Menopause Matters Forum
Menopause Discussion => All things menopause => Topic started by: Emerald2017 on May 28, 2018, 11:02:27 AM
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The more I read the more I am convinced that our body cannot survive without our female hormones.
I cannot imagine myself to stop hrt and to have to struggle with all these awful symptoms.
On the other hand all these scaring stories about cancer...
I think that using safely hrt depends on many individual factors and it is very complicated.
On the other hand I am convinced that docs and gyns don't know how to handle meno. I strongly believe that it is more an individual decision and responsibility.
I tried to find a caring and well informed gyn who said that I can use hrt as long as I want with regular check ups and yearly mammograms...maybe I just found a gyn that simply agree with me?..
Your thoughts ladies???
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Hi, for me it's a gift, despite the small increased risk of cancer. Smoking, alcohol and obesity are bigger cancer risks.
Plus, I would rather have a better quality of life than to struggle on til I'm 80 with very poor quality of life.
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Thank you for replying Wilkes! 💐
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Agree Wilks definately gift for me Emerald.good luck with your choices do what's right for you x
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Thank you Daisydot! :)
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Emerald - HRT is a personal choice and a lot depends on whether your body suits HRT or not.
All the scares have been overblown and there is still a stigma around using HRT - hrt is still seen by many as giving in and not being strong enough to ‘ride the storm'.
Education is the key. If we were all educated better about our bodies and how it works and therefore prepared for the various stages through life so we knew what to expect, then treatment would improve because we would know what to ask for.
Finding a supportive professional is certainly the key. Well women clinics in every town and city could work wonders. DG x
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I think it's down to the individual and their symptoms/risks and quality of life.
I was on the pill for years due to a hormone imbalance that was leaving me with a very poor quality of life. My GP regularly raised concerns about the increased risk of breast cancer, but continued to prescribe it as long as I was 'aware of the risks'. My quality of life was so poor without the pill that I felt I'd rather have a shorter life that was happy and active than a longer one where I woke up each morning wishing I'd died in my sleep!
I've just had a scare over a breast lump (benign) but even when I thought it might be cancer, I didn't have any regrets over taking the pill because it gave me years of really good life instead of the kind of living death I would have had without it.
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Can't wait to start it and hopefully stabilize! 3 plus years post oopherectomy (surgical menopause) most of it 'cold turkey'.
It's a looong story for me, but I was a member here a while ago and really, really struggled and thought HRT might have been making things worse. After several 'theories' from various doctors (and yes - psychiatrists) it was found following MRI and lumbar puncture and extensive neuro. testing that I have Multiple Sclerosis. This of course makes heat intolerance much, much worse.
I have just less than 3 weeks to wait to see my specialist to help with HRT - hoping for some relief this time! So glad to read that so many of you are doing well! xxxx
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I absolutely agree with you Dancinggirl!
I'm not in U.K. and we have no clinics for meno in my country, so I try to get informed by my own. I sometimes find that I'm better informed than my gyn!:)
I am convinced that my body cannot survive without estrogen. At first when I diagnosed a year ago I was feeling like a failure cause I need hrt. Things get better with time and the forum is really too helpful and precious for me!
Thank you all! 💐
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I so agree with you ladies.and well woman clinics spot on dancing girl,we shouldn't have to beg for help ,it's so bloody demeaning,even with the support of a meno specialist I still get grief from these dinosaurs of gps who are so outdated and too lazy to keep their skills updated.
We all know the risks we all take the necessary precautions I just wish they were so passionate about telling us about all the risks involved in taking these drugs that they get nice little earners from ie statins etc.
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Definitely a gift for me, I can't live with the awful VA without it.
I get a bit annoyed when an acquaintance and SIL go on about the breast cancer risk, they don't seem to acknowledge that their weight, alcohol consumption and lack of exercise increase their risk of cancer.
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You know what tinkerbell you can print off all the evidence and support about hrt that you wish but these people are so blinkered it makes not one bit of difference they are fossils with closed minds.ignore them and you do what's right for you wether it's hrt or natural remedies,if it works for you then bless your heart that's good enough x
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You are so right Daisy!
I try not to think so much about risks.
I guess that if men have to face something like this, they will make everything to replace their testosterone without second thought!
Nobody tells you what will happen if we don't replace our estrogen, they only talk about breast cancer risks. What about osteoporosis, heart diseases, diabetes, wrinkles...?
I think that we deserve a better treatment and understanding. I can't stand to make me feel like a hysterical woman! And if I am hysterical it is cause my symptoms due to estrogen deficiency and not by my choice!!!
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In Ireland then?
Any medication is a gift. When I think of those who don't have access to the simplest of pain relief in War Torn regions :'(. GPs need to be better informed about menopause. But by the time we reach that age, many are ready to retire themselves and the younger GP Trainees are unlikely to get even a basic knowledge about The Change!
For me ovestin treatment for vaginal atrophy was a Gift. Stopped those razor blades up there! so I can get on with Life. Same with anti-depressants and anti-anxiety medications, without those I wouldn't be typing this!
I suppose we were told about periods either in School or by friends, occasionally by Mums but The Change was hushed up, something that we didn't need to know about until we go there? I had my first period when I was almost 12 so was very early. It wasn't talked about :-\ and was s embarrassing :'(.
At what point do girls need to know about menopause ???
