What type of HRT should I ask for

[Ilovemyshed]

Struggling a bit with big temperature fluctuations at night, too hot then too cold, also very restless and anxious at night particularly and worrying about all sorts during the day. Mood swings all over the place. Joint pain.

54 and periods have been very irregular for over a year and now very large gaps where I keep thinking they have stopped completely.

So far I haven’t been taking any HRT but am now seriously thinking I must.
Have high blood pressure and reflux so take meds for those.

What HRT is everyone taking and does it work?

The actual medication (oestrogen and progesterone) is pretty standard, the doses vary a bit but the GP will advise what dose for you to start on. So the choice is mostly the delivery method - patches or gels or tablets, combined or separate. FWIW I have oestrogen patches changed twice a week and progesterone capsules at bed time.

On top of these there are

• various creams/pessaries for vaginal atrophy. If you have dryness, itchiness, UTIs these can be a lifesaver
• testosterone, although not all GPs will prescribe it and you're unlikely to be offered it at this stage, and they can only prescribe it for loss of libido. But if it works, boy, it works.

I have patches for oestrogen and a mirena coil for progesterone.

It suits me well and has removed pretty much all my meno symptoms.

For oestrogen you can get it in patch, gel or tablet form but it's usually recommended to opt for gel (daily application) or patch (twice weekly) as trans-dermal methods have lower risks than pills.

I am struggling with the gel at the moment having been comfortable on the patch for several years. I think my oestrogen levels are all over the place on the gel whereas I was much more stable on the patch. I think it is probably quite individual though and you probably just need to test for yourself. I would recommend starting on a low dose as some people can feel worse before hormones stabilise.

I was coming to ask a similar question too.

I was on gel and progesterone pills for years - but in my early 50s the progesterone part started to make me feel very down. So I switched to a Mirena - that's been fine (well the insertion wasn't - and the removal won't be) but it's fine at doing what it was supposed to do.

My main symptoms were nights sweats, The Rage and anxiety. HRT helped with all of those.

It's worth spending a bit of time reading medical websites like Balance @Ilovemyshed

There's a Library section and HRT- tells you everything.

https://www.balance-menopause.com/subject/hrt/