Menopause Matters Forum
Menopause Discussion => All things menopause => Topic started by: grumpyjane on October 02, 2016, 12:33:02 AM
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Anyone know where I might be able to buy Oestrogel online? I know Uk websites wouldn`t sell it.
MaryG I think you buy it in Spain don't you?
Jx
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Have you googled 'Oestrogel without prescription' ?
There are some online pharmacies that provide this service which ask you lots of questions then it goes to a doctor to prescribe x
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Hi Annie0710
I`ve been googling like mad for the last couple of hours but havent`come up with anything! will try again tomorrow. Sigh..
Jx
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Why would you want to buy it online? If you have a prescription then yes there are online chemists, but I can't imagine being able to get it without prescription, and perhaps not advisable without doc's approval?
Hurdity x
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Unfortunately sometimes Its the only option if you don't have a surgery that is willing to help. I've never looked into it for anything other than hrt X
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Annie0710 - I really think you need to go back to your GP with the info from this site printed out.
http://www.menopausematters.co.uk/treatafter.php
Oestrogel is a standard way of delivering oestrogen these days and they should prescribe it for you. What are you being prescribed at the moment? If they are still reluctant to give you Oesrogel, then I would ask for a referral to a gynae or meno clinic for advice as once they have prescribed it and written to your GP then you should get it prescribed regularly.
If none of this works then it could be worth having a one off private consultation with a gynae (ask the GP to recommend someone) who will prescribe Oestrogel and write to your GP with their advice - if the GP has suggested this consultant then they will have to follow their instructions.
It is really not a good idea to buy any HRT online - you won't now what you are getting from foreign websites. DG x
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Hi DG
I didn't buy Oestrogel although it was something I've considered, I'm sure you can buy it OTC in Spain (have just returned but didn't look into it)
Nurse at my surgery suggested Livial as she said it could help with the testosterone part as they won't prescribe testosterone , but then said they wouldn't agree to livial as there's the progesterone element to it (I'm 18 years post hysterectomy ) so I'm stuck with just oestrogen as I have been since hysterectomy
Recent scan suggested ovaries are gone/disappeared which really supports why meno has probably hit me hard
So I looked into livial and had a consultation with an online pharmacy, they said they'd refuse to prescribe it as a) I'm already on oestrogen and b) I've had a hyster so I was to'ing and fro'ing with them explaining it'd be my only hrt and that I'm still in the researching it phase, eventually the doc agreed so it's there available if I pursue it, I don't think they'd have been liasing with me like they did if they weren't genuine, they would surely have just wanted a quick sale
I saw the gynae at the hospital, he really wasn't interested and said there's nothing more they can give me than oestrogen and to double up on Vagifem, meno nurse took me off it saying I'm on too much oestrogen but last GP put me back on it saying I have definitely got VA
X
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grumpyjane, that's right, I buy Oestrogel over the counter and without a prescription in Spain in fact I bought a couple of tubes last week. You can also buy Utrogestan (100mg and 200mg) OTC in Spain all pharmacies.
The brand name in Spain is Oestraclin (Estradiol) and it comes in a red and white toothpaste type tube (packaged in a red and white box) with a slide for measuring - 1/2 slide = 1 pump 1 slide - 2 pumps. It is every bit as good as the UK stuff only much cheaper at just over €4.00 per 80 gram tube. Don't forget to order in advance if you want a bulk supply, it will usually be delivered to the pharmacy for the next day but it wise to order at the beginning of your holiday just in case of supply problems.
Are you in the UK at the moment and planning a trip to Spain before you return to Venezuela? If you have any questions, please feel fee to send me a PM.
Annie0710, from what you have said, it sounds like Oestrogel (and perhaps testosterone?) could be a good option for you too.
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Annie0710, from what you have said, it sounds like Oestrogel (and perhaps testosterone?) could be a good option for you too.
In an ideal world I'd love to trial that combo Mary, but unfortunately I think my only hope would be to go private
I returned from Spain Saturday so in a last ditch attempt I will email Dr Currie and seek her advice and if she agrees I will show dr's what she said
X
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There was an article on the News earlier today. Under-cover GPs went on line to buy stuff and were NOT asked the correct questions, in fact sometimes not any questions at all. The stuff was dispensed without query. However, under Lab. conditions, some of the stuff was not anywhere near what the GPs had bought!
So why would you risk your health? Your GP should discuss the whys/where fires about what is necessary or you could speak with a Pharmacist. We pay into the NHS for a reason.
As for 'nannying', NICE are the people to talk with if anyone has problems getting prescriptions. It ain't the GPs fault!!! At least in the UK we have the knowledge that all medications have been tested and approved B4 being let lose on the public. Having had awful side-effects from prescribed medications I would NEVER buy anything untested.
