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[panda123]

Hi again everyone.

I ve found so much wonderful information on this site and thank you all.  I came across Prof Studds name over and over and decided to Google him.  It was like finally, after 30 years of misery, coming across information that made sense to me.  All the symptoms he described as progesterone intolerance that I have suffered over the last 30 years were all there!  I have been on Femoston 1/10 for 8 days now and so far the oestrogen only tabs seem to be keeping the terrible anxiety and depression at bay.  I am now dreading starting the grey pills as they contain progesterone .  Does anyone know how long the waiting list for Prof Studd is approximately?  I would mortgage my house if I thought he could bring me some peace from all the misery I have suffered all my adult life.

Panda123

[Dancinggirl]

panda123 - If you had problems with the progesterone in BCPs this won't necessarily mean you will have issues with the progesterone in an HRT.  Femoston has one of the kinder progesterones so you may well be fine - so please, please don't look for problems.
Studd only seems to use Utrogestan but, as I've experienced, it isn't always ideal - some women are fine on it but many do have issues like problematic bleeding, feeling sedated and disturbed sleep.
Try not to worry - practise some Mindful Meditation and enjoy all the benefits the Femoston is bringing.
Before spending loads on money on a visit to Studd just give the Femoston a try - you could well be pleasantly surprised.  You can get the the Utrogestan with Oestrogel on the NHS from your GP if you really want it but you may need to take the info to the appointment as many GPs don't know about these types of HRT.
Dg x

[Kate50]

Hi
I went to see Professor Studd not quite 2 weeks ago and I only had to wait 2 weeks to see him plus he has another chap working for him.  It's not cheap £300 for consultation and he charges £ 250 for bloods and the same again for bone scan.  I got blpods done at home and got them quick by going straight to hospital to have them done.  Bone scan my dr said I'm low risk and then Studd said I should have one which I wasn't happy about!  I was fine!  I have not been able to take any of the progesterones femostan made me depressed.  I think you should ask your doctor for the bio gel and the utrogestan.  He says take testosterone as well but you won't get that from your docs cos it's not licensed for use on women.  If you could get the others from docs it's worth trying bf you pay out cos im not sure you gonna get any more out of him he didn't talk much and seems to just hand out his formula.  The thing is he's good to go to if you not getting anywhere which was like me and carries a bit of weight when you go to your own Dr but you may get it at home so I would try it.  Tell them who he is and what he recommends.  I am going to ask to go on NHS waiting list for Nick Panay for the future as I don't have a problem travelling to London for treatment and our hospital is not great. Hope that helps

[panda123]

Thanks DG.
I completely understand what you are saying and realise I am probably coming across as slightly hysterical and irrational.  I have made an appointment with my GP for this afternoon and will talk things through with her and see what she thinks.  I ll let you know what we decide.

Hi Kate50
Thanks so much for all the info you sent.  As I live in Scotland I would have extra costs for transport on top of all the consult fees etc so it all adds up pretty quickly.  As I mentioned to DG above I ve made an appointment with my GP for this pm and will take along all the info Prof Studd gives in his articles and see what she says.  In my part of Scotland there are no Menopause clinics sadly so that isn t an option either.  Wish me luck, I always feel as if I m going into battle when I see a GP - they just don t listen and need to get you out the door before your 10 mins are up!

Panda xx

[Kate50]

Good Luck. You can get referred to anywhere in the country for an NHS referral you know

[bramble]

Panda,
As you live in Scotland, why not book an appointment with Dr Currie? She is in Dumfries, I know, not the easiest of places to go but cheaper than London.

Bramble

[Dancinggirl]

I agree with Bramble - try to see Dr Currie.  DG x

[panda123]

 Thank you very much Bramble and DG.  Can I book an appointment directly with her or does it have to be a referral from my GP? 
XX

[panda123]

Ooops, just found the info on Google.  Sounds like a great idea but waiting time of 8-10 weeks is not great. 

Another question for you Kate50 - are you on the progesterone part for 7 days or longer?

xx

[Kate50]

7 days haven't taken it yet.  Gotta wait 2 months. Been on oestrogen since September as cant take progesterone successfully but he didn't seem worried had an examination and said everything felt ok? ! I didn't want to wait any longer that's why I went but easy to get to London from mine.

[Mary G]

Panda123, You could wait and see how you get on with the progesterone part of your HRT but if it doesn't work out, I would waste no time in having a one to one consultation with a hormone specialist, I think you deserve that at the very least after suffering for over 30 years.

If you GP is helpful, fine but if not, don't hesitate to make an appointment with Professor Studd or another specialist.

I am severely intolerant to all types of synthetic progesterone and to Utrogestan (bio identical progesterone) if taken in large quantities even though I was never intolerant to my own progesterone or suffered with PMS during my reproductive years.  I had struggled with HRT regimes that did not work for years and then I visited Professor Studd and he finally put me onto the right HRT regime. 

The real breakthrough was changing from patches to oestrogen gel which made an enormous difference because I found oral HRT completely useless and the patches to be ineffectual because I had poor absorption, they didn't stick well and I just don't like going around with a patch stuck to my backside.  Many women find Oestrogel to be a life changer, I certainly did.  I also take 100mg of Utrogestan, a bio identical progesterone (vaginally) for 7 days each month and a tiny bead of testesterone every day.

