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[juliamd]

 see another doc that one sounds rubbish.
 no-one should have to put up with 4yrs of symptoms. quality of life is v important.   i weighed up pros 'cons of hrt v cancer and stilll gone down the hrt route ( early days yet for real results) and as someone who works with cancer pts i know what im risking, we should be allowed to make our own choices not be dictated to by docs. as you say it must worry the kids im just glad mine are no longer at home, and what they do see they regard as a joke.
and dont apologise for going on, where else can you do it but here and be really listened to and thoroughly understood :foryou:take care
juliax

[Tricia]

Hi Lillybee

I would agree with Julia if you are not happy with the treatment you are receiving then go see another doctor, you shouldn't have to suffer as you are without being given some kind of help.

By the way I don't know if you have tried SoyIsoflavines I tried them for hot flushes and sweats and found they worked for me, I am sure you know that although something might work for one person there is no guarantee that they will work for you, but it's worth a go.

Love,

Tricia

[lillybee]

Thanks for the replies. I did try soya Isoflavines, I have been back and forward to the health shop and have tried just about every natural remedy available. Might start at the beginning and try them again

[Taz2]

Hi Lillybee - I am sorry you are having such a rough time with the flushes/sweats. I would say find yourself a new GP! Mine refused to give me HRT and it was only once I had been referred to a gynae for bladder probs and he told me that if I had been taking HRT then my problems would not have occurred (or at least not as early) that I was finally prescribed HRT.

Like a lot of ladies I didn't want to go down the HRT route but in the end my quality of life had become so poor that I was willing to  take the cancer/dvt risks. I have patches, better for the liver, and my every-20-minute-day-and-night-hot-sweats disappeared within a few hours! I know I was lucky to have found one that worked straight away and I know that I am probably just delaying the meno for a few years but to live a normal life again has been great.

Love Taz 

[Taz2]

Hi Babs - thanks for all the info. You are right in that HRT can only delay the symptoms for some women but others are ok once they come off it. It is reckoned that for the first three to four months after stopping HRT symptoms will be bad but after that they may tail off. I really didn't want to go down the HRT route but it was becoming impossible to keep working and just keep functioning at all really. I thought that maybe in 5 years time I will have to go through the same symptoms again but life is unpredictable anyway and I decided that if I could have a few more years feeling more like "me" (energy, freedom from urinary tract infections, a sex life(!) hair that wasn't falling out, lessening of joint pains etc) then I would give it a go. I try not to worry about 5 years time - after all I might not even be here - but I can see that it would be a shock to those women whose GP's didn't explain the delay factor.

Having said all of that I have two friends who recently stopped HRT. They had both taken it for 10 years and took 6 months to gradually reduce their dosage. Both of them suffered for the first 2 months and they are now both symptom free - apart from vaginal dryness and joint pains. These are part and parcel of being an "older" woman I think 

I recently read that too much soya is not good for us either - moderation is the key - as it mimics oestrogen and can lead to breast cancer - who'd be a woman!!!!!  I'm not sure how that works for the Japanese population - maybe they exercise more?

Love Taz x

[lillybee]

The reason I have delayed so long in asking for hrt is the thought of returning to this when I come off. My doctor says the symptoms can be severe because the ovaries shut down a bit at a time and that throws the hormones out and causes a lot of the problems. Taking HRT can get me past the stage where the ovaries no longer function. I can then have withdrawal from the change in hormones but it should be a shorter process. It sounds simple put that way but I know it isn't always the case. There are women who have terrible flushes long term after finishing HRT but some don't. It is individual choice. The way I am now if I get 2 years of feeling normal I think it is worth the risk.

[stef40_50]

Well I am new to Menopausematters, so hello everyone 
My husband has been encouraging me to join a web forum to try and help me cope with the menopause.  I can't believe that he is actually encouraging me to stay at my computer longer, I never need an excuse 
Anyway, my story is that I have been on the menopause, a proper since September last year when I went 'cold-turkey' from HRT as I was having so many problems after my 'Hysteria' and 'Ovarian' - ectomies in April 2006.  I've been on an enforced menopause cycle since August 2005 due to Endometriosis.  I am 43 this December and feel 63!     I was a healthy, fit and muscular person before all the problems, I have put on 4 stone in weight since it all started in Feb 2005, and it's driving me to desperation    But I now know I am not alone, and that there are many of you out there that are as unhappy and miserable as me     The funny thing is that my mother who is 63 this year is finally on her menopause after paying for her HRT for nearly 20 years.   It is hysterical when we get together because we both 'flash' and look like a pair of beakens, have bizarre conversations and get despressed together when we eat things we shouldn't because we're feed up!!!   

I am currently taking Ymea which a friend of my husband recommended.  It seems to have helped a little I have been taking it since March, so the flushes have lessened but the weight is killing me, I am swimming 3-4 times a week, eating healthy organic foods and limiting alcohol and coffee etc.  I have been told that I am retaining a lot of water so now on a herbal water tablet to see if that has any affect.  Does anyone have any suggestions for me.

Thanks ladies and I promise this is the only outburst you will have from me.

