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[Kathleen]

Hello Ladies.

Can anyone advise me please.  I am using Oestrogel and Utrogestan but things have taken a turn for the worse and I'm panicking now.

 I had been using two pumps but as I'm still flushing I recently increased this to three. I also started out taking Utrogestan orally but I was concerned about my low mood so I started using it vaginally. In the last few days I've felt awful mood wise and now my breasts are very tender and I've began spotting with a rust coloured discharge ( sorry if tmi). I am still flushing however.

I can't get an appointment with my GP and I don't see the Consultant until late August. I feel full of hormones but they are making me feel worse not better. I have wondered if I'm progesterone intolerant but I've never had it separately from oestrogen so how would I know? I'm so confused atm.

Sorry if I'm repeating myself but clearly my body is telling me I'm doing something wrong.

If any of you lovely ladies have some words of wisdom for me I would be truly grateful.

Wishing you all well.

K.

[Lanzalover]

Hi Kathleen

So sorry to hear you are still having problems.
I apologise but I cann't rember if you are taking Utrogestan continuously if you could let me know I can reply more fully.

Lanzalover x

[Kathleen]

Hello Lanzalover and thank you for your reply.

Yes I am taking Utrogestan 100mg continuously. Until a few weeks ago I was taking it orally but I became worried about my low mood so I changed to vaginally but now I have spotting.

Thanks for your interest and take care.

K.

[Lanzalover]

Hi Kathleen

I think it is the continuous progesterone that's causing you problems.

From personal experience I just couldn't get on with Utrogestan either orally or vaginaly and continuous progesterone doesn't suit me at all.I did try Utrogestan cyclically but that didn't work as the withdrawal bleeds were horrendous.By this time I felt like I was at the last chance salon as the only progesterone I hadn't tried was Provera so I changed to that and use it cyclically it means I have to have a withdrawal bleed but as I am 60 now I do a long cycle 6-8 weeks depending on holidays events etc and it works for me.

I'm not saying Provera is perfect I certainly feel more tired when using it but the benefit is I sleep like a log when using it.My mood does lower a little but nothing to cause any concern.
So for me 3 pumps of Estrogel plus the Provera added in every now and again works plus the withdrawal bleed on Provera is much easier to deal with than the ones I had using Utrogestan.

If you don't mind having a withdrawal bleed it's something you could consider.

Take care and I do hope you manage to find something to help.

Lanzalover x

[Dotty]

I think using it vaginally can cause the spotting as more of the progesterone gets to the womb.

[Lanzalover]

Hi Kathleen

Forgot to say spotting is not unusual in first few months of conti HRT.

Lanzalover x

[Traceylr]

Hi Kathleen,
I tool take utrogestan 100mg continually( with estrodot 50mcg patch x weekly). I too changed 3 months ago from oral utroto vag use continually because of the low moods / loss of libido . I had two bleeds three weeks( one defo due to stopping the utro for 3 days as was my regime 25/28 days)  apart and have had episodes of very  light brown spotting . Otherwise I feel bloody great! No other side effects to speak of. Ive booked to see the gp to see if I can have a uterine scan just to check the utro is doing its job . Im sure ( fingers crossed) that its just due to changing the way I take it. I have also read that it can irritate the cervix and cause spotting, although I read this on ivf sites) it seemed a common prob there. Im just going to keep taking it and reassess after the scan . If alls ok uterus wise then I can cope with the odd spotting as the benefits for me more than compensate.  I hope this is useful info for you.

[Traceylr]

Hi again ,
Just noticed typo,  I meant to say estradot patch 50mcg twice weekly .

[Emerald2017]

Maybe Kathleen utrogestan doesn't agree with you...and maybe trying something different is a good idea?

[Mary G]

I would put money on it being Utrogestan.   Because you are taking it every day, you are drowning out the positive effects of the oestrogen hence the symptoms.  If you want a continuous combined regime you will need to do what Dotty does and use four pumps of gel.

I have given up on Utrogestan.  I hate all forms of progesterone used in HRT preparations but I decided to take a break from Utrogestan and try Angeliq instead and what a difference!   I only took a few tablets to provoke a bleed and had no side effects whatsoever.   Next time I'm going to give Provera a whirl and then I'll decide which I like best.  I take such a low dose of progesterone, I'm not worried about it being synthetic.

