They refer to that one as body identical, what a load of bullshit!

I also made it to 57 but found anxiety was making me miserable so went onto HRT. Specialist in women’s health (used by my GP surgery) recommended Femoston which is HRT in tablet form. I have found that it’s helped with anxiety, joint pain, sleep and hot flushes (I also found pre HRT that occasionally taking 3mg slow release melatonin at bedtime not only prevented 3am wakefulness but also stopped the hot flushes). No bloating that I’ve noticed.

I’d suggest going back to your GP to see if there’s an alternative that might suit you better.

My saviour has been a HRT called Tridestra, it’s an estrogen patch for 3 months followed by two weeks of medroxyprogesterone then a bleed. Then start all over again. I still don’t look forward to the progesterone part but it’s the only option for me. I have M.S and without HRT I’m in a real pickle, the knock on effect is horrendous.

You can create this 3 monthly regimen with individual forms of estrogen and any progestogen.

Tridestra contains a synthetic progestogen.

If you want to use body-identical forms @HRTeetotal , you can continue using gel and Utrogestan for 14 days every 12 weeks.

Also @HRTeetotal it's not clear if you are on a sequential regime (with a withdrawal bleed) or continuous- no bleed.

If you were taking Utrogestan daily, it can take 6 months for a no-bleed type to settle down.

@Snippit I thought Tridestra was a tablet form? Has it changed?

Thanks everyone, so many responses!

i didn’t mean for this to turn into a big debate re the mirena coil. @JinglingSpringbells i know the mirena doesn’t contain norethisterone - in fact I said in my second post that it contains the same progesterone as my patches (levonogestorel) which is why I can’t see how it would help. To be hones, I’m not prepared to risk it - the thought of having something inside me that I can’t remove immediately if I have the sort of mood reactions I had in the past absolutely terrifies me.

I’ve asked me GP about a reduced progesterone cycle like @Snippit is on but she wasn’t willing to go there. I suspect I need a specialist to initiate this here so I may push for a referral.

My main reason for starting the thread was that this side of HRT is just lost in all the celebrity led menopause hysteria at the moment. As for the idea that it is acceptable to put up with 6 months worth of bleeding (which for me was much more than spotting) then Jesus Christ, no thank you! Periods stopping was the only good part of the menopause. Also, if a loss of libido hasn’t killed your sex life altogether then six months worth of ‘spotting’ should just about see it off.

sorry, bit of a rant there but Davina etc have kept quiet on all that!

I’ve asked me GP about a reduced progesterone cycle like @Snippit is on but she wasn’t willing to go there. I suspect I need a specialist to initiate this here so I may push for a referral.

She can prescribe like that. There is nothing in the NICE prescribing guidance to say it's only done by specialists.

This is from www.menopausematters.co.uk
It explains how it can take 6 months for combined continuous to work,

POST MENOPAUSAL -
Continuous combined therapies.
"Period free" or continuous combined therapy can be used by women who are 54 + yrs, or more than one year since last period at any age. The criteria should be fulfilled in order to offer such treatment to women who no longer have a continuing ovarian cycle, so that steady levels of both estrogen and progestogen can be achieved. When there are steady levels of estrogen and progestogen from daily administration of both, the womb lining stays thin. Although some bleeding in the first 6 months of therapy is common, there should not be bleeding after that and the lining does not go through the stages of stimulation and then shedding as it does during a normal cycle and with sequential therapy. Start with low dose preparations and increase as necessary for symptom control.

FWIW I've never taken the slightest notice of Davina. I've been on HRT for over 15 years with an excellent private consultant who was years ahead of all the 'Davina' hype and my HRT has always been individually prescribed.

Don't listen to the 'slebs' - they aren't that great!

Not saying this is you ofc but if you had say, depression you would most likely trial and error a few drugs to find the right fit. This can take a while! When you find the right tablet and dose things are brighter. Not perfect! But brighter.

i think that because her is 'just' for the menopause we give up before we find our fit whereas if it was 'serious' we would try harder maybe?

I’m also very disillusioned. I’ve tried everything. I don’t absorb, so patches and gel were useless. I’ve been having oestrogen pellets for the past 18 months and my oestrogen levels are still in my boots. I also had a testosterone pellet last time, my T levels are now five times higher than they should be, and I’ve still got no motivation or libido! I just feel starving hungry all the time, and really cranky. I feel like giving up with the HRT but I can’t bear the joint pain and migraines.