Alternatives to HRT

[lurchermummy]

Been on HRT for about 10 months, started it for joint pain/low libido/night sweats plus for long term protection of brain, bones etc. But I can’t get on with it, just can’t get the dose right, feel bloated, sore boobs, and no change to libido or joint pain. GP is sympathetic but says I just need to persist with it. I think it’s been long enough to know it doesn’t suit me. So I’m thinking of stopping.

Those of you who can’t/wont take HRT, any recommendations for what to do or take instead? I already do resistance training and take vitamin D, magnesium, collagen. I also try to eat plenty of protein. Any other tips/advice? Thank you!

Hi OP
I’m the same. Gave it 2 years. And it wasn’t for me.

I take the same as you but also a few more supplements:

Ancient & Brave total collagen
saffron at night for sleep/ anxiety
Lamberts Myo-Inositol 200g Powder - to help with insulin sensitivity
vit D with K - helps the D absorption
i spray magnesium on my legs at night
and take probiotics

I weight train - trying to get stronger and it definitely stops the aches and pains - well except for the DOMS but that wears off over time.

i aim to eat high protein/ low carb and am considering fasting too as despite eating healthily and exercising my weight only drops a few pounds.

I wouldn’t rule out HRT again later
but I feel if i just get way more active and eat less I know I’ll feel so much better

I’m looking at other anti inflammatory supplements such as black seed oil snd matcha

was taking functional mushrooms for brain fog/ energy but the gummies had sugar in so that put me off.

What are you taking? Have you tried different things like gel/patch/spray, sometimes one kind works better for some people than others.

I had medically induced menopause ( total hysterectomy age 38) had HRT for 12 years.. then had to stop.. ( l loved HRT but only had Oestrogen.. due to hysterectomy..
So l took black cohosh, red clover, and soy products... and evening primrose oil. Really helped.. my friend worked at Holland and Barrett and had done all her training..

@lurchermummy You've not said what you have tried so maybe that's a starting point here?

The symptoms you mention are often due to to much estrogen or the wrong kind of progesterone.

Sadly, GPs are not experts on HRT and there are countless examples here of women being started on medium doses of estrogen when they should start very low.

There is no evidence that herbs etc work. The British Menopause Society has a very long and detailed report on these It's online as 'alternatives to HRT.)

All the evidence is they are placebos, or work a little for some women, but there are concerns about the safety of herbs especially black cohosh (can cause liver damage) , soy has to be eaten in huge amounts, EPO is only for breast pain during peri . It doesn't work on mood, hot flushes, etc.

Which types of HRT have you tried?

I’ve come off HRT for similar reasons- felt like the whole thing was starting to take over my life and it made me feel very “flat”. I am trying to manage it through taking loads of supplements, eating healthily, exercising and getting plenty of sleep. I feel more myself and more in control of my body. Will persist with no HRT for a while and see how it goes.

Watching with interest as I’m on HRT really feel the benefits but I think oestrogen may have just caused my gall bladder and digestive issues and I’m having surgery, and I also think my endometriosis is creeping back.

So I have to weight up hot flushes, night sweats and foul mood swings and horrendous periods with potential surgery’s.

I may come off it for 3-6 months and see how I get on with supplements.

Ive also out on over 10kg since starting it as well.

Hi thanks for replies. I’m on gepetrix and estrogel, have previously tried patches. I know from experimenting with the dose that it’s the estrogen that causes me issues, I think I am very sensitive to it. The progesterone does seem to help with sleep and night sweats, I spoke to the GP about progesterone only HRT and she wouldn’t entertain it. She also won’t give me testosterone until we get the estrogen right.

I just feel bloated and as I have very large breasts anyway the tenderness is a real problem, as in it stops me sleeping at night, I have spoken to her about it and she seems to think I if I want HRT it’s just something I need to live with. I’ve tried taking flaxseed oil as it’s meant to help but so far it hasn’t.

How many pumps of gel are you using?

Have you tried dropping down to 1 pump?

Evening primrose oil is recommended for breast pain.

Hi OP. My bloating went away when I switched to the Mirena coil.
I had had awful hormonal breasts for years and then HRT initially made it so much worse.
Within a couple of months of the mirena being fitted my life got immeasurably better.

However if you are still wanting to stop, then the list of things above seems about right from everything I've read.
I did add Lions Mane to help with the flushing when my oestrogen wasn't quote doing the job.

This is such an informative post. Thank you. I am going to try several of your suggestions.

I've never taken HRT and found the joint pain, anxiety and sweats reduced by themselves. But I really need something for libido and brain fog. And my skin is so thin I bleed and bruise at the slightest touch. I'd love something to help with that too.

@Ilovelowrythanks I used to have mirena and one of the main benefits for me was it completely removed the pmt/breat tenderness I had been plagued with for years, but I’m now 57 and had my last one removed. I really don’t want another one and not sure they would at my age too. Haven’t tried lions lane but I already take iron, magnesium, vitamin D, plant sterols, cod liver oil, and collagen.