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Annie0710, in theory, you can get Oestrogel and testosterone from your GP on the NHS if you turn up with a copy of the new NICE guidelines. In reality, it would appear that it is very hit and miss and some women get what they want immediately while others are steered towards other (cheaper?) products.
If you want to fast track to the Oestrogel/testosterone prescription then it would probably be better to make an appointment with a private menopause/HRT specialist (of your choice) who can then write to your doctor with their prescription. Freckles did this and she gets her Oestrogel and testosterone on the NHS.
Has anyone had any difficultly getting either Oestrogel or testosterone on the NHS?
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>wave Mary G< Years ago my GP told me that taking testosterone would deepen my voice ::) - I wanted it to increase libedo.
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Annie0710, in theory, you can get Oestrogel and testosterone from your GP on the NHS if you turn up with a copy of the new NICE guidelines. In reality, it would appear that it is very hit and miss and some women get what they want immediately while others are steered towards other (cheaper?) products.
If you want to fast track to the Oestrogel/testosterone prescription then it would probably be better to make an appointment with a private menopause/HRT specialist (of your choice) who can then write to your doctor with their prescription. Freckles did this and she gets her Oestrogel and testosterone on the NHS.
Has anyone had any difficultly getting either Oestrogel or testosterone on the NHS?
I like my estradot patch so ideally I'd stay on that and will have one last attempt with Nhs for testosterone, failing that I'll start an hrt piggy bank to fund privately
CLKD I was talking from my experiences of online pharmacies, I went through hoardes of questions and initially was refused what I was enquiring about, to me that's not a company selling any old hrt. I had to go on live chat with an advisor who then sent it to the doctor to investigate my argument. So now if I choose to try a different hrt I know I can without fighting at GP's
As for testosterone I don't think that would be allowed online
X
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I agree with CLKD (apart from the GP's opinion about testosterone voice deepening thing - that doc knew nothing!!) - I don't think anyone (from UK) should buy any prescription only meds online that hasn't been prescribed by a doctor - because we have a rigorous system in place to check and monitor the consequences of this. I can see your point Stellajane if you have already been prescribed HRT - so you were wanting to try a different product - but we still should be monitored by health professionals and our wonderful NHS is there to ensure that we are, as far as possible!
It is very easy to fake products nowadays - even batteries - which are far more difficult to manufacture than cardboard packaging, tubes and leaflets! Not that I'm suggesting products you have been buying online are fake - but just making that point.
We should all be doing what we can to change to opinion of the medical profession and pushing for what the guidelines recommend and what is our right - even if we have to wait a few more weeks.
COME ON GIRLS - LET'S DO IT!!!
Hurdity x :)
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Wish I lived near you Hurdity, I'd be dragging you to docs with me for support as I go in there and get everything muddled up and end up crying
X
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:bighug:
I would gladly help anyone who lived near me!
Seriously though - do write down what you want to say or ask for and the reasons - as well as some websites. Is there anyone you can take with you for moral support - husband, partner, friend or relative - it could make all the difference?
I sympathise about the crying - I didn't have this at the docs but several times at work over the time I was peri-menopausal - due to threatened redundancy, re-deployment and other problems with some male colleagues - I cried in front of supervisors, HR people, people I worked with - I thought it was just the stress but looking back of course it was peri - if only I had realised. Quite embarrassing in retrospect!
Good luck!!!
Hurdity x
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I would have rung my GP in England and asked the question, asked for treatment until I was sorted elsewhere! I would ring round the various Surgeries in the new area or visit a Pharmacist ……. to find out who supports the various medical conditions that require on-going treatment. GPs aren't paid to not prescribe ………. if necessary I would be seeking Legal advice because we pay whilst working towards supporting the NHS with NI.
Trouble is, when we are low we can't always ask for what we need. One look from a GP of 'hurry up I have 10 mins. to listen' or a negative reaction from a medical professional can make appt.s difficult to deal with. Which is why it is important to take someone along.
How do you know it's the 'right' info on the leaflet? Scams happen and are very well disguised these days :-[. The leaflet may look genuine but the product can be inferior and/or dangerous.
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It frustrates me because this does affect OH, I lack the physical strength I had before (I'm talking mid 40s not 20s), I lack the stamina, the emotional strength, the sex drive, the arousal, the orgasm.....all what I'm feeling affects my life with him which has to affect him too but he won't admit it because he said it sounds like he's being chauvinistic. I've said if he came with me he could explain the difference in me that oestrogen alone isn't tackling
I'll compose an email to Dr Currie, print off NICE guidelines and print some info from reputable sites and give it my best bash
X
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Maybe he is accepting? My DH is. Maybe your disappointment is causing you to *think* that he is as affected as you fear?
