HRT and the mini pill

[firebrand123]

Does anyone take HRT and the mini pill?

I've been on the mini pill for maybe 8 months now and have had just a couple of small bleeds (can't call them periods, really) since starting. Prior to that I was on the combined pill for years, so no idea whether I have a natural cycle. I'm about to start HRT and have been prescribed the oestrogen gel, plus progesterone to take for two weeks of the month. The prescription instructions for the progesterone tell me about timing it with my cycle but as I don't have a proper one I was going to just start on the 1st of September and go from there.

Anyone else in my situation done this or similar?

Please don't suggest the coil, it's not suitable for me 😊

Yes o posted about this a couple of months ago!! After having to wait for the doctor to call me back as no one could answer my question, she said take on the 1st day of the month for two weeks hope that helps I was in exactly the same situation! However, I still prefer the patches but they kept falling off!!!

Thank you so much!!

You are welcome!

I never understand why GPs don't go through all of this- why aren't they?

You can start Utrogestan at any time just stick to the same date each month.
So if you start 1st Sept, do that for 12 days then again from 1st October.

You can ,by the way , use the mini pill as part of HRT without needing to use Utrogestan as well. But the mini pill has to be 3 pills a day.

This has been an option for some time (I was offered it about 10 years ago when re-assessing the type of progesterone) so it's worth asking your GP about it. If they don't know, it's online as guidance by the British Menopause Society.

@JinglingSpringbellsliterally all that was on the packet was..
take two tablets a day for 12 days ….and that was it !!! Not what twelve days tho it was a bit of a nightmare trying to get the info the pharmacy didn’t know the receptionist didn’t know had to wait 3 days for an answer !!!!

I was told you couldn't do both and the gp made me come off the pill

I want to know the answer to this too. I've been on the 28-day pill and then the mini-pill since my early 20s so I've not had a period for decades. In my early 50s now. No idea whether I've started menopause (I assume so), and whether I need to start HRT.

All my female friends tell me how transformative HRT has been for them. So I've been wondering whether I'm missing out!

But the Sandie Peggie tribunal taught me about the existence of menstrual flooding, which Dr Google informs me is the consequence of the overies no longer producing progesterone, with the result that estrogen continues to line the womb (progesterone signals the womb to stop this, triggering the start of a period). The consequence of this unchecked runaway womb-lining is the catastrophic flooding that some women experience. Which sounds truly godawful (and can have serious medical consequences). So this is something I would very much like to avoid! So I really don't want to stop my progesterone mini-pill!

I’m on the pill and take HRT. Was advised to take progesterone every night because I don’t have periods. The GP had to check with gynae consultant.

Thanks everyone. It's such a minefield!