Menopause Matters Forum
Menopause Discussion => All things menopause => Topic started by: Mrslolad on November 12, 2023, 07:08:56 PM
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Hello ladies.
As the title says I am after some positive sandrena experiences please. Especially from those who have swapped from oestrogel to sandrena.
I am one of those people who are affected by the change in the oestrogel and I’ve had a rough, rough year and still am not back to how I felt on the original oestrogel.
I’ve been given sandrena but am so scared to start it incase it sends everything spiralling again. I don’t know how much more strength I have left to battle through.
Thank you in advance x
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MayB put the product name into the search box and read threads that pop up - make notes ;-).
Some find that keeping a mood/food/symptom diary of use to chart progress.
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I have done that. I couldn’t find what I was looking for hence my post. I do keep a journal already. Am just very tired of feeling rubbish and was hoping for some shared experiences
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Hi Mrslolad,
Long story short, I was a very happy oestrogel user until the new stuff came along about 4 months ago. I went from 3 pumps to 6 pumps and it was still no good.
Like you i was scared to try something new, however I finally bit bullet a couple of weeks ago and switched to Sandrena.
It is fabulous. In just 1 day I felt better. I am 2 weeks in and feel like the old me.
My mate also ditched new oestrogel. Sandrena didn't work for her but evorel patch did.
Give Sandrena a go, if that doesn't work there are still other options.
Good luck xxx
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Thank you! This has been exactly what I needed to read. So glad it’s worked well for you. Am pinning my hopes on the Sandrena as the patches don’t work for me. X
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Let us know how it goes because I am another current oestrogel user considering a switch to Sandrena. I'm going to try 6 pumps of Oestrogel first...
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I will update. Am going to bite the bullet and change tomorrow. Although I’ll probably split my dose as I am SCARED!
Increasing the oestrogel pumps didn’t work for me as I eventually had too much and it affected me negatively. I’ve been weighing the pumps since august but am just not myself at all. And every new bottle seems to set me back again. It’s awful!
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Good luck...
A couple more positive stories are...
My mate had similar new oestrogel experiences to me. Unlike me though, she did something about it and switched to Sandrena. She was delighted with it, and told me... I guess she was my guinea pig!
The rest is history.
I bumped into an old friend (after a week on Sandrena) and she also hated new oestrogel... her anxiety had got so bad she was on beta blockers. I suggested she switched and every day I'm receiving a message saying how good she feels. And no more beta blockers.
I can't guarantee it will work for you, but I do believe there is life after new oestrogel
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Same experience for me. New Oestrogel bottles really didn't work for me so switched to Sandrena and have felt the best I have felt for ages.
I am actually really glad I had to change but was very apprehensive to start with. x
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Good luck...
A couple more positive stories are...
My mate had similar new oestrogel experiences to me. Unlike me though, she did something about it and switched to Sandrena. She was delighted with it, and told me... I guess she was my guinea pig!
The rest is history.
I bumped into an old friend (after a week on Sandrena) and she also hated new oestrogel... her anxiety had got so bad she was on beta blockers. I suggested she switched and every day I'm receiving a message saying how good she feels. And no more beta blockers.
I can't guarantee it will work for you, but I do believe there is life after new oestrogel
Thank you so much! I have put my big girl pants on this morning and tried the sandrena. Didn’t even split the dose. Fingers crossed it’s the solution I’m after. I will update in a couple days. X
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Same experience for me. New Oestrogel bottles really didn't work for me so switched to Sandrena and have felt the best I have felt for ages.
I am actually really glad I had to change but was very apprehensive to start with. x
Thank you so much for sharing your experience. Am so glad it’s worked for you. Hopefully it’ll work for me. X
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Sandrena converts, where do you all apply your gel? How much do you use?
I’ve been on the evorel patch for ages, but not liking wearing a big sticking plaster on my bum!
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Hello ladies.
I just wanted to say that I ran out of Sandrena sachets so I have been using some Oestrogel pumps that I found in the back of the cupboard, I assume they are the old bottles. So far I feel about the same but if I continue with Oestrogel I will be mindful of the newer product.
Nas - I used to rub one 1mg sachet of gel into my inner thigh, alternating every day. I find the gel is thicker than Oestrogel and took a little longer to dry. Other than that I had no problems with it.
Good luck ladies and wishing you all well.
K.
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Thanks Kathleen.
That’s good to know.
I may give it a try… you never know… 🤞 x
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Hello ladies.
I just wanted to say that I ran out of Sandrena sachets so I have been using some Oestrogel pumps that I found in the back of the cupboard, I assume they are the old bottles. So far I feel about the same but if I continue with Oestrogel I will be mindful of the newer product.
Nas - I used to rub one 1mg sachet of gel into my inner thigh, alternating every day. I find the gel is thicker than Oestrogel and took a little longer to dry. Other than that I had no problems with it.
