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[NorthLondonlady]

Hi,
Great site and so supportive, lucky I found this.
I'm 53 and have been on hrt for two years. I had a blood test which showed my hormone levels were abnormal but I was getting my periods regularly every month. I suffered badly from mood swings to the point of having suicidal thoughts once a month, my hair drastically thinned and I wasn't sleeping. I wasn't really getting bad hot flushes. I was given Prempak c which worked instantly and was mood free for a 18 months - hooray! It was wonderful, until they stopped making it and during that time I was still getting a period once a month (but now realise that could have been because of the Prempak?)I'm now on Femiston Conti which hasn't been as good for me. My mood swings have returned and apparently I'm not supposed to have had a period for over a year. Not sure why my Dr had prescribed it? I'm also bleeding on it during the first week of the packet for the last three months. My gp has told me to try it and if I don't get in with it, we should try a different one. No one seems to be able to tell me why I felt on top of the world on Prempak c and not great on femiston conti- it's really hard to get a difinitive answer from my gp. What could I take to make me feel sane again? Really appreciate any answers you may have or can suggest the right questions to ask my gp. Thank you so much in advance 😁

[CLKD]

   browse round.  Make notes ;-).  Put the products you have been prescribed into our search button to see how other ladies have found them.

Some find keeping a mood/food/symptom diary useful.

[NorthLondonlady]

Thank you.  I have been reading related posts on this site for a few months before posting. Found Each individual is so different and haven't found any thing conclusive yet, hence the post.

[CLKD]

Each lady is unique  . 

GPs rarely know the 'whys' when prescribing HRT    ...... is there any particular symptom that you would like to control more than others?

[NorthLondonlady]

Hi, yes, it seems that way.   My sanity and feeling normal is my upmost concern. I'm not depressed, it's definitely a hormone imbalance. I've lived with pmt all my adult life and with the menopause it seemed to get worse until I tried Prempak c.  Thanks

[CLKD]

PMT - I was advised by NAPS in the 1990s to eat every 3 hours, 24/7!  Graze. 

[Rosanna]

Hello NorthLondonLady   

[NorthLondonlady]

Hello Rosanna!

[MicheleMaBelle]

Hello north London lady- wish I had an answer for you. You'll just need to try a few and see how you get on as some will be more suitable than others and prog part can play havoc with mood. I'm now on my 4th regime and not getting on with it so am thinking of chucking it altogether. It's my mood and sense of wellbeing that's seriously out of kilter.
Maybe it's too much progesterone or the wrong type for you now that you're further down the line. You could try asking for a different type or maybe switch to transdermal patch or gel with utrogestan.
Sorry not much help but do let us know how you get on x

[Hurdity]

Hi NorthLondonlady

 

Yes if you are still peri-menopausal then your own cycle can break through and cause bleeding on a continuous combined HRT. Also as Michelemabelle suggested the continuous progestogen may not suit you and lead to mood swings. Better to keep on with a cycle if you can, to minimise the exposure to progestogens - for sensitive women anyway. Also the doses may not be comparable. You haven't said what dose Prempak you were taking but even if it was the 0.625 dose - this is medium, whereas the Femoston conti is low dose. Also both the oestrogens and the progestogens are different in the two preparations so changing dose, and both hormones cold may well cause temporary disruption!

If you are prepared to stick with it  (Femoston is usually well tolerated), I would ask for a higher dose of cyclical Femoston( the 2/10) which would give a withdrawal bleed every 4 weeks. You are still pretty young so hopefully doc will agree to this. Do your homework before you go and be prepared to stand your ground.

Good luck and let us know how you get on

Hurdity x

[Scotdownunder]

Hi NorthLondonLady,

Your post resonated with me as I have similar issues with mental aspects of the menopause. Oh, for a clear brain again! I ended up feeling suicidal earlier this week thanks to progesterone. While I have had PMT most of my life I did not know how bad it could get and why until more progesterone was put into my system with cyclical HRT in the last few months,

I feel great on Oestrogen alone, but with a few days or progesterone starting my mood sinks until it hits crisis point....now four plus days after stopping the progesterone starting to feel normal and happy again, but it did necessitate a couple of days off work!

Off to see a consultant gynae endocrinologist at the start of next month...who hopefully can suggest a way forward that leaves me happy all month. I really hate wanting to end it all....and don't much like the aggression stage either....for some reason my family don't much care for it either...can't work out why?