HRT newbie, am I imagining this!

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First time posting! I'll try to summarise.I'm 46 and after back and forth with various GPS last year due to mental health going downhill, it was suggested I may be experiencing perimenopause , still getting periods, but irregular and far heavier and more painful than ever.i started and am still on 0.5mg estrogen gel daily, with every other fortnight progesterone
Now 6 weeks in. Around 5 days of estrogen only i felt far better with more energy, despite being told it could take months to feel any effect, over the weeks this has declined and I feel back to low mood and debilitating fatigue. I apply the gel at 6pm each evening and I'm noticing from around 7-11pm-ish I actually feel vaguely normal and awake. I'm wondering could the gel have a effect like this? And would a increase help, or is it just In my head that I'm feeling better for a few hours. I am trying to get a GP appointment, but just wondered if anyone had any real lived experience or knowledge in this. Many thanks all for reading.

This may not be helpful but can I ask why you’re taking it in the evening? I thought the advice was to take it in the morning - partly for positive daytime effects. Obviously routine Oestrogel should have a consistent 24h effect but just wondering if this might have something to do with it?

Personally, I felt a profound difference within about a week of taking it. I put my gel on in the morning. The fact that you feel so well in the hours following the gel suggest it’s having an incredible effect. And suggests perhaps you should have an increase. But this is definitely not in your head, and don’t let them tell you that. it sounds like maybe you’re not on a high enough dose. You could always experiment for a few days?! in the meantime organise an appointment as you’ll soon run out of your supplies

My GP suggested evening as I was getting really bad night sweats, which have thankfully reduced, there does seem to be varying info available regarding best time to apply it, plus mornings are quite hectic for me, I can be up and out by 7:30 on a week day, but weekends I can sleep well past 9 without a alarm, so by applying in the evening I'm more likely to remember to do it! That is something that did confuse me that effects should be consistent over 24hrs, but there's suggestions online and even my GP saying take when symptoms are worse. Thinking changing from PM to AM may be something I need to try. Many thanks.

This is how I felt, was unsure though if it was just psychological and that I felt better due to relief of a GP actually listening and not dismissing my symptoms. I've definitely noticed a pattern of feeling better within a hour of applying and I guess it must be able to work that quickly to some extent, hence the suggestion of taking it when symptoms affect worst.
I did apply twice yesterday evening, I slept far better and definitely feel more on top of things today, but wonder if this is how I would of felt anyway, I'll keep monitoring how I'm feeling, and as another poster suggested I probably should try to switch to mornings to see if that balances things out.
I have also been on to drs and been advised to email with my questions and request a call back from GP as there rapid health system told me to call 111! (That's a post for a different day! Lol). Many thanks.

I've been on HRT for 5 years now. I'm on patches rather than gel, I started on a 50mg patch and felt so much better within a week - it was amazing! After about 5 weeks I noticed my symptoms returning and I wasn't feeling so great. I had a follow up appointment at 12 weeks and told the doc and she said that's very common and that I just needed to up the dosage. I've been on a 75mg patch since then and never looked back. So I'd say you just need to up the dosage. With regards timing, I know it's recommended to take the progesterone at night but I've never heard of taking the estrogen at night so maybe try it first thing and see if that helps.

Have you considered patches? Would fit with your evening routine and you wouldn't have to reapply every evening. These have worked well for me.

i always do my gel in an evening, not sure why other than it's more practical than in a morning, but I have a feeling someone said it can help you sleep?

I felt better when I started, I didn’t get on with the gel though as it gave me a rash, I was prescribed patches and they had a rapid effect. I don’t think you can be imagining the benefits

Hope a timing switch might help . I also had the initial boost before tailing off and return of symptoms. I increased my dose twice over the last three years (now three pumps daily) and that seems to now be holding the worst at bay!

I should add my ‘morning’ application time varies from 6.30 am to 10.30 am with no seeming ill effect!

Thankyou, I'm definitely going to try morning instead. Would you mind me asking how often the patch needs changing? I'm only in 0.5mg gel daily, so wondering if that's a particularly low dose anyway. Thanks.

Thanks all for the really helpful advice and experiences. Thinking I definitely need to speak with GP about upping the dose, reassuring to know I wasn't imagining feeling better! And there is hope that a increase might improve things again.
With the regards to the time of day, think i may aim to try mornings again as I guess that would make sense if I'm feeling my best shortly after applying! Thanks again all x

I think most of the patches are to be changed twice a week and there’s two types - oestrogen only for 2
weeks and then one with progesterone in for 2 weeks. I found they never stayed stuck for long enough and I was constantly replacing them, and they left my skin a mess so the gel suits me much better. Also better for holidays etc then having to try and hide them underwear or walk round with patchwork thighs!

Only anecdotal, but this is an observation on the effect of progesterone (I have oestrogen continually as well). Like others, the recommendation has been to take it at night because it can have a sedating or fuzzy effect.
The other night I took the progesterone right before going to bed and very late, around midnight. The following morning on waking was really awful, completely like being drugged or hungover, with some quite strange vertigo effects. I think I'd taken it too late and so took it with the evening meal the next day, which has improved things. On oestrogen, I still get short night sweats on the collarbone area, but not too bad. So I think there may be something in it as to the 'half life' of each hormone and when it starts to come out of the other side of processing (apparently 3-4 hours in the case of progesterone, don't know about others)

I'm on continuous progesterone so I take a pill for that once a day (at night) The estrogen patches are changed twice weekly - I like to change mine on Tuesdays and Fridays.

I chose patches because I was worried I'd forget if I'd used the gel! I was having terrible brain fog and honestly I could see that happening! I also didn't like the idea of having to apply it and wait for it to dry etc. The patches are just so handy (for me anyway) DH has been told that if anything ever happens and I end up in hospital he needs to bring my HRT to me immediately!!