Good luck ladies and wishing you all well.
K.
Thank you for the luck. So far so good. So fingers crossed.
If they are blue topped then they are the old bottle. Hope it continues to work for you! X
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Hello ladies.
I just wanted to say that I ran out of Sandrena sachets so I have been using some Oestrogel pumps that I found in the back of the cupboard, I assume they are the old bottles. So far I feel about the same but if I continue with Oestrogel I will be mindful of the newer product.
Nas - I used to rub one 1mg sachet of gel into my inner thigh, alternating every day. I find the gel is thicker than Oestrogel and took a little longer to dry. Other than that I had no problems with it.
Good luck ladies and wishing you all well.
K.
I use one and a half 1mg sachets as equivalent to 3 pumps of good oestrogel.
I alternate places to apply, calves, thighs arms.
It is sticky, but as there's such a small quantity compared to Oestrogel it's bearable.
Good luck x
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Is it like Testogel, in terms of drying and consistency? I use that for T.
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I use tostran so I don't know.
Sandrena dries quite tacky. Doesn't bother me though, it works. And after 4 months of rubbish, a little bit of stickiness is a very small price to pay!
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Hey ladies.
So I started sandrena yesterday and had a good day. Felt really optimistic. Today however, about an hour after applying I felt really sick and light headed and it triggered my health anxiety again. I’ve actually been in bed for three hours hoping to ‘sleep it off’.
Has anyone experienced similar with adjusting? X
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Hey ladies.
So I started sandrena yesterday and had a good day. Felt really optimistic. Today however, about an hour after applying I felt really sick and light headed and it triggered my health anxiety again. I’ve actually been in bed for three hours hoping to ‘sleep it off’.
Has anyone experienced similar whisky adjusting? X
Oh dear,
One friend of mine who switched to Sandrena got a bad headache for about a day. It got better and she's been really happy with Sandrena and would never go back to Oestrogel.
Another friend who also switched from Oestrogel didn't feel right on Sandrena and has now happily settled on Evorel patches.
I'm still finding my feet with Sandrena and am still experimenting with the dose - I started on 2 x 1mg sachets, but was worried it was a high dose so lowered it to 1 and a half. But I think I might be better with 2 sachets. When Oestrogel was good I was on 3 pumps.
Can I ask what (old) Oestrogel dose you were on and what Sandrena dose you are on?
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Hey ladies.
So I started sandrena yesterday and had a good day. Felt really optimistic. Today however, about an hour after applying I felt really sick and light headed and it triggered my health anxiety again. I’ve actually been in bed for three hours hoping to ‘sleep it off’.
Has anyone experienced similar whisky adjusting? X
Oh dear,
One friend of mine who switched to Sandrena got a bad headache for about a day. It got better and she's been really happy with Sandrena and would never go back to Oestrogel.
Another friend who also switched from Oestrogel didn't feel right on Sandrena and has now happily settled on Evorel patches.
I'm still finding my feet with Sandrena and am still experimenting with the dose - I started on 2 x 1mg sachets, but was worried it was a high dose so lowered it to 1 and a half. But I think I might be better with 2 sachets. When Oestrogel was good I was on 3 pumps.
Can I ask what (old) Oestrogel dose you were on and what Sandrena dose you are on?
Thanks for responding.
So on the old oestrogel I was happy on three pumps. On the new I wasn’t ever happy or settled and went up to five but then def felt like I had estrogen dominance.
I’ve been prescribed 2x 1mg sandrena but that is too much so I started with just the one sachet. It could be that I need more but I am so scared to increase. It’s such a complicated mess x
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I hear you sister!
I did my own calculations of estradiol and 1 pump = 0.75mg so on 3 pumps that is 2.25mg which means 2 and a quarter sachets!!! Not the 3 pumps = 1.5 sachets that most places say. However, I didn't want to over do it with Sandrena so started with 2 sachets then dropped to 1.5. I'm actually beginning to think I was better on 2 sachets as my brain seems a little foggy on 1.5. But it all seems to be trial and error.
Really hope it works out for you.
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Those calculations are helpful thank you. Am wondering if I felt ok yesterday as the day before I was on 3 pumps of oestrogel- so theoretically my levels were higher? And the. Only having 1 sachet of sandrena yesterday and wasn’t enough… urgh.
My biggest issue is the anxiety as I still haven’t recovered from the crash I experienced in the summer when the patches stopped working. I’ve been fighting against antid’s as I KNOW it’s hormonal but am now wondering if I need help mentally whilst I’m still battling to find the right hrt.
What I wouldn’t give to go back to May when I was absolutely fine. I hate that this is such a battle.
