How long do you plan to stay on HRT for?

[NetZeroZealot]

I've been on it since I was 52 and am 60 now.

It's been a genuine life changer. I can't imagine ever stopping! But think I must at some point, probably when I retire - I still have quite a demanding job.

Interested in others experiences, especially people older than me who are still taking it.

How do you know when you should quit?

@Airfixkitwidow Kudos to your Mum,that's great. It sounds like she has an enlightened GP! Which patch did you change to btw and how are you finding it after being on oral hrt?

My GP tries every year at my medication review to get me off mine, I refuse, I'm only 58 & want the protection for my bones & heart.

I've no intention of coming off mine without a very good reason. Totally saved my sanity.

All these wanting to take HRT forever, even after the menopause has ended- is it vanity in some cases? ( even though it’s certainly not the elixir of youth!) Surely the GP can discontinue it if they see fit?

I had read about of the vaginal route for Uterogestan but if its off label l'm pretty sure my GP wouldn't agree as she's a stickler for rules.

The 100mgs capsule that is used orally can be used vaginally too so no one would know how you used it.

It's a joint decision between patient and dr, weighing up the pros and cons for each woman. Unless the GP can refer to significant risk factors for the individual they cannot refuse to prescribe and, if a GP is unsure, women can see a specialist. (This is in many of the BMS guidelines posted.)

The BMS refers to some women having symptoms for 15 years or longer.

Never known anyone say they want it for vanity - more for bone health, to avoid vaginal atrophy and other pretty grim health issues

the treatment for osteoporosis is hrt so makes sense to get it before your bones start snapping

It's my first day! I am 51. OP, 8 years - wow! I didn't know you could stay on HRT for that long. How do you know when to stop?

Wow! Sorry, newbi here..

Bone density is something we should be addressing with women in their twenties and thirties. Building up good bone density when you still can means that as you start to lose it you are starting at a much higher density.
I spent my 20s doing a high level of weight bearing exercise, training and competing in rowing. I had no idea how beneficial it would be at the time but I’m reaping the benefits now.
After being diagnosed with breast cancer I take Anastrazole, notorious for accelerating bone loss. However they monitor your bone density with a DEXA scan every two years. I have lost some density but because it was very dense to start with I am still within normal range.
Alongside HRT you need to be taking Vit D and calcium alongside weight bearing exercise to maintain your bone density levels. HRT is not going to work on its own. It is still a very low dose compared to your natural pre menopause level of hormones.

Alongside HRT you need to be taking Vit D and calcium

@Angrymum22 There is increasing research-based evidence that taking calcium as a supplement can be dangerous. The risk is that taken as a supplement (compared to through food) it's laid down in the arteries and may contribute to CVD.

https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/calcium-supplements-should-you-take-them#:~:text=On%20the%20other%20hand%2C%20recent,of%20calcium%20and%20other%20substances.

It's possible to end up with a double whammy of women not using HRT (so not getting the heart benefits) and also taking calcium (which may cause hardening of the arteries.)

I think we need to be careful with diet and bone health especially with so many women not eating dairy etc now.

I've been on it for four years and plan to stay on it forever. They'll have to prise it out of my cold, dead hands 😁

I planned to do 5 years when I started taking it, I’m at 2 years now, so I’ll see how I feel then.

I absolutely do NOT take it for vanity.

I take it for benefits to my mood, reduced anxiety, clearer thinking (still have a demanding job), and a total end to waking up with aching bones.

Was wondering if once I retire I may not need it as much, but reading other women's experience on here, I don't think I should worry about being on it long term.

The menopause doesn't end. You go into it and you never come out alive ...!

I'm not on it for bloody vanity - as far as I can see it hasn't done anything to change how I look. I'm on it because my Mum had osteoporosis and I don't want my bones snapping ...

@Bignanna The menopause never ends. It's a stage of life that is there till you die.

Maybe you're confusing it with the perimenopause- the time when hormones are fluctuating.

Where does your idea of using HRT for 'vanity' (whatever that means) come from?

I am so fed up with "When I am/you are through the menopause". "Through the other side".

There is no "other side".

I also hope that this 'through it' doesn't continue. Yes, there are maybe 25% of women who don't ever have meno symptoms and feel fantastic forever, without any HRT at all, but they are in the minority.

There is so much that needs changing about how menopause is described. The word ‘pause’ doesn’t help as it seems to imply a gap. The whole ‘one year after your period’ is pointless too as who decided that length of time? You are depleted in hormones far earlier than that. Hence the confusion about how long to be on hrt for

Agree - through it implies what? Periods stopping? Great. But women’s health is more than their blood loss

Consultants divide menopause into peri and post menopause.

There are a lot of symptoms for peri and then another list for post meno.
Some women carry on with flushes into their 80s. (Consultant told me this.)

The longer term list includes loss of bone density, heart disease (this was the No 1 killer for women until very recently and now it's dementia) and pelvic organ prolapse.

Forever! I hope my GP sees it that way too 😂

As others have said, no not vanity - despite newspaper articles with various celebrities over the years, HRT doesn't make us look young and lovely, unfortunately!

If in the future I'm advised by my female gynaecologist and female GP to come off it then I'll take their advice - in the meantime I'm just getting on with things!