Hi PollyEm
In answer to your question - during peri-menopause when your hormones are fluctuating - symptoms do come and go unpredictably. Some women try alternative treatments at this time - but because your body is continually changing it is difficult to say of these, what works and what doesn't.
There is an article about peri-menopause here which you might find helpful:
http://www.menopausematters.co.uk/article-perils-of-the-perimenopause.phpHave you been given any cause for your ME/CFS? Aside from post-viral conditions and depression, low thyroid, low oestrogen and/or low testosterone can also cause these symptoms but docs do not necessarily test for them all. In fact women on here have been given this diagnosis when in fact they needed hormones! It must be so debilitating for you.
I hope you start to feel much much better on the gel - but have you also had your thyroid tested - and do you have any other symptoms which could indicate low thyroid function? Also very few doctors test for testosterone - and in my case, as an example I was going to be referred for fibromyalgia testing due to ongoing tiredness and muscle pains, but I went to a private gynae who gave me some testosterone ( I also had low libido) and it has certainly helped hugely with the muscle pains, and to a certain extent with the tiredness. Just a thought - although I am sure you will have left no stone unturned if you have suffered for that long. Just that it seems the medical profession doesn't always make that leap - and think of hormonal solutions - when it comes to women.
Homeopathy is simply placebo and most of the alternative treatments for menopause have insufficient evidence as to their efficacy. The best thing you can do is what you are doing - ie replacing oestrogen in the most natural way possible ie transdermal estradiol - in your case using the gel. When you start the progesterone - the most "natural " one is utrogestan - micronised progesterone - but this can cause tiredness because it has to be taken in large doses - which might not be ideal with your condition. The next best one is dydrogesterone which used to be available as Duphaston - but i don't think it is obtainable in UK now. Otherwise it will have to be one of the synthetic ones - but hopefully you will be fine with these - although possibly try the utrogestan - but on a cyclical basis so you don't have to take it continuously. I presume you are still having periods?
Hope this helps
Hurdity x