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[Mollymoo]

Morning Ladies
A question that is always on my mind about HRT and menopause is that if HRT has so many benefits to our health I.e protects bones and heart disease then why is all menopausal women not on HRT. I have also seen on many websites that women on HrT live longer than women that don't. Again if that's the case everybody would want to take HrT.
Would love to hear views and opinions on this as I am always debating and questioning should I be taking it or not.
 

[Nas]

Good question.
I work with a few women who are in the menopausal bracket.
None take HRT and all are as sharp as pins.

I don’t believe that women who take HRT, live longer personally, but statistics can be used  to prove or disprove anything!

I only take HRT for bladder issues. VA is series and if you get struck down with that and left untreated, life is grim.

The long and short of it is, that if you suffer debilitating symptoms, which affect quality of life, why suffer, when HRT is readily available?

Not all women do suffer, so they don’t take feel the need to take HRT.

HRT is complicated and sometimes comes with unwanted side effects.
If you are happily ticking away, without HRT, then I doubt you are going to think too much about the long term health benefits? After all, Gps are not exactly pushing HRT onto women. More, women are pushing the gps to prescribe BECAUSE of the reported long term health benefits (and to alleviate debilitating symptoms).
 
The whole issue is entirely subjective.

[Mollymoo]

Thankyou Nas
I take HRT because a very early menopause gave me osteopenia. Since taking HRT my bone health has improved slightly. It's not got worse so that's great amd it must be doing something, however I do suffer with extreme fatigue, mood swings and snappiness which HRT is not helping.
I am now at the age of natural menopause and feel that if my bones, heart and quality of life was  eing protected by HRT I would take it forever but as lots of others don't need to take it I wonder if its necessary.
If their was no risks we would have nothing to loose and everybody would take it in the hope that menopausal woman would live a very long happy life but its not that simple and anxious people like me worry about what's right and what's not.
I really wish I was a man ha ha

[CLKD]

Men have problems too ...........

I think that my body has adjusted it's self.  Apart from vaginal atrophy treatment I have been lucky enough not to suffer anything apart from natural ageing.  My periods waxed and waned for a few years B4 stopping.  I had a few months flushing after my evening bath with intense itching on my back/shoulder area.  After that my body settled.

As with any medical condition, if there aren't associated symptoms 1 wouldn't think to ask for treatment.   

[Dierdre]

Same here CLKD,  the atrophy and age related. I often wonder though why some women have problems and others are OK.  I didn't have VA until 5 years post meno, so what had kept me ok those 5 years after I'd stopped my periods and ovulation?

[Weeloz]

The people that don't take hrt but have VA Do you take medication for your VA

[joziel]

I think we might reach a point in future where women at age 40 have a health check and are counselled to start HRT at some point when needed and it might indeed become the norm for all women to be on HRT post-menopause unless there is a health reason they can't take it.

But there are a lot of attitudes to change before then.

[Ayesha]

The trouble with HRT it’s so complex and every woman’s experience can be completely different to the other. Also women who experience no problems with the menopause don’t think about seeking help for what might come in the future.  I didn’t until I started to get VA symptoms and now I am getting the treatment for that and soon I will be able to buy it over the counter if I want!
There is also the interference in your life when you start to go on repeat prescriptions, always being called in for reviews, some will love this attention but others will find it anxiety creating and a loss of freedom over their own health.

HRT is not for everyone, women I know would prefer not to bother until they develop symptoms that are impacting on their everyday life its then they will seek help. The treatment is there for us all to take advantage of if and when we want it.

[CLKD]

The people that don't take hrt but have VA Do you take medication for your VA

4 me VA begin with intermittent repeated urine infection-type symptoms: needing to pee every few moments, soreness in the bladder with fullness under the belly.  After 2 years my GP was furious that no urine samples had been sent to a Lab. to be tested, the ABs helped each time (5 in 2 years) but 'ovestin' eased all the symptoms.  When I get the need2P I up the 'ovestin' applications as well as taking 2 Nurofen 3 times a day.

I haven't required other types of HRT.  Fortunately!

I don't see the point in taking any medication on an 'in case' basis.  Hopefully over the years more will be learnt about how ladies react to various treatment regimes.  If people are less mobile then maybe an over all regime would lessen any risk of osteoporosis (wheelchair users for example).

[sheila99]

Thankyou Nas
I take HRT because a very early menopause gave me osteopenia. Since taking HRT my bone health has improved slightly. It's not got worse so that's great amd it must be doing something, however I do suffer with extreme fatigue, mood swings and snappiness which HRT is not helping.

I would suggest increasing your oestrogen as the dose you are on isn't controlling your symptoms. Perhaps try to find your optimum levels before giving up? Personally if I had osteopenia I would stay on it for life as I would do anything I could to prevent osteoporosis.

[joziel]

I agree, I wouldn't even think about stopping it under those circumstances. Women lose about 1% of bone mass per year after menopause and for a few years around menopause, that is accelerated. If you're staying the same with the bone mass, HRT is helping massively.

[Dierdre]

The people that don't take hrt but have VA Do you take medication for your VA

Yes, most take local estrogen Vagifem and Ovestin. Also use moisturisors.

[Ayesha]

Same here, got symptoms of VA and couldn't live with it. No alternative but to get it treated pronto, and its for life!
That's Vagifem, Ovestin and moisturiser every day.

[Kathleen]

Hello ladies.

I wonder how many women experience symptoms of the menopause but attribute them to natural aging or other circumstances. We often hear on the forum of women who have been tolerating headaches or muscle pain for example for years but these issues resolve if they begin HRT.

I would like to know more about the action of our sex hormones so that we can investigate other effective treatments and not be limited to HRT to stay well.

Take care ladies.

K.

[laszla]

if HRT has so many benefits to our health I.e protects bones and heart disease then why is all menopausal women not on HRT.

The main reason is the total lack of education regarding menopause and HRT, largely the result of poor standards of primary care. Nearly every day on this forum someone reports back on an ignorant/unhelpful GP and that will be most women's main or even sole point of contact with healthcare.
If GPs don't help women confront menopausal symptoms and educate them on HRT and its short- and, crucially, long-term benefits (rather than either ignoring them or mindlessly prescribing anti-depressants just to cite one example) then patients won't be aware.
I often have this discussion with my mother who didn't take HRT and has the classic triple whammy of osteoporosis/cognitive impairment/heart disease, asking her why she didn't take it (and I distinctly remember when she was in her 50s that it was quite talked about, even in the mainstream press before the backlash as some high profile women like Thatcher and Miriam Stoppard and lots of 'power' women took it).

Her answer is always 'no one ever mentioned it' and to some extent that model of expecting the doctor to take the lead and be the "expert" is still prevalent though things are slowly changing.

At the same time, I often ask myself why so many people - men and women - don't do many other things that have been clearly shown to improve health both in terms of longevity and quality and life, eg/ not smoke or drink, do a few hours of exercise a week, eat lots of vegetables, nuts, seeds etc. So many killer diseases could be prevented and decreased with those measures and I find it inconceivable that one wouldn't do these things (and taking HRT is one of them) but evidently there must be other, less rational forces that guide people's behaviour and lifestyle.