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[Robin]

I’m so sorry you’ve been through it too Gilla999.

There are far too many women finding themselves in this position. I was in such a state I’ve no idea how I managed to travel 400 miles to get to my private appointment and had to put the cost in credit card because had hadn’t been able to work for so many years beforehand due to my severe menopause symptoms. I wouldn’t be here now if I hadn’t tried to get help that one last time.

It really shouldn’t be this hard

[Robin]

That’s all depressingly familiar. I so pleased you’ve got your HRT now but how often do doctors need to hear this before they believe us?

[Gilla999]

"Think juicy thoughts" OMGGGGGGG. I would sue!

[Shell babes]

Maybe they should have highlighted the harrowing statistics of high rates of suicide amongst menopausal women (aged 45-54 although may vary).  That is the shocking reality and everyone should be made aware of this.

Agree about Dr Newson doing fantastic work, she deserves a knighthood.  The fact that GP can’t see this is pure tunnel vision and complete arrogance.

[funnell]

ive no hope.2 years after my last period I didnt think Id feel as though i hate everyone,my partner
has regular hospital treatment to stay alive. I want to live alone +retire(but cant,not age 66 yet)
+I want to order my food shopping online as i feel as though people staring at me in shop  cos i suddenly look +
feel old. +some r staring cos they wont forget me from doing a tv appeal (bitterly regret doing it)when my girl
was found murdered,after 5 weeks.Had  no chance to say goodbye.Been 3 months waiting for the breast clinic
to tell my doc if  can take HRT. had high grade DCIS+masectomy 8 month ago.I thought i was coping reasonably
well with my traumatic past +everything else. im scared of people, older women are vulnerable +looked down upon.
ignored +invisible .
Older men, not so much?

[dangermouse]

What is the difference between body identical and bio identical?  Also, what choices are there for progestin?  It seems that through the NHS, Utrogestan is the only one that can be prescribed.

Hi Karine,

The BHRT/bio-identical products are exactly the same ingredients as the body identical, I'm still not sure why they came up with that new body-identical term.

The BHRT private clinics prescribe the same licensed pre-packaged Estrogel, patches, Utrogestan along with the option of the same ingredients compounded into smaller amounts or combined together to help deliver hormones in smaller doses in a more stable way, with less stopping and starting that you need to do with the larger dose pre packaged progesterone. As the compounded ones are individually measured and packaged at a compounding pharmacy they obviously cannot be licensed. It's a bit like the difference between buying a loaf of bread freshly baked at a village bakery rather than a loaf of Kingsmill.

The compounded progesterone is that same waxy stuff in the Utrogestan capsules moulded into lozenges or, more commonly, added to a high tech transdermal carrier cream. This makes it more expensive, hence, why the NHS cannot provide it. They instead use one product (Utrogestan) which can cover both fertility issues, its original use, and menopause. Testosterone tends to be the same one that men use but the private packaged and compounded ones are in much more female friendly dosage. Any decent private BHRT or body identical clinic will write to your GP to request that any NHS available products are prescribed by them.

As Robin points out through, there will be dodgy stuff sold around the world and online too but we are highly regulated in the UK so only medical doctors can prescribe oestrogen forms of BHRT.

[CherrySG]

ive no hope.2 years after my last period I didnt think Id feel as though i hate everyone,my partner
has regular hospital treatment to stay alive. I want to live alone +retire(but cant,not age 66 yet)
+I want to order my food shopping online as i feel as though people staring at me in shop  cos i suddenly look +
feel old. +some r staring cos they wont forget me from doing a tv appeal (bitterly regret doing it)when my girl
was found murdered,after 5 weeks.Had  no chance to say goodbye.Been 3 months waiting for the breast clinic
to tell my doc if  can take HRT. had high grade DCIS+masectomy 8 month ago.I thought i was coping reasonably
well with my traumatic past +everything else. im scared of people, older women are vulnerable +looked down upon.
ignored +invisible .
Older men, not so much?

Oh my God, Funnell, I am so sorry for everything you've been through. There are no words to cover it really so just wanted to say so.

And for all of us failed by the public healthcare system. Totally agree with the posters who speak of woman-to-woman mysogyny. Very much a thing.

Although I've recently had to fight to get my hrt back from patronising male Gps who just think it's my anxiety. Copious blood in urine says otherwise. My young female GP has been fantastic though and despite working long days apparently went to a lecture on progesterone last weekend.