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That's a very good question CLKD I have a 40 year old daughter who won't even consider she's peri but has all the symptoms, ive told her at some stage she'll be glad she has a mother who is informed about the steps that can help her but she couldn't be more disinterested right now.
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Daisy - your daughter is being foolish - she should listen to her wise mother DG x
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She is probably coping then? She may not have such a bad time ......... print off the list of 48+ symptoms and ....... ;)
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Thank you DG she's a fool but I'll be here when she needs me hopefully.I wish I'd known what I know now when my poor mum was here her life would have been so different.x
She's not coping at all CLKD but isn't interested in my help sadly.
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Stand well back then. If you have given advice: can take a horse to water etc.. Does she moan at you though :-\
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Yes moans like hell no one understands what I go through etc but when I try to console her and advise I'm poking my nose in or trying to take over her life,I'm very very passive and hate aggression of any kind I'm very like my own mother,she's the opposite,so as you say all I can do is stand back till or if she comes to me.
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Hello there,
I think all things in life come as a full package, good and bad, yin and yang, they're complementary. All drugs can be used as medicine or poison, it depends on many variables. The wisdom lies on finding a dynamic balance, always questioning and keeping aware of your own body language. There's no cure for anything, you need to keep going and always look on the bright side of life
Conolly X
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GIFT :) Full hysterectomy 8 years ago, went full steam into surgical meno :( Asked consultant why it had started sooooo quick and he just handed me some HRT patches and said basically you have nothing left. Waited 3 months just to see if I could go cold turkey, no sleep. no brain, anxiety drenched in sweat all night etc due back at work so put patch on, within 5 days was sleeping better and other symptoms greatly improved. Doctor originally said 5 years max but did try to come off HRT but every symptom returned within days :( Found other women saying 'but its natural why can't you cope?' upsetting. No one can explain why surgical meno is so hard, I am nearly 59 so would of been out the other side if had a natural meno? Will stay on HRT (low dose) even though I do still get night sweats etc for ever if possible. My quality of life NOW is what matters. Good luck.
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Hi, Maxwin! That's great news for us fellow surgical menopause ladies! There are a few of us around here. Your risk is very, very low so no need for you to be bullied off your HRT as it's suiting you. :)
Do you mind me asking what dose you're using just now? There are two of us surgical ladies here just trying to get onto an HRT that suits us. xxxx
Forgot to say - surgical meno. is very, very different - not even GP's are clued up on this a lot of the time which beggar's belief!
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Hello Tempest,
Surgical menopause is a whole different matter indeed. As in any surgical intervention that will stop your own hormonal production as in thyroidectomy, there's an absolute need for replacement asap. If only hormones weren't so complicated...
Hope you have yours sorted out soon.
Conolly X
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Oh so true, and thank you so much Conolly! As I say - there's two of us. Paisley is on the same journey too but has been on the road longer, bless her! This is why I rejoined - we need to share info. and also raise awareness for women coming along behind us. xxxx
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Hi Tempest, I am using Everol 25 patch. To be honest I did find the 50 patch better virtually no symptoms on that but did feel I should try to slowly wean myself and have stayed on 25 patch now. I have double wammy as also take levothyroxine 50 micro tablet every day for thyroid. Did try HRT tablets and Gel but for me patches are best (although the sticky mark left on the skin is annoying! bit baby oil soon gets it off :) I never expected it to be so hard and still can't really understand how my body just cannot manage without HRT. When I did try to come off it the doctor offered me mild anti dep as they do help some women with meno symptoms but I took one tablet felt sick, dizzy and nearly passed out! They are still in my drawer lol. My Doctor did say he still prescribes HRT for an 80 year old so just got to accept our decisions and try our best to Keep Calm and Carry On.
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My daughters are 23 and 16 and I have shared my experience with them so they are better equipped than I was when this hits. They will know they are not losing their mind. I wasn't one for talking about periods etc but I have learned that it is better for our daughters to know. X :)
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Thank you so much for sharing, Maxwin! I really appreciate it. :)
Well done you, Mustard - I'm hoping we'll be the generation to bring menopause out of 'whispering in corners' like previous generations. xxxx
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I wish Tempest.my kids are just not interested in fact pretty much none of my family are,all I can hope is that if and when my granddaughters need help they'll come to me this younger generation are so much more open to their grandparents advice,our kids even at 40+ still like to rebel against our advice.Ive given up on them it's hard enough trying to get through my days sometimes so right now I'm taking the selfish option.
When you say surgical menopause,I had hysterectomy at 42 womb and cervix out but ovaries left,is that what your referring to? Ty xx
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Oh bless you, Daisydot! They may not know it right now, but they WILL be glad of your love and care when things get tougher. One thing we do know is that we all have to go through menopause! I have to say that I'm finding less and less of the 'i sailed through it' brigade - probably because we're all being more open about it now and there are no prizes for wearing a badge of martyrdom any more!
Surgical menopause is when you have your ovaries removed, so you are plunged into a complete hormonal deficient state overnight. The symptoms are usually much, much more severe than natural menopause and can last longer. If you keep your ovaries with hysterectomy, they can fail at the time of surgery if the blood supply to them is interrupted, or can temporarily 'sleep' due to the upheaval of surgery. In any case, menopause is usually earlier for a woman who has had a hysterectomy with ovary conservation. Hope this explains! xxxx
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Thank you Tempest. 😘