Menopause Matters Forum
General Discussion => New Members => Topic started by: Deeb on December 15, 2015, 01:11:29 PM
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Hi - after 2 years of every symptom listed under the symptoms and at the age of 50 and very definitely peri-menapausal (still having periods although infrequent and never sure when), I went to the doctors yesterday to beg for HRT.
She was very understanding, and agreed to prescribe HRT, but didn't seem to have much of a clue after that and resorted to her drug book. I walked away with Estraderm MX50 patches, and as I research everything thoroughly have looked on here and also the patient leaflet and learn she should probably have prescribed some progestogen as well - which she hasn't.
Also she seems to have put me on a mid dose rather than the lowest which seems unusual - I am really suffering with night sweats, joint pains, weight gain, massive mood swings and anything else you can think of.
Has anybody else had a similar experience in terms of what they have been prescribed - I have just called the doctors to see if I can get some sense out of them, but would I be ok just applying the patches without anything else? Honestly nothing is ever easy, and I am ready to rip somebodies head off at the moment :-) (one of my symptoms......)
Thanks in advance.
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Hi Deeb
Welcome hope you get all the advice you need here. I was recently prescribed Estradem but the lowest dose and didn't need to get progesterone prescribed as I have the Mirena coil. I was led to believe by my dr that you do need some form of progesterone, whether through the coil or orally. Let me know how you get on with patches.
Wantmylifeback x
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Thanks wantmylifeback (so do I!!).
Have they made any difference to you - do you feel better?
I used to be a gym instructor and worked out at least 5 times a week, but the aching joints put a stop to that as i was in constant agony. It wasn't until I got on here I realised it was a symptom of menopause. This has in turn made me put weight on which has resulted in low self esteem, and a real can't be bothered attitude, and combined with the lack of sleep due to night sweats and the really really bad mood swings and crashing fatigue - I am at my wits end. Its horrendous. When i picked up the patches today I thought there was light at the end of the tunnel but after reading the patient leaflet and then doing further research on here - I feel back to square one :-( Hopefuly doc will call me back soon......
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Hi Deeb,
You are not on square one any more. You managed to get HRT from a doc. All be it she needs to go on a basic HRT refresher course! So here you are on square two - ready to start but needing the rest of the prescription.
If you still have a uterus you will need a progestogen to go with the patches but not until around day 14 from starting the patch, so you have time to get this sorted out with the doc. Unless you already have a mirena coil - then you are covered :)
If not, have a look at the menus for the choices of separate progestogens. I use a patch and separate MPA tablets.
Ladies, it will take time to see improvements but it is worth it. I think I've just gone a little further into peri as I'm getting flushes and sweats breaking through. Might need to up my patch dose from 37.5mcg to 50mcg.
Good luck
Galadriel x
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Thanks Galadriel - i am going to put the patch on tonight and if the doctor doesn't call me back (as promised) I will make an appointment.
Appreciate the assurances....
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By the way, where are my manners!?
:welcomemm:
There's so many knowledgeable ladies on this forum who will be able to help you too. Sometimes, just knowing that you are not alone with all the weird and sometimes frightening symptoms of this life change is very comforting.
Browse around the menus at the top of the page. They are full of useful info.
Galadriel x
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Welcome Deeb yes my GP done the same and looked at a handbook ,not sure i should have gone on tablet form of Hrt as i suffer with acid reflux and its been worse since on pill form , but on monday i will be returning to the Gp with more knowledge than i had previous thanks to advice and reading other people,s experiences, hope you feel settled soon :)
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Hello Deeb and welcome to the forum.
I sympathise with feeling you've had every meno symptom going and now you need some help!. I was okay until my very regular periods suddenly stopped at 54 then the hormonal horrors hit me like a train.
I agree with the other ladies that if you have a womb you will need some form of progesterone to keep the lining thin so you will need to see your doctor again.
Wishing you well and let us know how you get on.
Take care.
K.
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Hi Deeb
:welcomemm:
As you suspected and the others have said - you need a progestogen if you have a uterus and not a Mirena.
However as Galadriel says no rush for this! What were your periods doing in the year or so before going to the doc - you say infrequent - do you mean every few months? Are they heavy when you have them? The thing is some (private) gynaes even allow longer on oestrogen only HRT for women when they first start, to allow your body to feel the full benefits and the sdie effects to settle, before introducing the progestogen as it is the latter that often causes problems for some women - and then you would know and be able to choose a different one. I know this isn't the case with your doc by the sound of it - but it certainly won't do you any harm in the short term!
The only thing is, you might have chosen a combi patch ( Evorel or Femseven) if you had known ( or if your doc had known!) at the start, rather than oesrtrogen patch and separate progesterone. Both methods are fine though - just a mater of preference - and of course how well you tolerate the progestogen!
The more worrying thing I feel is - for every woman like yourtself who comes on here and is prescribed the wrong type of hRT, how many are there who carry on in blissful igbnorance ( due to their GPs) and end up with bleeding problems, over-thickened lining or worse? :(
Hope you feel better soon - and I am sure you will begin to reap the benefits :)
Hurdity x
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Hi All - thanks for the reasurrances
Hurdity - periods were every 2/3 months - they had been ridiculously heavy to the point where I didn't really want to go out in case I flooded, however this last one which started over the weekend has been so light I have hardly noticed it.
