HRT and MJ

[myladyjane]

has anyone found that starting hrt has slowed their losses?

i started a couple of months ago and have hit a plateau. It may well just be coincidence as we’ve had Christmas and I’m fairly close to goal so it’s a hard grind anyway but just curious as to whether this could be having an impact too.

trying to push past the plateau and it’s proving v tricky…..

I was already on hrt when I started mj but my experience was peri cause huge weight gain, hrt initially caused more gains then settled and I managed to lose some of the weight, eventually settling about 7lb down from heaviest but weight fluctuated and I would gain if I didn’t watch my food and drink intake.

Since getting settled on a balanced hrt regime and adding in mj, I have lost 2 stone and have around 10lb to target. I have also reduced hrt dosage from 4 pumps of gel to 3 and may well be able to drop further.

A friend has come off hrt completely with being on mj and found that it has resolved her symptoms.

But I will probably stay on mj for a long while after I get to goal if not long term. And at present I will stay on hrt for the protective effects as well.

I started Mounjaro in June 2024 and HRT in January 2025. I was about two years post menopause and mostly symptom free, but after losing around 5 stone menopause symptoms came back.

I’m on transdermal estrogen and micronised progesterone, which are the least likely types of HRT to cause water retention or increase appetite leading to weight gain (or slow losses).

My weight loss slowed a bit after Christmas 2024, from about 2.2lbs a week to around 1.5lbs and then slowed further over the year to about 0.5 lb a week. But it was still heading in the right direction, and I lost another 4 stone over 12 months in 2025.

I think it’s pretty normal for weight loss to slow the more you lose, and the post-Christmas period can take a while to get back into a routine/break the plateau. The HRT might have played a small part in the slowdown, but for me it didn't feel like the main reason.

I have a Dr appointment tomorrow as meno symptoms are coming back and will be asking to increase estrogen from 50µg to 75µg so it will be interesting what that does. I am currently maintaining at BMI 25.

Interesting to see people's responses, I'm late 40's and haven't had a ton of symptoms, but waking up clammy in the middle of the night and being awake for hours is doing me in so I'm trying to get a GP appointment to discuss going on HRT. I've been on Mounjaro for nearly 18 months and currently failing to titrate down (tried, but am gaining) so ideally would like a flat line on the scales first, so I'm not trying to second guess what's doing what.

@OneThirdLess that’s v similar to me but sleep was getting worse so I decided I’d like to give it a go.

i think it may just be coincidence to be honest. I am at something of a set point for me anyway but I was actually doing pretty well in 10mg if at a slow rate. I only moved up to see if it kicked started the last little bit and if it’s not going to, I’d prefer to stick at 10mg tbh.

there is definitely more I can be doing post Xmas (moderate the carbs a bit, more activity etc). The hrt has done wonders for my sleep already though so worth it overall. Thanks all.

@myladyjane I think it takes quite some time to get HRT to the right levels, I’ve been on it for about 5 years now and have had quite a few tweaks over that time, I felt like I’d got to a really good consistent level before I started WLI, but have been a bit up and down since as they effected my progesterone levels (before they brought out the guidance about oral progesterone) so I’ve had to make a few changes.
I do believe (from the information I follow by menopause professionals) that HRT and WLI work really well together, so I suggest you carry on, hopefully you are just having a plateau and it will pass soon, those last few lbs can take what feels like forever in my experience.