Menopause Matters Forum
Menopause Discussion => Personal Experiences => Topic started by: spider on October 02, 2015, 08:52:06 PM
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Looking for a bit of advice from HRT users please.
I am now on my second pack of femoston 1/10 and I'm having terrible leg aches. Sometimes this is pretty painful and affects both legs.
I didn't gave this before I started HRT and thinking it could be a side effect? Would really appreciate support from anyone who has maybe had similar experience? I' m trying to persevere as flushes have drastically reduced and I'm sleeping better than I have done for months...
Spider x 😢😢😢
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I had this pre HRT - especially in my calf muscles. Took a few months of HRT, possibly longer, before it stopped. Perhaps you're still in the settling in phase? X
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Thanks Briony
Did you notice the pains were worse after sitting too long? My calf muscles ache so much it's also like they're really hot too and pains vary between legs and sometimes pain in both at same time.
Think I'll persevere but noticed today I could cry for Britain...
Glad I've got forum for support...my hubby is fed up listening to me moaning all the time 😢😢
:thankyou:
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Hello. I've had joint/leg pain since stating hrt a month ago (started 1 week in) I am reducing my dose again to evoral 25 to see if that eases the side effect. Hope your eases quickly. My legs were fizzing when I sat down
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Yes, sitting made it worse. So did certain pairs of socks and shoes (!) It got so bad I had to give up running which previously I'd loved .
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Mine has been three weeks & I have been on the hrt for 1 month. I think the joint/muscle pain is a side effect of the hrt
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When I went up from Evorel 50 to a 2mg pill I definitely noticed it returned in the first few weeks, so much so it confirmed in my mind that it was a hormonal thing (part of me wasnt convinced til then). I continued to have side effects for many weeks and nearly gave up, until I few members on here said it takes a minimum of three months to notice a real difference and for the side effects to abate.
Someone described it to me as like recharging a really flat phone. Initially, it's still useless. You cant make any calls. It takes a little while for the power to kick in enough for it to work properly. I guess it's similar with our bodies.
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That's interesting briyoni. Did you have joint pain as a side effect? I've got both. I've reduced to 25 so I'm hoping the side effects ease.
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This is a timely post. I have been on the BCP for 55 days, straight, and today I have suddenly got very achy legs. I had to drive for an hour this lunch time, and when I got out of the car my legs felt so stiff and achy. They're still hurting now.
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I had this when I first started hrt and according to my meno specialist it is a side effect which goes - it did for me! With regard to symptoms like gypsy rose lee where the ache hurts and is combined with bcp - be very careful as it can be a serious symptom. My daughter recently started the bcp and was given 2 very serious lectures about the need to stop taking immediately and see a doctor/hospital if she had these symptoms due to the recent death of a young girl in these circumstances.
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Suzyq how long did it take to go. My hips, knees & legs are hurting/aching. It's been 3 weeks & my dose has been reduced to 25. Making me so miserable
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I get tired achey legs which sometimes feel very weak. They get very stiff after i have been sitting for a while and it feels such an effort to stand up. Been on HRT patches for just over three years and i would probably say it happens more frequently now. :(
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My muscles are stiff and sore and tired ; fingers, arms, thighs, calves and feet.
I have had endless physio and referrals to foot specialist for plantar fasciitis. Nothing worked.
I thought I had some dreadful muscle wasting disease.
A few months ago my hormones were crashing about and I suspect had some unusually high oestrogen levels and guess what ? ALL of my symptoms went ! I was even sleeping through the night for the first time in about 8 years !
I then had to go cold turkey and come off HRT about 2 months ago and I am so stiff and sore I feel 102 years old.....
So I know that mine is definitely hormone related and I thinnk that in the past my HRT has been enough to help my night flushes but not enough to deal with all other symptoms.
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As I had joint pain previously, I cant say it was also a side effect for sure. All I remember is that it got worse before it got better. Like Pollie, I spent £££s on physio/osteo, but taking hormones was the only thing, longer term, which made a difference.
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I just feel worse on hrt than I did before as I have joint pain & my legs hurt
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I'm sure I asked this before but have you had a complete blood test? ie thryoid, iron and various vitamins etc? This would at least test for a lot of different things across the board - some of which can cause joint aches etc.
Hurdity x
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I am on levothyroxine and my thyroid levels are good. I have low ferritin & low vit d which I take vit d for. I have not had joint/muscle pain until I started the hrt 4 weeks ago
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There is interaction between oral oestrogen and thyroid medication so it may be that this needs increasing? The interaction could lead to the joint aches and pains as there is also overlap between symptoms.
Hurdity x
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I had a blood test last week & my results are good. I didn't even have joint pains when my thyroid was originally out. This seems directly related to the hrt. It has been reduced & the consultant said it is a side effect. Maybe same as spider is experiencing.
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Peterspots I am still having leg pains today and have no other issues....I tried prempak c some months ago and ended up stopping because of similar leg aches and pains...
