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[Katia]

Hi ladies,

I've just had some blood tests.  I felt great the week off the gel and utrogestan, like a foggyness cleared and I was sleeping better.  The Utrogestan is giving me insomnia.  After the blood test i decided to try to stay off them, but things changed, night sweats, hot flushes, extreme tiredness, uncontrollable hunger. 

My blood results are below and according to my GP are normal:
Serum FSH  69.9
Serum LH  44.7
Oestradiol 52
SHBG 86.8
Testosterone 1.3

I don't see progesterone on there.

Before the blood test I was wondering if the gel and utrogestan were just about to turn the corner, but I wasn't sure.  I had terrible insomnia.
 I was thinking of asking to swap to angeliq or femoston.  What are everyone's thoughts based on my blood tests?  My GP is saying they are normal, that I'm not menopausal, but I have all the symptoms.  I'm also having burning in the vagina area.  I'm 50. 

Thanks so much.   

[Hurdity]

Sorry your post got missed Katia.

At what point after stopping the HRT did you have the blood tests taken? "Normal" is pretty meaningless in this context in terms of oestrogen levels because the range is huge and depends what stage in your cycle you are and also where in menopause.

I'm not familiar with SHBG levels being taken - so I presume this is a private blood test? Also testosterone levels - I am never sure what is actually being measured - whether it is free ( ie bio-available) testosterone. The gynae I saw said she did not advise T tests because the test is designed for the much higher T levels in men and women are at the lower end of the range, so the test is not sensitive enough.

The FSH levels show you are somewhere in menopause (ie very high!) ie peri-menopausal or post-menopause - depending whether you are still ovulating and having natural periods. The oestrogen level is pretty low - but it is measured in two units - pg/ml and pmol/l. I suspect in your case  it is pg/ml. Even so that level is not very high and may not be sufficient to eliminate symptoms that are troubling you. It also depends where you are in menopause and if you are still having a cycle, what point in the cycle these blood tests were taken.

Progesterone isn't usually measured unless you are having fertility problems so it determines whether you are still ovulating and if so how much progesterone is produced in the second half of the cycle by the corpus luteum. Progesterone is very low in post-menopause and in the first half of the menstrual cycle - and again the test is not very sensitive at low levels anyway, as far as I understand.

Whatever you decide to do or not re HRT you must have local oestrogen to help with your vaginal problems because it won't go away untreated.

Hope this helps

Hurdity x

[Katia]

Hi Hurdity, all of the tests are about the middle of the reference range. The estrogen is mid range. I think pool/l was the measurement. The FSH the GP said is slightly above normal, not very high. They have said not menopausal.  I was off the HRT 8 days and I'm not sure where I am in my cycle. I'd changed from the pill to HRT.

When I stopped the HRT, the night seats and hot flushes, that seemed to have developed with the HRT went away. After about 10 days I got super, uncontrollably hungry, very greasy skin and a big spot. I started the HRT just the gel again. Had a reaction to it, all the menopausal symptoms came back. Stopped the gel and started the Utrogestan on its own. All the problems went away again.  i see the consultant next week. If it wasn't for the vaginal problems I was wondering about going back to the pill

[Katia]

Hurdity,

The measurment is  pmol/l.  I've spoken with the consultant.  The bloods are not clear about whether I'm menopausal.  The FSH is slightly high, but the estrogen is not low enough.  I wonder if this is why I'm having problems with HRT.  Can estring, vagifem etc. be used with the pill?