Some of them are bl*#@dy arrogant though and I'm angry to hear of Dr. Newson being treated in this way. I cannot imagine how women managed before Hrt.

[Robin]

I’m so sorry to hear all you’ve been through funnel and menopause symptoms on top of all that.

A lot of doctors are not up to date with HRT use after breast cancer but it is possible to use in some cases. There’s good info on the subject on My Menopause Doctors website, so don’t give up if you get turned down initially.

Dr Avrum Bluming wrote a book called Oestrogen Matters which explains  why taking hormones in menopause can improve women’s well being and lengthen their lives - Without raising their risk of breast cancer. It’s £8.46 on Amazon.
 

[funnell]

CHERRY SG,  ROBIN, +others, thanks so much for reply. IM reading the book Robin,thanks,interesting,! Im now on citalapram,as well as nutrition tablets ,so Il see how
get on. Been feeling slightly,jus slighty less anxious +panicky, so fingers crossed.XX

[vintagefiend]

great thread- thanks Robin.

Avalon,

 I was also a registered nurse but had to quit as perimeno became worse and worse. i've lost 10 fkin' years!! i'm really angry and do think about working in women's health once i get back to an equilibrium- i'd have to do "back to nursing" course as it's been so long since i worked

even now i await a private appointment on thurs to ask for testosterone. had ovaries removed last nov but doc didn't offer testosterone- 8 months on i'm knackered and dead from waist down!!

he also said let's have you on hrt shortest amount of time possible- yeah, that's not gonna happen- i'm 49- reckon 2, 3 decades on oestrogen by hook or by crook!!

i paid for hyster/ovary removal as was on nhs waiting list but covid then struck and i couldnt face the wait.

have spent last 2.5 years weaning off sodding antideps that i was prescribed some 7 years ago for all this- having to do it crazy-slow or feel awful- down to 10mg prozac no thanks any GPs- it'll take me another year to get off that but i'm determined as there's nothing wrong with me that oestrogen and testosterone can't fix.

i saw an awful meno specialist in leeds- told her i couldnt tolerate progestogens- she said "well nobody likes it"- i was suicidal on it!!! still, no ovaries now so dont have to worry about that.

just so very pissed off that ive had to work through everything myself- thank goodness for this forum! my friend was in similar position but ended up on 4 different psych meds and a long spell in psych ward (over a year)- i feel for her, hwo on earth will she ever get off all that medication?
and i know that that could have been me but for a bit of knowledge thanks to this forum.
so, thank you, ladies and felt good to get that off my chest!!

[vintagefiend]

(and apologies for derailing a thread about dr newson! will now follow her on twitter)

[CLKD]

Prozac made me 

You will get off, it can take a while.  It took me 9 weeks to withdraw from 1 AD - successfully.

There is NO time limit to taking HRT.  Other than the ignorance of many UK GPs!

[vintagefiend]

thanks CLKD
can't wait to be off the prozac, for sure.
didnt really appreciate that it's ok for hrt to be lifelong- that is awesome!! hopefully docs will wise up to this as we age- otherwise we have docs like Dr Newson to see us right

[Wrensong]

vintagefiend

even now i await a private appointment on thurs to ask for testosterone. had ovaries removed last nov but doc didn't offer testosterone- 8 months on i'm knackered and dead from waist down!!

Yes, I feel for you - after BSO it was like having all wires severed without testosterone.  And the young female gynae had said my being already several years postmeno when the ovaries had to go, there would be no adverse consequences for my future wellbeing.  How can there be such a lack of knowledge among senior medics who've chosen to specialise in women's health?   

Discharged without follow-up after surgery, so 21 months later when nothing had improved, asked for Testogel from Cons of another specialty.  Even then the lovely GP described as the surgery's Menopause Expert was not confident prescribing it as she'd not been asked before.  I had to tell her how much I should take as Cons had not specified!

We so need clinicians with the wherewithal & compassion of Dr Newson & her colleagues to get things changed.  Like turning round a cruise liner though.

Push for that T - it should make all the difference 

[vintagefiend]

oh wow wrensong-

thank you- that is so good to hear!!
got my appointment tomorrow- private phone appointment, dr baxter in sheffield.
i've checked that my chemist stocks both testogel and tostran!
just want the stuff already!!
i'm disgusted by the lack of knowledge among docs- as you say, even among meno "specialists"