I have no doubt it's down to the HRT but will persevere for another month or so to see if it eases off.
Hope you get some relief soon too :bighug:
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Mine lasted 4-5 weeks and then went. I did take magnesium to help
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Thanks suzyq...might try some magnesium...can you buy this in the pharmacy? :thankyou:
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If you add more estrogen again then your bones will experience an awakenen phase.
Estrogen helps with the maintenance of our bones and if we've been without it for sometime then adding it back gets that process underway. Unfortunately you'll encounter dull pains which could be likened to growing pains.
Please note this is different to symptoms of blood clot/dvt.
pain, swelling and tenderness in one of your legs
a heavy ache in the single affected area.
warm skin in the area of the clot.
redness of your skin, particularly at the back of your leg below the knee.
So if you like me and only have the ache and pains then its down to our bodies awakening from their slumber. As others have said it will pass.
However if you get the DVT time symptoms above (heat,redness,single area) then please get it review immediately.
Hope that helps.
:-*
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Yup you can buy magnesium most places - I used dissolvable powder as the tablets are humongous!
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Magnesium wont really help with the ache associated with our bones "awakening" :)
A full and varied diet should suffice.
"There is the balance of calcium to magnesium to be kept in the range of 1:1 to 2:1. If you take more magnesium than calcium, then you are going to upset your calcium balance. However, this is not an issue for people whose dairy intake is high."
If your cutting out dairy due to diets etc then keep an eye on if you want to take this.
:-*
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Thanks peegeetip!
I did worry about DVT but have none of the symptoms you describe so I'm sure it's the oestrogen effect 👍
Glad to hear others have suffered too and I'm hoping it passes soon. I'm only a week into my second pack of femoston and reluctant to stop given the last five years of misery with flushes, dryness, anxiety, depression and so on.
Fingers crossed :sigh:
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keep up the good work as the saying goes.
sorry to hear you had such a long time time with all those problems.
for some of the problems you mentioned "down below" took around 6 months before I felt almost back to normal (whatever that was).
some get there sooner with local treatments too.
:-*
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Thanks PG. I am on the BCP so got a bit worried. But both my legs just really ached, like I'd hiked for miles up hill and down dale. Accompanied by really stiff and achy ankle joints too.
No tenderness or swelling or redness, thankfully. Legs fine again since last night, just left with painful left ankle.
So I think it is hormonal. I had a withdrawal bleed (despite not actually taking a withdrawal break from the BCP) for most of last week, and it finished on Saturday at just the same time my legs really started to ache. So can't be a coincidence can it?
I think my own hormones managed to overide the BCP causing the bleed, and once that stopped my oestrogen started to rise = leg aches.
Does this make sense, or just me?
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Definitely makes sense - I think that's why I got it so badly when I started the BCP. Must confess, I went to my doc on more than one occasion convinced it was a blood clot (and that was pre HRT or the pill) and she reassured me that a clot is usually only in one leg, and is very often warm and accompanied by swelling. She did measure each calf to check (by which stage I felt like a right fraud for wasting her time!). I remember her saying that if it's muscular, it's more likely to be related to progesterone levels? She also checked my magnesium at the time as this can cause cramps.
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Glad you agree, it's rare I feel I make any sense anymore!
I would love to be able to sit down with an endocrinologist and really get to the bottom of what goes on hormonally. I would find it very reassuring if they could test your levels and say 'Yes, I can see that xyz is happening which is why you're reacting with xyz'.
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Now reduced down to evorel 25 now aching in hips, legs & knees. Hoping it will ease soon as I want to stay on hrt but don't want to feel worse.
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Really fed up with the sore knees going to wait and see if I improve over the weekend but I am not sure I can put up with the aches
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Would another estrogen brand be any different to do you think? or are all the estrogens the same?
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No another estrogen won't change this symptom.
If you reduce dose then this may or may not diminish the ache but the other symptoms may return or get worse.
Like most of us, you'll have to tough it out thru the initial "boost" to our systems then you'll feel better.
Sorry
:-*
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I agree with Peegee .... She's the one who kept me going when I was ready to throw in the towel! :-*
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Thank you. Seeing gynae next Monday & will discuss. Briony how long did the joint pain continue. X
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I know it's a piece of string but how long do you think it is a side effect it will continue after the hrt is stopped.
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Had joint pain for months pre hrt. ADs and codeine helped a bit. Then it faded. It returned for the first few weeks on hrt, especially the tight calf muscles. I had other side effects for at least three months. However, I sometimes wonder if they were 'continued symptoms' rather than hrt side effects, as it soon became clear that the dose I was on was doing nothing for me. Current stronger dose and I rarely have any pain. If I do, it's not intense and long term, like it used to be (fingers crossed!!) x
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I wonder if it's just been a coincidence. Know more (maybe) next week x
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Good luck - let us know how you get on x
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I'm 2 months away from 50 so I don't think I can go on the BCP. Disappointed joint pain is still there thought it would stop the next day after I had the last evorel x
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Guess it takes a while to get out of your system. Took me 3 months to feel the benefit, so I suspect it doesn't leave your system immediately either. It takes time, either way.