Sorry…this has turned into a bit of a rant. Thank you for all your advice x
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From what I've read about Sandrena, at first it can be quite a 'hit' for some reason. There is some research which shows it is absorbed much faster than Oestrogel - so whilst the dose may be the same, the speed of your body absorbing it can give you a hit at first whilst you get it onboard. Oestrogel takes much longer to peak in the blood and is more slowly absorbed. So if you can, try to stick it out and see if it settles for you... or reduce and increase more gradually..... Once you get stable blood levels of it, it should be okay, it is probably just the onboarding phase....
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From what I've read about Sandrena, at first it can be quite a 'hit' for some reason. There is some research which shows it is absorbed much faster than Oestrogel - so whilst the dose may be the same, the speed of your body absorbing it can give you a hit at first whilst you get it onboard. Oestrogel takes much longer to peak in the blood and is more slowly absorbed. So if you can, try to stick it out and see if it settles for you... or reduce and increase more gradually..... Once you get stable blood levels of it, it should be okay, it is probably just the onboarding phase....
Thank you for responding.
This makes sense. I think I’m just so desperate to feel better. At this point I’d take two good days in a row as a win. I was naively hoping that sandrena would be a miracle for me after everything I’ve been through.
I really appreciate you all taking the time to share your experiences and knowledge with me.
This journey can be very isolating…
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That's interesting... in that case do you think it would be worth taking in 2 doses ie am and pm?
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That's interesting... in that case do you think it would be worth taking in 2 doses ie am and pm?
I was doing that with oestrogel so maybe I need to do the same with sandrena?
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That's interesting... in that case do you think it would be worth taking in 2 doses ie am and pm?
I was doing that with oestrogel so maybe I need to do the same with sandrena?
Oh, in that case I think it might be a good idea.
I've just taken the 'spare' half now - you've inspired me.
I think I might just be a 2 sachets girl!
I am going to take 1 sachet in the morning and 1 sachet in the afternoon on the days I work (3 days a week). And one and a half sachets on the 4 days I don't work. I'll see how that goes. One and a half is definitely not enough as my brain is going a little bit spongey.
On a positive note, I've found loads of things today that had gone missing when I was in a new oestrogel brain fog state. Which means I am on the right track with Sandrena - just needs some fine tuning
Keep me posted Mrslolad
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That's interesting... in that case do you think it would be worth taking in 2 doses ie am and pm?
I was doing that with oestrogel so maybe I need to do the same with sandrena?
Oh, in that case I think it might be a good idea.
I've just taken the 'spare' half now - you've inspired me.
I think I might just be a 2 sachets girl!
I am going to take 1 sachet in the morning and 1 sachet in the afternoon on the days I work (3 days a week). And one and a half sachets on the 4 days I don't work. I'll see how that goes. One and a half is definitely not enough as my brain is going a little bit spongey.
On a positive note, I've found loads of things today that had gone missing when I was in a new oestrogel brain fog state. Which means I am on the right track with Sandrena - just needs some fine tuning
Keep me posted Mrslolad
Sounds like you’ve had a productive day! Gives me hope. :)
I was on two pumps in the am and one at night so will up my Sandrena to try and match that. I have added an extra half this afternoon and I feel better…just knackered. I’ve only got 1mg sachets so I’ll have to figure out the best way to split them without wasting!
I will keep you updated. Fingers crossed tomorrow is a better day x
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Good Luck!
Half sachets isn't so bad. There are 0.5mg sachets too, but my doc recommended me to stick with 1mg and split it in case I mixed them up. I think he gave good advice knowing how forgetful I can be.
Keep me posted - nothing new is plain sailing. Fingers crossed we find our way x
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Good Luck!
Half sachets isn't so bad. There are 0.5mg sachets too, but my doc recommended me to stick with 1mg and split it in case I mixed them up. I think he gave good advice knowing how forgetful I can be.
Keep me posted - nothing new is plain sailing. Fingers crossed we find our way x
Am going to go for 1.5 sachets in the morning and the other half in the evening and see how it goes. From the calculations it seems like two sachets is just under 3 pumps so hopefully this will work.
I will keep you updated. We have to get it right one day right? X
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That's what I've ended up doing for the last two days.
Tbf, I've been out for a drink this (early) evening, normally I'm ready for bed by 8pm on a week day.
I'm feeling hopeful
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Glad you managed to get out. I’ve been in my pajamas since 5pm ;D
Am going to channel positivity and hope this new regime improves things for me. X
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I guess it goes to show that while it's not perfect, two weeks in I have my life back.
Really hope it all works out for you too.
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I guess it goes to show that while it's not perfect, two weeks in I have my life back.
Really hope it all works out for you too.
Hi Banjo1973. Just a little update.
Yesterday I applied 1.5 sachets in the am and the other 0.5 in the pm. It was a better day overall but still a few side effects (but nothing too extreme). Am staying hopeful.