Good idea to e-mail Dr Currie etc.; let us know how you get on! When I'm feeling vulnerable I take a list, hand to my GP and ask him to prioritise. If necessary I make an double appt..
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Maybe he is accepting? My DH is. Maybe your disappointment is causing you to *think* that he is as affected as you fear?
Good idea to e-mail Dr Currie etc.; let us know how you get on! When I'm feeling vulnerable I take a list, hand to my GP and ask him to prioritise. If necessary I make an double appt..
I honestly can't see how he can be OK with it all
Pre peri, (and surviving greatly on oestrogen alone for years) I was lively, energetic , outgoing, slim, emotionally strong, highly sexual and very quick to orgasm, he said so many times he felt like he'd won the lottery being with me lol (not just for the sex) but for the way I carried myself, my career, everything, we had such fun, a great social life
Every bit of that has gone, and if it's not the oestrogen causing it it can only be the other
x
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I can vouch for goldpharma. They are a trusted site from the B12d group x
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I think the NHS is far too rigid and needs to broaden its approach. For example, why isn't Dydrogesterone available on the NHS, does anyone actually know? Also, why don't they licence Utrogestan to be used vaginally when practically every other country does? Re menopause treatment, they seem to be in the dark ages and there still seems to be this tendency to treat women like children who can't think for themselves.
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Yep. Probably down to costs?!?
Annie0710 - have you actually asked him how he feels, no good assuming; we are aware that men can't mind read ;D. He is ageing too ;)
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He's still highly sexed but reckons he can cope with how I've become x
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Hi ladies!
No internet yesterday to reply...
I was initially prescribed hrt (oestrogel and utrogestan) by a doctor here in Venezuela. I did go to her well prepared with notes from MM. Since then I have seen a GP in my practice in the UK who gave me a prescription for ADs in spite of me saying I was happy with the regime I was on. I complained to the practice manager and spoke to another doctor who persuaded me to try Femseven conti ( I`m 5 yrs post meno). I have been using that for the last 6 weeks and although I like the convenience, it`s not controlling my flushes. I also asked her about testosterone as I have NO libido and she agreed. Have yet to pick up the prescription as all this took so long on my last trip I was back in Venezuela before she agreed it. Phew.
So I feel I want to go back to using the Oestrogel and utro and will be back in the UK next week (yippee!) to discuss this. The thing is I know I will only be given a prescription for 2-3 months and that won`t last for the time I will be away next. I used to be able to get it here, but with the current situation medicines of any kind are hard to come by. I have bought Estreva gel in Brazil (we are close to the border) which is ok, but I was just exploring the possiblity of bring a supply from the UK. Or I will be found guilty of murder if I can`t get my meds. Yes, it`s horrible to feel desperate :(
I don`t want to self-medicate either but really sometimes doctors - wherever they are - need a little push!
I also have an appt with the meno clinic at Guys in 2 weeks.
Thanks for all your comments, it`s so reassuring to know we`re in it together!
Jx
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You may get 'done' for drug smuggling :o ……. could you carry a copy of the Prescription?
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What's the problem with the Brazilian supply?
Is the appointment at the meno-clinic (Guy's) private or NHS? Either way I would put your dilemma to them and ask the best way to get the gel to Venezuela given that this is your preferred oestrogen.
If NHS and they can't get it to you, then in your position I would try a private appt to get the prescription and then phone/e-mail to renew it each time ( if they will do this) and get them to send it and bill you, as you don't live here and can't get it out there.
I went to see a private gynae re Testosterone ( this is before the guidelines changed) and then phoned to renew it as i didn't want to go all the way to the hospital again ( 65 miles away) - so they sent it to me and sent the bill. In the case of T it was more than a year's supply (it was a month's supply for a man!) so way cheaper than a normal HRT prescription - so this way may be too expensive unless they agree to supply more than 3 months worth at a time?
Just a thought anyway - at least it would be as prescribed and a proper source of the stuff.
Hurdity x
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The Brazilian gel supply is fairly stable but I found the dosage more difficult to guage and it`s a bit runny. I`m being picky really. :-\
The other thing I can`t get is vagifem, and having run out 2 weeks ago I`m noticing the difference. ouch.
It`s an NHS appointment at the meno clinic and I will explain the situation to them. Can you get a private appointment just to get a prescription? I`m going to have the same problem with all 3 - gel, vagifem and testim. At the moment I can get Utro. Sending anything here is not really an option. It would have to go DHL or something - and we have no address where I live anyway! I`ll investigate more.
Good that you don`t have to go and physically renew your prescription each time!
Good advice as always Hurdity, thank you.
Jx