Print

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

[Coll]

Hi Ladies,
Could I pick your brains please ?   I have been on 3 pumps of Estrogel and 1 pea size of tesosterone daily and I can't tell you how much better I feel emotionally.
The progesterone made me feel so wretched but Iv found that after 3 months of oestrogel I have bled for a week without any progesterone twice now. I have scanned myself after the bleed and have a lovely thin endometrium, so basically is this ok to keep going without the progesterone.
Also I put the gels on my thighs as they gave me shoulder pains when I put it on my arms but I now have hairy thighs like a little bear which is quite funny and warm hehe. 

Does anyone have any experience of this ?
Many thanks for your time.



53 yrs, perimenopausal and main symptoms were depression and anxiety.

[Mary G]

Coll, I had a very similar experience.  I was trying to go for long cycle HRT and started bleeding at 5 weeks, it wasn't heavy but it was like an elongated period that lasted for over a week and then stopped -  same volume of blood as a normal period following progesterone phase but it took longer.   I didn't have any other spotting or bleeding before or after this episode and like you I had a uterine scan afterwards and my measurement was low.  I've never experienced sparodic bleeding or spotting.   

You could still be producing your own progesterone and it might be worth finding out via a blood test. 

It is strange that some women bleed unprovoked when the womb lining gets to a certain measurement - in my case it's over 7mm and then it starts shifting which is a bummer because I can't do a long cycle.  The good news is that I only need a tiny dose of progesterone for clearance and thinning and it would be worth finding out if you are the same.   If you take a low dose of progesterone every couple of months and have a scan immediately post bleed you will know for sure.

Worth a try?

[Coll]

Hi Mary,

Thanks very much for that. Do you tolerate the progesterone ok now?  It made me feel so bad I was wandering if I could get away without it ? I haven't taken any for about 6 months now.  I have Utrogestan tablets should  I need them.

[Hurdity]

Hi Coll

As you are peri-menopausal ie still ovulating then yes as Mary G says you will be producing your own progesterone and therefore you are managing without the added progesterone.

You will need to keep an eye on this though with your doctor because depending on your cycle and how often you are ovulating - then as your ovaries begin to pack up and you don't ovulate each month then the lining will build up as you are taking extra oestrogen. If you start missing a period then you really should take progesterone for the licensed time and if you are very intolerant of it then please do this with supervision of your doctor so that they can ensure you are monitored properly.

As for the hairy thighs - welcome to the club! This was mentioned to me as a side effect when I first picked up my prescription for testosterone - that I might get some hair growth at the site of application. Well I imagined a little circle of hairs on each side of the thigh (I was told to apply to inner thigh) - little did I know the wretched things would sprout ALL OVER my inner thigh and a bit round the front and back. I looked it up and discovered there are T receptors all over the skins and T is readily transported along the skin as well as through it - so that explains it. I just shave them off and have to remember to wear my glasses in summer when wearing my v short shorts otherwise could look really gross 

Oh the joys....!

Hurdity x

[Mary G]

Coll, I am severely progesterone intolerant or I should say intolerant to all types of progesterone used in HRT preparations but fortunately I don't need very much.   This is something that happened at menopause which is strange because I have no history of PMS and was not intolerant of my own progesterone.

My advice would be to wait until you really need progesterone and then use a low dose and have regular uterine scans.   Sadly, apart from having a hysterectomy, this is the only real option for severely progesterone intolerant women.   

I wish there were better options available.

[Spangles]

Just wondering Coll, how do you scan yourself?

[Coll]

Hi Spangles
I'm an ultrasonographer so I just scan myself. Do you mean abdominally or trans vaginally ?
Thank you ladies for your replies xx