[Rivadan]

I've just started HRT this week at the age of 53.  So far its day 5 and the flushes seem to be diminishing a little during the daytime, although I haven't yet noticed any great difference during the night.  I've been having flushes on and off for about five years and had been taking sage capsules which seemed to help.  However, during the past month they intensified to the point where I felt I couldn't bear it a moment longer. The increased discomfort has coincided with my periods becoming erratic (before this, despite having flushes, my periods had been very regular). 

What I don't understand is this "delaying the menopause" issue. As I understand it, HRT is described to alleviate the symptoms of the menopause not to stop the menopause.  I am 53 now, if I stay on HRT until I'm 55, surely by that time my ovaries will have shut down so any residual symptoms should be minimal?  Or am I missing something?

[Taz2]

It appears that the symptoms we get are due to the loss of oestrogen from the body. By keeping the oestrogen levels high the body is not adjusting to losing the natural oestrogen. When HRT is stopped the body has to adjust again to low oestrogen and has to go through the same process of adjustment. Hopefully, HRT keeps us healthier in some ways for longer i.e. keeping the vaginal tissues healthy, the bladder neck stronger, bones and heart healthier but, it does seem, that a lot of women do have to still return to the same symptoms on stopping HRT. I just hope that by then I will be too old to care... 

Love taz x

[Rivadan]

I'm encouraged by the experienced of my 2 friends who are aged 55/56. One took HRT for 2 years and has just come off it, the other has never taken it. They both say that whilst they are still having a few hot flushes, they definitely feel the worst is over now. My feeling is that the friend who took HRT at least had a couple of much more comfortable years than the one that didn't.

I'm just hoping that HRT will get me through while I'm still working. Loss of sleep and dripping with sweat at hourly intervals doesn't make for a happy day in the office!

[juliamd]

 hi
Im with you om that its work that makes coping so hard, i aim ,if all goes well to try and come of hrt when i retire whenever that may be.
julia

[marg]

Hot flushes
The hot flush, or flash, is well known as the classic menopausal symptom and affects 60–85% of menopausal women. Hot flushes and sweats are called vasomotor symptoms and vary immensely in both their severity and duration; for many women, they occur occasionally and do not cause much distress, but for about 20% they can be severe and can cause significant interference with work, sleep and quality of life. Women are affected by vasomotor symptoms on average for about 2 years but, for about 10%, symptoms can continue for more than 15 years.
Hot flushes usually last 3–5 minutes and are thought to be caused by a change in the temperature-controlling part of the brain.Normally, there is a daily pattern of rises and falls in your body temperature, being lowest at about 3am and highest in the early evening. These small changes are not normally noticed, but a menopausal woman may flush with every temperature rise, whether these are normal changes or not – for example, moving between areas of different temperature or having a hot drink – because of a change in the setting of the temperature control centre in your brain; your body thinks that it is overheating even when it isn't. To try to cool your body down, a variety of chemical reactions cause the blood vessels in the skin to open up, giving the sensation of a rush of heat, and sweat glands release sweat to dissipate heat.
It is believed that the changes in various hormone levels that occur around the time of the menopause, lead to the change in the setting of the temperature control centre, but the exact underlying mechanism is still unclear.
Other factors that can also cause flushes include being overweight, alcohol, excess caffeine, spicy foods, monosodium glutamate and some medications. Eating a healthy diet and losing weight if necessary can be helpful. Other simple measures that can help include:
•           wearing cotton clothing rather than man-made fibres
•           wearing loose thin layers of clothing rather than thick tight-fitting clothes
•           keeping your bedroom temperature fairly cool at night – either leave a door or window open or consider a fan (partner permitting of course!).
Flushes affect every woman differently and, for many, no specific treatments will be required. When flushes are embarrassing, disruptive and affecting your quality of life, then help is available and your doctor will give you an individualised treatment plan – we are all unique!
Headaches, palpitations (sensation of heart racing) and dizziness can be associated with vasomotor symptoms. Excess caffeine can worsen palpitations, so take coffee, tea and caffeinated soft drinks in moderation.
 
Tell us what works for you.
 

[Taz2]

Oh Marg - welcome to the forum. Please don't look so sad - now that you have found us lot even the bad times will seem much easier to cope with 

Love Taz x 

[Rosebush]

Ladies how many of you, have been period free, for 3yrs and are still having hot sweats.

[Taz2]

Oh Rosebush - you have my utmost sympathy. I hate to say this but apparently something along the lines of 15% of women experience hot sweats into their... hate to type this..... 70's

I was at a family wedding at the weekend and my poor mother in law (who last had a period 25 years ago) was dripping. I had to help her put her make-up back on as she had just got changed, did her face and hair, and then was assailed by a vicious sweat. She has tried most things over time. She had HRT in her fifties but it didn't stop the flushes. I am no totally convinced that it is not something else but her GP is of the old school and just pats her hand when she tells him how dreadful things are and offers her Valium!

Sending you a cooling breeze. Actually there is a dreadful storm here - right overhead - I hate thunder but the rain is welcome.

Love Taz x