Hot flushes driving me to dispair

[Remmy123]

The last few weeks I have started getting hot flushes and many through the night - I can't sleep and I look like sh*t - I am usually a very cold person but now I am in a vest top in the house it's crazy!

I haven't started HRT yet but have an appointment with the doctor

I also have low iron currently which is very unusual and never had before so on iron tablets

will HRT help with these hot flushes as that and no period is my only real symptom?

what else can I take to help - typing while sitting here literally on fire 🔥 and not in a good way!

thanks

I have terrible ones every night where I wake up soaking!! I’ve been taking magnesium gummies and while they haven’t completely eliminated them I only get maybe 2 a week now! Hope you manage to get it sorted - they’re awful! I was going through pyjamas at a ridiculous rate!

I've been taking magnesium long before I got menopause symptoms and it's not done a thing for flushes!!

Thanks for replying, it’s interesting to hear everyones experiences! I think I assumed the body would benefit from having the hormones forever but like you say there comes a time where it might be just how we are meant to be. Hopefully the years were on it really helped your bone density!

@Disturbia81 The post by @Passingthrough123 is out of date in terms of the medical professional, certainly where menopause consultants are concerned.
There was never really a 5- year rule. It was some arbitrary figure that had no science behind it . I began to consider HRT nearly 20 years ago and even then the 5 year 'rule' wasn't being applied.

I wonder if the poster was simply on the wrong type of HRT for her (dose etc) and that caused the weight gain and no improvement of symptoms? Many women need more estrogen as they go further into menopause and the dose needs tweaking.

HRT is there to relieve symptoms and also prevent bone loss if a woman is at risk (it's an alternative to other bone-building drugs.)
My consultant treats menopause on the basis of stopping (by choice) now and then to see if symptoms are still there and if so, carry on with HRT- no time limit. About 10% of women have symptoms for ever.

Thankyou, so it’s really individual. I was hoping to be on it as long as possible as I thought all symptoms come back if you stop. I weight train too and want to give my bones the best chance for old age!

Unless there are sound medical reasons to stop, you can stay on HRT as long as YOU choose. I've tried stopping twice for a few weeks and my symptoms came back. I'm late 60s. I've not put on any weight with HRT. Consultant is one of the best in the UK and fully supportive of women having choice.

You've misread my post – I never said the 5-year rule still stood. I meant it was what NICE previously advised GPs. It doesn't mean it had to be abided by, but largely was in the Nineties and earlier.

And no, I wasn't on the wrong dose.

You could've asked me directly BTW, rather than discussing my medical state like I'm a third-party curiosity! My bones are fine too, thanks.

Exactly. I had a choice. I chose to come off. I feel better off it.

My bones are fine, thanks.

Patches worked for me - stopped the night sweats, I was waking three times + taking ages to get back to sleep, plus also topical estrogen seems to have stopped me needing to ge up in the night to go to the loo.

I think they have also helped mild brain fog, low mood and low energy so have been really good. And easy to use. Slap a sticker on twice a week and job done !

I was being genuinely nice, no need to get defensive 🙄

Not being defensive at all! I'm sorry you read it like that.

That's fine.
Your GP does sound out of date and not accurate with their guidance because it's doesn't tie in with the BMS consensus statements.
It did sound as if the dose or type of HRT you were on was not individualised properly if you continued to have so many symptoms on it.

Have you had a DEXA scan?
No one knows how their bone density is without one.

Again, I don't think you read my post properly! My GP was supportive of me wanting to stop but equally would be happy to continue prescribing to anyone post-menopause if they needed it. She just feels five years is a good stopping point for some women.

And my dose WAS individualised. For almost four years I had no symptoms and then when they came back I had the dose revised a number of times. Ultimately I decided I wanted a break and came off and I have no intention of going back on it.

And yes, I've had a DEXA scan. Please rest assured I am taking care of myself post-HRT!

Oh okay no worries

I was typing while out walking the dog in the rain, that's why it was abrupt!

I did read it carefully. Several times.

She just feels five years is a good stopping point for some women
She is wrong to 'feel' this because it's not scientific.
she is going against NICE and the BMS guidance. A good stopping point is when a woman decides she doesn't need it.

Being supportive of you wanting to stop is good. But saying that this equates to some 'value' in the older 5 year limit is not good.

I'm pleased you've had a DEXA scan. They are not available on the NHS unless there is a family history of osteoporosis or a fracture that is a red flag.

Okay, maybe I haven't explained it well enough. I was 48 when I went on HRT and 53 when I stopped – and I'm now through the other side of menopause. It's a fact that lots of women don't feel the need to continue HRT once they are through it – it's a personal choice either way. So her bringing up the five years may well have been a direct nod to my time spent on it, but it still stands that NICE's advice that women can stay on it for as long as they like only changed in 2024. The 2015 guidance did suggest five years was a good cut off.

I paid for a private DEXA scan. It's nigh on impossible to get one of the NHS!

Evidence now show that HRT is better than stsins etc at reducing both BP and cardiac events too 👍

Unfortunately for me I never got the chance to try HRT, some 14 years ago, GP’s were very hesitant in prescribing it.

Maybe that was just your GP?
I've friends who have used HRT for 20 years with supportive GPs.

That's more context!

I went on HRT at 53 the same time my periods stopped. Didn't have symptoms before that.

I was using HRT before 2015.
I'm pretty sure it was not in the 2015 guidance. The crux of that guide was hrt was individualised and not with any time limit. At one point 60 was 'the age' to stop and that's been debunked too.

I thought it was more a GP decision ( pre 2015) based on nervousness about risk shown by the old, flawed data?

I think all women should be able to have a DEXA scan on the NHS once they reach 55 but NICE in all its wisdom has refused (yet again) even after a strong request by the Royal Osteoporosis Society.

Picking up my patches tomorrow and fingers crossed night sweats reduce as last night had about 6 waking me up I'm exhausted!

Good luck!