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[lily]

Hot flushes and night sweats are driving me mad - think I might have to go down HRT route as nothing else I've tried works.  How does the gel work, do you just use that on it's own and does it stop flushes and night sweats? 

[Taz2]

Hi lily - it will help with the symptoms but you will also need a progesterone if you still have your uterus? I've not used the gel but have used patches which worked amazingly well. My hot sweats went from every twenty minutes day and night to zero after only forty eight hours of wearing the patch.

Taz x

[lily]

Thanks taz, so if using patch is that all you use?

[Taz2]

If you still have your uterus then you will need a patch which contains progesterone. If you are still having periods then you will need a sequential patch which means you have two weeks of one type of patch containing just oestrogen and then, for the second two weeks of the cycle, those patches have progesterone added in. When you stop the second lot of patches and begin a new box then the drop in progesterone should trigger a withdrawal bleed to keep your womb lining healthy and thin. Two types of patches are https://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/medicine/15325  and http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/womens-health/medicines/femseven-sequi.html

If you have stopped your periods for over a year (or if you are aged over 53) then you can have a conti patch which delivers both oestrogen and progesterone for the whole month and doesn't cause a bleed. You can get breakthrough bleeding though for the first few months.

Taz x

[Dancinggirl]

Taz has explained things very well. Gel or patches are great for reducing flushes etc. but if you still have uterus you will need to have some progesterone to keep the womb lining thin -  either in a sequential regime so you have a monthly withdrawal bleed or continuously which will eventually stop all bleeds.  DG x

[lancashirelass]

You could also have gel with utrogestan bioidentical progesterone much kinder on.the system

[Cassie]

The gel is fantastic, have been on it for 10 or more yrs, not sure what a hot flush is, its safe and it works really well.

[Taz2]

Which progesterone do you use Cassie?

Taz x 

[lily]

You could also have gel with utrogestan bioidentical progesterone much kinder on.the system

Thanks, would I still have a bleed? I'm 53 later this year and would prefer not to.

[Dancinggirl]

Hi Lily
It's a good idea to start on a sequential HRT so you get a monthly bleed as it is often the progesterone that can give side effects. By using HRt in a sequential regime you have 2 weeks on just oestrogen and then 2 weeks on oestrogen with progesterone so you can gage whether you are reacting well to that particular type of progesterone.
If your periods stopped a year or so ago(so you are well into post meno) then you could then move on to using a continuous HRT having found a progesterone that suits you. Some women like Femoston because the progesterone is kinder and is very well tolerated but this only comes in pill form.  There are different types of progesterone and though Utrogeston is the most natural some women find they feel quite sedated when on it so taking continuously could be an issue.
Using HRt is very much about finding a regime that suits you.  If you want to stick to patches then perhaps try a sequential combined patch first as many women still do very well on these.
DG x

[Cassie]

Utrogestan 100mg x 12 days per mth....my bleeds used to be about 7 days but have shortened down to about 4 days as I have got older.