@JinglingSpringbellsi have tried literally a tiny amount, less than half a pump. It does reduce the breast pain but I can’t see its having any benefit. I take flaxseed oil which is like EPO but has more prostaglandins.

I feel like HRT is often seen as a miracle but for me it just hasn’t been.

@ChocolateGanachesorry I hadn’t seen your reply for some reason, thanks that’s helpful I will look into the inositol, I might also change my brand of collagen (currently taking nutrition geeks) - definitely find the resistance training helps a lot so going to keep up with that, I really think that dropping a couple of stone would be helpful so am focussing on eating clean and not snacking. Lifestyle changes do help I think but they take effort and patience.

{mention:Ilovelowry}@Ilovelowry

@lurchermummy my GP gave me no indication that I can't have the mirena for as long as it works for me and there doesn't seem to be an age cut off.

The only problem I can see is that I have a slight uterine prolapse (as well as Bowel and Bladder prolapse!) but my Gynae was very pro mirena for me even so.

I found doing the Zoe testing helpful. Six months in, my joint pain has gone and I have more energy. I thought I was eating well already, but it highlighted areas where I could improve my diet, such as eating more fibre. Maybe worth considering?

I wonder if iodine can help with symptoms? I keep reading about how it's such an important mineral for women particularly - helps support the adrenals (which are supposed to produce forms of the sex hormones after menopause) and is good for breast health. But you have to be careful with it - you can't take if you have hyperthyroidism for instance, and a supplement might be too much. I have to speak to my doctor about HRT and I might ask him (he doesn't fill me with confidence generally about women's health so mightn't be much point). It's naturally in sea vegetables and dairy products too I think.

One of the GPs at my practice recommended black cohosh to me @JinglingSpringbells and you are right, there are concerns over its safety. Unbelievable that a GP would suggest this over HRT which is rigorously tested and subject to hundreds of safety studies!

@SumUp how expensive was the Zoe thing?

I didn't/don't take anything as an alternative to HRT. I just get on with life as normal. I am lucky, as I didn't really have any symptoms but, equally, sometimes the thing that you "suffer" from is actually not as bad the supposed remedy.
Why not start again, ditch all "remedies" (many of which are just ways to part you from your money), and just get plenty of sleep, decent diet etc and stop thinking that there is something wrong. It's normal to slow down a bit as we age, and it doesn't necessarily mean that we need to medicate.

You can try Mirena I think. Also omega 3.

I had problems with bloating, breast pain/tenderness etc as due to prolifertive womb lining was taking 2 progesterone. Finally had Mirena fitted, at that point I was 10 years post meno. Am nearly 60 so no age limit. Still have to take 1 progesterone to stop spotting and I’m not convinced it isn’t ‘fat & sad’ in a pill. But the alternative is a hysterectomy and eastrogen only so I’m going to persevere with it. As others have said, the biggest help is diet and exercise (and in my case that’s low carb and 16/8 fasting - which is much easier than I imagined it would be but only doable if I cut out sugar/heavy carbs). Being physically active helps reduce the sad part of the pill!
must admit it’s all easier now that I’m retired and kids have left home as have time to make good food that I want to eat, rather than having to appeal to the pizza/pasta mindset.

just read your post back. If you are only doing half a pump that won’t be enough and your progesterone is out of balance.
before you give it up ask your GP to refer to your nearest gynae menopause clinic. Most GP’s have faulty understanding of HRT. If they really understood they’d be giving to old ladies to reduce all the urine infections and prolapses!

@Cynic17 I hear what you’re saying but it sounds like your symptoms were manageable. Joint pain, dry skin, weight gain, insomnia, depression, brain fog, total and utter loss of libido are not “slowing down a bit” especially when you are dealing with a busy life, running a business, etc

@NattyKnitter116thanks and yes I totally agree that diet and exercise are so important, I’m really trying! My GP is quite good, she’s female and is the menopause specialist for the practice, but you know how it is, takes ages to get an appointment and then you literally only have a few minutes.

I've been taking Evening primrose with starflower for breast pain, definitely notice a difference when I don't take it.
Hunter and gather collagen for joint pain, I can't believe the difference.
I also take iron and vitamin d in the autumn/winter

If you are only doing half a pump that won’t be enough and your progesterone is out of balance.
before you give it up ask your GP to refer to your nearest gynae menopause clinic.

There are very few menopause clinics in England and if there are, they are usually for very complex cases.

@lurchermummy you're 57. Are you using progesterone every day? Or on a cycle?

If it's every day you might want to try using it on a cycle.

It's usually the progesterone part of HRT that causes boob pain especially if you're using a minute dose of gel.

You need to look at their website. They have offers all the time and the prices have been coming down.

Having said that I'd really think about the Utrogestan and see if it's that which needs reassessing.

When I started on HRT my consultant advised using only estrogen for almost 3 months to get the level right. (There is a case of long-cycle HRT , off-licence, so it's not as odd as it may sound.)

They have an offer being advertised on Facebook at the moment for half price testing at £149.99 (promo code FLASHSALE), then £9.99 per month if you sign up for a year, or £24.99 a month if you sign up for four months.