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[Dorothy]

Well done, LizaB - it's lots of little battles that win the war!

[Spangles]

Well done you xXx

[CLKD]

…… tired today?  I often find that when I have a 'good/better' day I am shattered the next 

[Lizab]

I think I'm about the same today. I wouldn't say I had a great day yesterday, but it was still nice to get out. But yes, I've noticed that too. I always pay for it the next day.

[Hurdity]

Hi Lizab

I've forgotten how old you are but I presume quite young if you have a toddler - and also wherabouts in menopause you are? That dose of patch is quite low - but if you were still having regular periods then it should help. What progestogen are you taking? I think you might eventually need to increase your dose - but if you only started on Boxing Day that is very recently!

Dororthy - what a ridiculous and sweeping statement for that woman to make!! I am 62 and probably 8 years post-menopausal and I am much more active than I have been at times in the past and make a conscious effort to be so. I can see how upsetting that would be - but never fear there is plenty of life in us all if we can find it and if we look after or health, and don't have too many adverse life events.....

Hurdity x

[Lizab]

Hi Hurdity

I'm 39, and I am not having regular periods. They began changing probably 5 years ago, then went wild, frequent and heavy, after the birth of my youngest. I guess she isn't a tot anymore, at nearly four. The past two years I have been skipping 3 or 4 months at a time. I am taking Prometrium 200, ten days per month. I believe it is the US name for Utrogestan.

A symptom specific question about the hrt: I see posts about women getting a weird head feeling. I get this, and it often precedes a hot flash but not always. I bundle it with hot flashes and anxiety attacks because they all seem connected but it's very difficult to describe. Does hrt help this? I've seen lots of forum posts on this, but never any definitive responses about the cause or solution. I would feel loads better if I knew that the hrt should eventually help this particular symptom.

[Dorothy]

I am 62 and probably 8 years post-menopausal and I am much more active than I have been at times in the past and make a conscious effort to be so.

  Hurdity, that is really encouraging for those of us still going through it!  Sometimes it's easy to start thinking this will last forever!  You've reminded me of my friends' mum, who had an early menopause around 38 - she is now in her early 60s, working part time, doing voluntary work, caring for grandchildren - she's slim, fit, looks terrific and has boundless energy.  Yet I know she had a rough time going through the change.

Lizab, I don't know much about HRT as I am on BCP instead, but it might be worth asking your GP if you need a stronger dose.  It's difficult to say if the HRT will help the 'weird' feeling, but assuming it's hormone-related, there's a fair chance it should.

[Lizab]

I have a small victory today! I woke this morning, still like a meerkat, as I believe GypsyRose calls it, and waited for my morning hot flash, but it never came! I don't whether to credit the 3rd week of estrogen, the 6th dose of progesterone, or that I changed from a generic to brand patch Tuesday. I still feel weird and a little unsteady in my legs, but I haven't cried since Monday and no morning hot flash today, so something seems to be working. Now if I could only get a burst of energy that isn't the anxious do-nothing kind of energy that makes me shaky and weak.

[dazned]

Early days yet,one step at a time.....

[Lizab]

I know, and if I have a bad spell in the  evening or tomorrow, I'll probably be a blubbering mess again. Optimism is my weakness in all this mess.

[Lizab]

A little update in my hrt progress in case anyone's curious:
I finished my 10 day course of progeterone last night, in my 4th week on the estrogen patch. I have been feeling significantly better the last few days. Yesterday, I started my period. I feel bizarre today, fragile and raw and generally uncomfortable, like a regular period but perhaps amplified. I'll take that over the foggy, weird, dying feeling. Also, the weepiness is almost completely gone. I'm spilling tears once every few days now.
I've seen others post about hitting a low after their Utrogestan course. I hope I don't experience that. One day at a time

[CLKD]

Thanks for the update!  Yes we are interested, it's that there's a lot of posts to catch up on 

Are you keeping a mood/HRT diary.  I keep track by putting down my worser days on the calendar when necessary.

[Lizab]

Yes, CLKD, I'm tracking symptoms and mood, as I was finding one thing seemed to lead into another and I wouldn't even notice that my original complaint had resolved itself.  I hope it all falls into a nice, neat pattern. It's easier for me to handle if it's predictable. It's the sudden, coming from nowhere symptoms that throw me into a panic.

[Dorothy]

So far so good.  Hope it continues well for you.  You're right that it helps so much if you can 'map' what is happening - I find I know when to expect most of my down days - the ones that come out of nowhere are far more scary!

[Lizab]

Ok. Heading into my second month on estradiol patch, I feel a bit better. After the course of progesterone, I did have 4 days of being very irritable. The past few days I almost dare to say I've felt VERY good! I still have moments and bad days, but moments of needing to retreat and rest is so much better than not being able to get out of bed. I'm still not driving and not going out much, but I feel like I'm getting there!

I'm noticing that my .375 patches seem to "run out" after two days, so the last day or day and a half is hard. I know the patch is supposed to give even delivery throughout, so this is crazy, but I feel it. On Tuesdays I change it at night, so it's not as obvious. Tuesday is not a great day, then I wake up fine on Wednesday. But Saturday I change in the morning, and I wake up down on Saturday, but by mid-afternoon I feel fantastic. My crying spells only come in the day(or hours) before patch change now.

I wonder where I go from here. There can't possibly be anything more evenly dosed than a patch, right? Would asking to bump up to .5 help, or would I have an even stronger fluctuation when it "runs out"? I don't think my doctor will be keen  adding gel to a patch and toying with what feels better. With young kids in my home, I'm don't like that idea either. Can anyone advise?

I can't believe how severely reproductive hormones can affect life. I know I'm still early in this, but the difference from now and a few months ago is incredible.