Having been around the block and tried so many different types of HRT, this is the only regime that comes even close for me and I can honesty say I now feel back to normal and roughly the same as I did when I was 30 even though I am now 54.  The only downside is the Utrogestan part but I keep that to a minimum and it seems to be working so far.  Professor Studd always suggests that women who are severely intolerant to synthetic progesterone should limit their intake as much as possible and usually suggests 100mg Utrogestan vaginally for 7 days per month.

Good luck with the doctor.

[Dancinggirl]

Prof Studds regime does work for some women but I must stress that it is not ideal for all.  Taking any progesterone for such a short time (12 days in the recommend minimum dose) can bring problems.  So Utrogestan at this low dose of 100mg sequentially,  ( the licensed dose is 200mg for 12 days ) can result in the womb lining building up and then erratic bleeding becomes a problem - this is what happened to me and it's happened to others who post on MM.  This is why this regime must be carefully monitored with regular scans - very expensive!!!!

panda123 - I really would give Femoston a 3 month trial - you may well be fine.  Many women who have trouble with most progesterones actually do very well on Femoston.  Do talk to your GP and ask for a referral which may take 8 weeks but by then you will have given Femoston a good trial so Dr Currie (or maybe another more local specialist gynae) could advice accordingly. I see an excellent gynae privately who is based in Norwich - he has been very patient, explaining everything to me and offering very good ongoing support - Prof Studd isn't the only specialist in meno, so going more locally is probably best - whether privately or on the NHS.
When you said before that you had problems with progesterone, you didn't tell us in what context?  Was it as a result of BCPs or did you have bad PMT with you natural periods or PND after having a baby?
Dg x

[panda123]

Thank you to all you lovely ladies who have replied to me.  Here s what happened at the GP:

I had never seen this GP before so explained all my problems/worries to her.  She admitted she knew very little about the menopause and asked me if I had any ideas of what I wanted to do next.  I told her what I had read about Prof Studds regime and she was very interested in it and looked up the Oestrogel and Utrogesten in her book.  She said it sounded good and did I want her to prescribe it so I could give it a try.  She had problems prescribing it at first as, in her words "computer says no"!  She said it is not recommended for Doctors in our location to prescribe it but didn t know why (perhaps it s more expensive?)  She managed to over-ride the computer and gave me a script for Oestrogel Pump pack 0.6% gel and Ultrogestan 100mg caps 2 daily for 14 days.  She wasn t sure how to transition between the Femoston 1/10 and the new regime and suggested I go off the Femoston, wait until I got a period and then follow the instructions in the leaflets of the new script.  As far as the testosterone went she was flummoxed and had no suggestions.     All in all I am left feeling very unsure and confused. 

Does anyone know of any private menopause specialists in Scotland?  I feel I really need to see someone asap and will deal with the cost somehow!

I can t really stress how scared I am to take the 2nd part of the Femoston DG.  To answer your question about my progesterone problems, I tried to go on BCP s in my 20 s for PMS and had a severe depressive episode which lasted months and months.  I then just put up with the PMS and it ruined my marriage and my subsequent relationship and I m now on my own.  I had severe sickness throughout all 3 of my pregnancies which lasted until I was between 7-8 months pregnant and meant I spent months of all my pregnancies in hospital.  The doctor told me this was probably due to too much progesterone which I cannot tolerate.

Thank you so much for your reply Mary G.  As you have read above I still don t know what to do but I am so pleased you have found Oestogel to be helpful - one more reason for me to give it a go. 

Good luck Kate50 - keep me posted on how it goes xx

Look forward to hearing if anyone can give me the name of a private consultant in Scotland - 2 months is such a long time to wait for an NHS appointment - I m worn out waiting for improvements!!

panda123 xx

[panda123]

Trying to reply to a private message but can t see where the "reply" button is - please help 

[Dancinggirl]

Well panda123 - it sounds to me as though you saw a very good GP - she listened and indeed gave you what you wanted. I'm not sure where you are in your menopause?  How old are you?  Were you still getting periods? Are you post meno?
What I would suggest re starting the Oestrogel and Utrogestan is this:
You say you are 8-9 days into the oestrogen part of the Femoston so that is fine.  All you have to do is stop taking the pills and start using the gel till you have been using oestrogen alone for 14 days - so you will use the gel for 4-5 days before starting the Utrogestan.  You can then just add the Utrogestan  for the next 14 days - you continue to use the Oestrogel alongside. I would start with just one pump of the Oestrogel (they usually say 2 pumps but my gynae advises to start low and then increase to 2 pumps if the flushes are not under control after 4 weeks). The gel is a very efficient way to deliver oestrogen so one often needs to use less in terms of dosage.
I am concerned that you are extremely anxious and this could make you react negatively - do keep posting so we can reassure you. Do you practise any type of CBT or Mindful Meditation to help control your anxiety?  You must bare in mind that there are many women who use HRT really successfully and until you try you won't know if it suits you.
You have been given your best option to try by your GP which is great - you really don't need to see a gynae privately at this stage - it is so costly and you probably won't get anything different.  Don't despair, if HRT really doesn't suit you then an AD or SRRI can be a good alternative to control meno symptoms - here are the alternatives to HRT: http://www.menopausematters.co.uk/prescribed.php - my gynae recommends Citalopram as a good one to control meno symptoms.  DG x