You could consider switching to a cyclical regime using Provera.   

[Kathleen]

Hello ladies.


Thank you all for your helpful replies.

Lanzalover - I would love to try a long cycle, either with Utrogestan or Provera but my  consultant doesn't agree with it and says frequent scans can be a problem so I feel a bit stuck.

Traceylr - What you say about spotting is interesting. I've had it before when using a 75mg patch and had a hysteroscopy. I reduced the strength of the patch and it resolved.  Perhaps for you Utrogestan vaginally is not strong enough to ruin the effects of a medium dose patch.

Emerald2017 - I am open to suggestions as I can't go on like this. It's too exhausting.


Mary G -  I was thinking that I would need to move to four pumps but I'm feeling wired and have tender breasts on three so I'm concerned that I'm not good on high oestrogen. I could ask to try Angelique or Provera but I'd need to persuade my GP and or consultant. I would like to try a long cycle but how do I persuade the medics to let me try it?


Wishing you all well ladies and thanks again.

K.

[Conolly]

Hello Kathleen,


Sorry to hear you're still struggling. What do you think about Mirena coil? I'm not advocating it, can't stand the idea myself but it's an option. Meanwhile I'd try Utrogestan vaginally every other day, 100 mg is too much (my own experience).
Hope you can sort it out soon. I have given up on HRT for now.
Conolly X

[Kathleen]

Hello  Conolly.

Thank you for your post. The thing that frightens me about the mirena is if I feel  terrible I'll need to persuade someone to take it out.  I may try Utrogestan every other day and see how that goes. I have a follow up appointment with my consultant at the end of this month but she has already dismissed trying a long cycle which seems to be the regime many other women do well on.

I sympathise with giving up on HRT altogether. The reason I delayed trying it in the first place was because so many women were struggling to get it right so I thought I'd just power through it. However when I was three years post meno my symptoms became worse so I asked for help. HRT has never really fulfilled it's promise for me,  perhaps I am progesterone intolerant or oestrogen dominant, or something inbetween, who knows, something I am certain of is that my mood swings, flushes, night sweats, sense of unease and generally feeling cr@p so much of the time have carried on regardless!

Sorry to moan and thanks again for your comments.

I hope you do well without HRT and please keep us updated, it will be interesting to follow your progress.

Take care.

K.

[Cassie]

I take 100mg of Utrogestan for 12 days a month could never take it daily I also use it vaginally it works very well along with the gel I use 1 pump at night been on this for over 10 yrs.

[Conolly]

Hello  Conolly.

Thank you for your post. The thing that frightens me about the mirena is if I feel  terrible I'll need to persuade someone to take it out.  I may try Utrogestan every other day and see how that goes. I have a follow up appointment with my consultant at the end of this month but she has already dismissed trying a long cycle which seems to be the regime many other women do well on.

I sympathise with giving up on HRT altogether. The reason I delayed trying it in the first place was because so many women were struggling to get it right so I thought I'd just power through it. However when I was three years post meno my symptoms became worse so I asked for help. HRT has never really fulfilled it's promise for me,  perhaps I am progesterone intolerant or oestrogen dominant, or something inbetween, who knows, something I am certain of is that my mood swings, flushes, night sweats, sense of unease and generally feeling cr@p so much of the time have carried on regardless!

Sorry to moan and thanks again for your comments.

I hope you do well without HRT and please keep us updated, it will be interesting to follow your progress.

Take care.

K.

I know exactly what you mean, feeling cr@p myself. I am almost 2 years postmenopause, have a carpal tunnel syndrome and possibly fibromyalgia diagnosis. If they are related to menopause is another matter. Menopause symptoms per se have improved a lot, no anxiety (sort of) and hot flushes are manageable. No VA (yet?).
I'm taking some medication prescribed by Rheumatologist and it seems they are kicking in. I'm not sure I can mention them here, I had an appt outside the UK.

Have you had any other issues by the time the menopause symptoms have returned, such as emotional stress or anxiety, infections or inflammation? Do you think you still have signs of hormonal surge/plunge?
You may be just sensitive to hormones so any changes, from hrt or your own, could set things off.

We'll figure it out 🤞🏻😽