I am still trying to speak to my GP - the left hand doesn't appear to know what the right hand is doing down at the surgery, so if she doesn't call me today i will make an appointment and go in there armed with all of the information off here.
I have stuck the patch on and will see how things go. I have a massive headache at the moment, but I am not sure if its a side effect (as I have only had it on for 24 hours) or if I just have a headache cos of the stress of it all. Hopefully things will settle down soon as I will be back to me again - I can't wait to get back to the gym if these joint aches subside, and get the flipping weight off I have gained.
Anyway guys thanks for the continued support - this site really is a god send.
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Hi guys
Can I double check with everyone, when the best time is to start with Estraderm patches? Does it matter when you start? I am getting myself in a pickle of when to start. Also I would like to say to those new to peri-menopause that reflexology is very good for balancing the hormones and helping balance mood swings. I did 6 weekly sessions and felt slightly more in control of my mood, I then stopped as I felt better and regretted it. I started again last night and feel the benefits today, I slept better last night and my anxiety reduced today. I plan to keep up with this during my transition into HRT.
My 7 year old said to me last night "I don't care if I don't get any presents from Santa, I just want you not to be stressed at Christmas mummy". Melted my heart!!!
Keep smiling x
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Hi Sparkle
It nearly did finish me off, it's bizarre but out of my whole family he's the one that seems to give me the most support! He's a wee angel and will make a wonderful husband/partner to someone someday.
WMLB x
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Yay just spoke to my GP and she is writing me up a prescription for Evorel and was grateful I had picked up the issue.
I will let you know how I get on with them!
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That's great Deeb - I presume it is Evorel sequi - which is 2 weeks of Evorel 50 followed by 2 weeks of Evorel conti ( the combi ones with progestogen)?
Wantmylifeback - did you say on the other thread that you had a Mirena? In that case you can just start any time - like today!!
Hurdity x
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HI hurdity
NOOOO - she has prescribed Everol Conti....... I have just read its suitable for anybody that hasn't had a period for 18 months - which isn't me....:-(
Please tell me I don't have to go back again and see her - this is driving me nuts :-(
What is the health service doing to educate our GPs on this, as messing with peoples hormones is no funny joke.....
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Hi Hurdity
Yes I have the Mirena Coil, just started my period today, think I'll leave it until after Christmas as to avoid side effects during the time I am meant to be happy and jolly for my kids!!!
Had a funny episode this morning - I had a sleepover with my youngest last night (7 years old) and he woke up crying saying he had wet the bed and he was really sorry! On investigating he hadn't wet the bed, it was my night sweats that had soaked him while he had been cuddling me!!! We did giggle about it :o
WMLB xx
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so a dilema - I have more HRT patches than the chemist at the moment :) Do I stick on Estraderm MX50 patch on for 2 weeks and then stick on a Evorel Conti for the following 2 weeks - or do I need to go back to the GP again.
I might actually give up and suffer....
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Oh for heaven's sake! The GP is in dire need of a good teaching session!!
Here's one possible solution. Stick the Estraderm patch on, book in with GP - take a print-off of the treatment options for perimenopause.
With the Estraderm patch in place (stuck to your butt), all you need is a separate progestogen. Uterogestan (micronised progestogen) is a great favourite on here. I'm on MPA (synthetic but derived from our own progesterone so a bit easier to settle on than other progestogens). If her monitor is linked to the internet, you could get her to pull up this site and show her the options... she might learn a few things!!! This is bordering on negligent prescribing.
Hang in there. If a thing is worth having, it's worth fighting for.
Galadriel x
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Hi Deeb - I don't know personally about this type of HRT, but from what you have said about it being for those without a period for 18 months, and which you are not, they do seem to be the wrong patches. As Hurdity mentioned Evorel Sequi, I would go back to the GP and ask for this. Could you just speak to her on the phone and explain the ones you need and why the ones she has given you aren't suitable.
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I have made another appointment and am seeing her next Wednesday.
I am not going to do anything until I have met with her. I am printing all of the peri-menopause stuff on here and taking it with me.
I could quite easily sit and cry to be honest. Its taken me 2 years to get to the point of requesting help, and typically I hate taking any form of meds, and now it all seems too hard :-(
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:hug: Don't despair.
You're past the big hurdle, getting a GP to prescribe.
I guess they've been so used to not prescribing HRT that they've forgotten the basics. Treating women going through peri and into post menopause is not properly addressed in medical training. It will take some time for this to change in the light of the new NICE guidelines.
I swore I wouldn't take any medication to help get through the change. I was going to do it with good diet, exercise etc. I've changed my mind ;) I'll have all the help going.
Galadriel x
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Hi guys
Estraderm can be taken with or without periods,this is what I have been prescribed and the leaflet gives guidance for women with and without periods.
As for my 7 year old, I don't believe in hiding things from my children, the more they understand the less they worry. Laughter is definitely the best medicine and I encourage everyone to try and do something whenever possible, (even when you feel at your worst ) to distract yourself from how you feel, it's very hard sometimes but it does help 😍