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[dangermouse]

Just throwing this in as a stand-alone thread discussion but is primarily for those like Crispy, Vicki, myself etc. where HRT makes us feel much worse, particularly with adrenaline type anxiety (not thought driven) and stomach/digestion issues:

Emerging research highlights a strong link between menopause-related anxiety and an imbalance in the gut microbiome (dysbiosis), which includes bacteria, viruses, and fungi.

The Role of the Gut Microbiome
Hormonal Influence: Declining hormone levels can alter the composition and diversity of the gut microbiota.

Gut-Brain Axis: The gut and brain communicate via the gut-brain axis. An imbalance in gut microbes can affect the production of neurotransmitters and other metabolites that influence mood and anxiety levels.

Inflammation: Dysbiosis can increase pro-inflammatory cytokines, which in turn affect neurological systems and may induce anxiety or panic.

Specific Bacteria: Studies on women with perimenopausal anxiety found higher abundances of certain bacteria (e.g., Bacteroides and Alistipes) and lower abundances of beneficial, anti-inflammatory bacteria (e.g., Faecalibacterium, Coprococcus, and Roseburia).

Adding exogenous hormones (HRT) can feed the fungi and make the situation worse. Although you may be missing out on a celebratory HRT party, the critters will be doing the okey cokey and giving you a hangover the next day.

How it’s dealt with will be personal to the individual (I.e. I cannot tolerate probiotics or fermented foods as I also have SIFO where the pests have set up camp in my small intestines) but a simple try of some Caprylic Acid and binders (to absorb the dead bacteria) can be a cheap way to rule it out.

I do believe that more research will come out in time about this and that it can also be behind a myriad of other illnesses and syndromes.

[DottyD68]

Thanks for this. Funnily enough I have recently been reading up on this (gut microbiome in menopausal women) and on the advice of my acupuncturist started probiotics to see if they help with acid reflux issues. We'll see if it makes any positive difference.

[Lucoley]

This is exactly how I feel on HRT! Currently weaning off.

[CrispyChick]

That's interesting DM.

As I get severe gut issues when trying HRT - I paid for extensive microbiome testing last year. I'm actually pretty spot on healthy. 

That's just my as per.

Nothing ever found!!!!!

[dangermouse]

I have had extensive microbiome testing through gastro at hospital (the comprehensive stool test) and that showed mine as normal, as they are only looking for dangerous things like e-coli and pathogens. They did, however, give me a SIBO test that came up positive as it’s more about an overgrowth than it being dangerous types.

I also did the Zoe programme and they did very thorough testing which showed about 50 different types of gut bacteria. Mine were diverse but mainly the unhealthy ones.

With systemic overgrowth it can be subtle symptoms (itching in ears etc) but peri kicked off much more intense symptoms of feeling poisoned by the critters!