Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Noheroicsplease]

Hi all

I'm currently wading through information to decide whether I take HRT. I'm 46.

I'm finding it tricky to get concrete info on the future picture. Say I take HRT for 5/6 years. What then? What happens to my bone density (I am borderline normal/ostopenia). I read that all the benefits HRT brings to bone density can be lost once you come off. And what about the meno symptoms that I'm hoping to alleviate...don't they come back?

In my ideal world I'd like to deal with it naturally - I suspect I won't be able to - but I keep coming back to this idea that I'm simply delaying the inevitable.

Sorry for being a pain and asking stuff. I had another thread and people were so helpful.

[Dancinggirl]

Haven't got time to do a post right now but I'm now 60 and been without HRT for 5 months and doing OK.
I'll share my experience with you later.
At 46 you need the HRT - don't worry about when you have to stop.  Look after your bones and heart now with HRT and it will pay dividends later in tour life. DG x

[Hurdity]

There are lots of threads on this if you have a search - including one recently asking how long does menopause last - and I hope this answers some of your questions:
http://www.menopausematters.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,33861.0.html

As Dancinggirl says  - it's the here and now that matters. All the years you are taking HRT are years which are benefiting your health especially when under the natural average age of menopause of around 51.

The "delaying the inevitable" argument seems to be put forward by doctors who are against HRT or women who "sail through". I have been searching for a recent post or thread about this but can't find it! You don't go through menopause twice!!! Even if you only take it for a few years and you stop post-menopause, your hormones will have stopped surging and your ovaries will have packed up. Whether or not you continue to experience hot flushes - well you won't know - say you do get hot flushes when you stop,  you can't take away the years of benefit you will have had while on HRT - the quality of life and your health.   I am still taking it in my 60's....

Hurdity x

[Dancinggirl]

As far as I know, the research shows that 5 years of HRT in our 50s ( post meno) will help to prevent osteoporosis in the long term.  If you already have bone density loss in your 40s then HRT is really your best option - alternative treatments for osteoporosis can have some nasty side effects  - so HRT with plenty of calcium, Vitamin D, and magnesium in your diet together with weight baring exercise ( lots of brisk walking) will have a preventative effect.  The benefits of HRT really do outweigh the negatives when it comes to bones. 
Will flushes etc return when you stop? - in my experience they do but if you choose to come off HRT at a time when you can adapt your life to cope better then the meno symptoms are really not that bad.  I am 60, now off systemic HRT but still use local oestrogen which I plan to use for the rest of my life  - my VA is truly horrid without it.
BTW - urogenital atrophy is something you really want to avoid and some HRT now will help greatly to reduce your risk of developing this too early. 
Noheroicsplease - at your age HRT is your best option. DG x

[CLKD]

 

If one finds an HRT which suits then why stop?  Sometimes Practitioners suggest that a lady takes a break to see where they might be 'in the journey' but hey ho! why go back to symptoms if they can be avoided?

At your age you need protection for bones and heart. HRT can help with this.  Gentle exercise. 'me' time is important.  Keep hydrated.  Eat well. 

Treatment for vaginal atrophy is 'different' from general HRT as it is very localised and should be used on a regular basis in order to keep symptoms at bay. 

Keeping a mood/food/symptom diary can be useful.  When I feel well I forget how awful symptoms can feel  .

Menopause is 'natural', so are the symptoms but if they require treatment, they do try what is offered.  After all, when you are hungry do you not eat  .  However, 'natural' isn't always 'safe', i.e herbals are not as regulated as drugs which have been tested and passed for use by NICE.  Arsenic is 'natural' 

Let us know how you get on.  Ask away!

[Noheroicsplease]

Thanks all. Lots to consider.

I do take very good care of myself already. Eat very healthy, don't drink, do the right exercise regularly. A bit more me time would be nice!

Why do you all keep mentioning VA...is that in the post?

[Dancinggirl]

Vaginal or urogenital atrophy effects lots of women and usually starts at some stage of menopause. Oestrogen deficiency effects the bladder as well as the vaginal area and can be very painful and distressing.  VA is still a very taboo subject and there must be so many women suffering who are too shy or embarrassed to ask their GP about the pain they get - often it shows itself as UTI type symptoms.   HRT will reduce the chance of this taking hold too early and causing long term problems.  Local oestrogen can really help, even if not using full systemic HRT. 
DG x

[dangermouse]

A GP who specialises in HRT answered this on the radio and said it's not true that you are putting off the inevitable because if you stop at a time when hormone volatility has passed, then you will just default to how you would have been if had never taken HRT (apart from the protective side you've built up).

You may just have a sudden plummet to deal with for a few weeks but you even out soon after apparently.

[CLKD]

For me Vaginal Atrophy began with intermittent urine infection-type symptoms but after 2 urine samples had been sent to a LAB! (essential to prove if/not an infection is present) my GP recommended treatment.  Really does make a difference to easing symptoms of vaginal dryness, itching high up, the need to pee ……. not something I was aware of until it hit me!  I believe that I will be on treatment for years++.