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As I don't feel better I wished I'd stayed on & persevered. VA is better with vagifem. Can't beleive how my body has fallen apart this year & the horrible experience of the Cystoscopy & loosing sensation in my bladder. Now joint pain & horrible leg muscle pain. Can it really be the menopause. Oh & to top it the tinglimg in my face. I am a positive person but this is so testing. Oh & the glorious muscle twitches ......though I don't mind thoughs I think they are funny!
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I know it's a cliché, but I do understand how you feel. I still struggle to accept that hormones can cause such havoc - I have had MRIs, brain scans, nerve conduction studies .... and yet all the time, it was those pesky hormones ???
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Been to see gynaecologist. She has suggested changing to estrogel & also the evorel 25. I have been given estradot 25. Is there a difference between evorel or estradot. As I think I have had a reaction I may prefer to continue with the estradot. Another option is to start with the esteogel & see if it effects my joints. They have improved since stopping the evorel. If this does not work the gynaecologist may suggest I go on the BCP to even out my hormones. Another option is a hysterectomy but I would prefer not to do that.
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As far as I know, there is little difference between these patches, though Estrodot is smaller and slightly more expensive, I think. We need Hurdity! x
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I have reacted to the evorel with joint pain (now subsiding :) ) and it is yam based & estradot is soya based maybe that is a consideration. Is it something that's listed on here? Estrogel is yam or soya based?
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We need Hurdity!! X
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Woke up this morning & aching again :( I am having a very heavy period & I am flooding. Will start the oestrogel tonight & hope luck will be on my side. Face felt better for a couple of days & now is awful again. If this is all hormonal & I find something to work I promise I will never moan about anything again
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You've changed your user name.
That confused me but I'm easily confused ::)
Honeybun
X
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Really fed up with having so many bits of me ache. It has got less since being off the hrt but it still there. I was given an estrodot on Monday so don't know if that's stirred the joint pain up. Would liked it to have gone before I started the esteogel. I'm flooding so much at the moment & it doesn't seem to be slowing down. I didn't realise that being on the esteogen hrt made my periods stop. 1 1/2 weeks off and I stayed with this one which is just running out. (Sorry TMI) going to see a lady about my face today. How long would you leave the joints until visiting the gp. I saw him when it first happened & he said no arthritis & they look fine & it's a side effect. I
Just feel like no one really knows what's wrong. So disappointed that I had the joint pain on the evorel because I so wanted it to work & now I have to start again.
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I had this pre HRT - especially in my calf muscles. Took a few months of HRT, possibly longer, before it stopped. Perhaps you're still in the settling in phase? X
Hi Briony
I have read several of the contributions to this discussion and the picture isn't clear. Some people have more aches as a result of menopause and others as a result of taking HRT. Mine are definitely not the latter as I haven't tried any HRT yet. I am replying to your entry because your reference to aching calf muscles sounds similar to mine. Mine started in early 2009 just as my periods were becoming less frequent so I have always had them linked in my mind. I also have aching balls of feet, particularly when I have been out walking. I have just returned from a short walking holiday. My periods stopped just over 18 months ago.
I did put a question about my aches on Menopause Matters 2 years ago but only found a couple of others with similar experience so didn't try going to the GP about possible HRT then.
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I have had a hysterectomy and after three years still have ups and downs with HRT so why would you go through the op I don't think that's the solution do you?
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No I don't want a hysterectomy. I'm trying the vagifem , then as the aches & pains have almost gone, and then will add the patch. I just want to be free of pain. Before I stopped taking the hrt I was getting a week at a time where the bladder/pelvic eased. This is why the consuktant said maybe the pill but I'm 50 in January.
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I had this pre HRT - especially in my calf muscles. Took a few months of HRT, possibly longer, before it stopped. Perhaps you're still in the settling in phase? X
Hi Briony
I have read several of the contributions to this discussion and the picture isn't clear. Some people have more aches as a result of menopause and others as a result of taking HRT. Mine are definitely not the latter as I haven't tried any HRT yet. I am replying to your entry because your reference to aching calf muscles sounds similar to mine. Mine started in early 2009 just as my periods were becoming less frequent so I have always had them linked in my mind. I also have aching balls of feet, particularly when I have been out walking. I have just returned from a short walking holiday. My periods stopped just over 18 months ago.
I did put a question about my aches on Menopause Matters 2 years ago but only found a couple of others with similar experience so didn't try going to the GP about possible HRT then.
That sounds very much like I experienced it. It would be the muscles in both legs and I'd want to rub them really, really hard (almost pull them out of my legs if I could have done!) - but it never helped. Given that it can be caused by HRT/pill and also relieved by it, I wonder if, like so many symptoms, it's the fluctuation that our bodies don't like, not a nigh or low level per se?