As a side note I spent time yesterday trying to understand why all the conversion charts showing the dosage equivalency between sandrena and oestrogel don’t make sense according to actual estradiol measures. (As we’d previously discussed).
I really wish this was all simpler. I’d love to know how exactly how much estradiol I need to function!
Hope you had a good day. X
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Just to let you know, I've tried slightly reducing my dose.
For the last two days I've taken 1 sachet in the morning and half in the afternoon/early evening. Everything seems to be ok.
My friend who swapped from Oestrogel to Sandrena one week ago is really happy with 2 sachets every morning.
I think I was also happy on 2 sachets - it's others who are saying 2 is a high dose.
I'm really not sure what to do!
Keep me posted
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Hi Banjo.
I think if it’s working and you feel good then maybe the 1.5 is what you need. They do say to go by how you feel.
The 2 seems to be making me feel better at the moment. My MH has def improved. I’m still quite sweaty but I remember being like that while I adjusted to oestrogel. But I still feel scared to let myself believe that it’s getting better. (If that makes sense). Personally I think, after all the struggles this year, I’m still finding the sweet spot of balance between estrogen and progesterone. Am going to take it day by day and keep journaling and hopefully it just gets better.
I’ve got a doc appointment on Monday and I am going to question the dose issue regarding estradiol. X
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Let me know what they say about dosing. It does seem unclear and I'd love some clarity on it.
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I will let you know. Am not holding out hope that they’ll have the answer though…
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Hi
I have not longed changed to Sandrena 1mg , 11 days to be precise and in the beginning had terrible nausea its gradually going, at the minute it comes and goes but over all really positive, was on 2mg of oral HRT before that, tried the patch that didnt help, I hope by the month the nausea will have gone. Hopefully things will get better for you
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Hi Moonbeam,
I really hope the nausea reduces quickly for you. Some people seem to be really sensitive to estrogen changes, although often things settle.
Personally I'm great with estrogen but terrible with progesterone.
Keep us posted on here, it'll be good to see how us Sandrena newbies get on ovet time
Wishing you the beat xxx
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Hi banjo
Just to update and say I chatted to my gp today and we are going back to patches. I seem to be getting oestrogen spikes and troughs from sandrena so we think I may be better on a continuous release from the patches. Fingers crossed! I definitely suffer when my estrogen is too high compared to my progesterone. If this doesn’t work then I’m going to have to see a specialist and take it from there.
Thank you for all your help and support x
Let me know what they say about dosing. It does seem unclear and I'd love some clarity on it.
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Hi
Just read all the thread it’s so hard all this menopause.
Am like you scared of taking or trying anything new in case it makes things worst but today I thought I can’t get any worse than I have been.
So a year ago today I had a hysterectomy (kept ovaries) 8/9 weeks ago I started evreol 25 my symptoms improved just had bad migraines about 2-3 a week I was having, so just over 2 week agai I came off the patch did speak to my doctor who gave me options and the option I picked was to have a break for 4 weeks then maybe try the gel however it’s been about 16 days now still have migraines on and off so tonight I have put the patch back on and started Amitriptyline to see how I go.
All my other symptoms came back and I still had the migraines so I thought got nothing to lose going back on the patch.
Am off work this week so I thought I can just laze about and see how I get on am so tired and drained with it all fingers crossed it helps x
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Hi Nas,
It's pretty sticky, so takes a while to dry, I use inner thighs, lower legs... anywhere non-hairy with thin skin.
Oestrogel can be user on outer arms and shoulders but Sandrena says lower body only. But I use my Sandrena on outer arms as I'm trying to rotate application places just in case I get absorption issues.
Good luck
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when I was changed from everol 50 patches that stopped absorbing after 2 weeks, I moved to sandrena and as I was low, my GP put me on 2 sachets to start! BOOM! for some reason Sandrena felt stronger (probably because I was actually absorbing it!) i went down to 1 sachet, then had some anxiety and upped after a month to 1.5 sachets and that has felt ok, so I stopped at that ration lol. Its a case of trial and error but I definately had anxiety and nausea when I started on 2 sachets, hit me like a train!! x
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Hello, I am considering asking for a swap to sandrena from oestrogel which is no longer working for me (I've reported the new bottles). I am cautious to try patches as I'm allergic to alot of plasters.
I'm just wondering how you are all finding it. I'm on 4 pumps of oestrogel at present.
Thanks 💚
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Hi Christine,
I switched from 3 pumps of good oestrogel (6 pumps of the new useless stuff). I started with 1.5mg of Sandrena, it wasn't quite enough so moved to 2 sachets.
It really has been great for me.
Good luck x
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Thanks for the speedy response. Do use all once a day or split am/pm?
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Hi,
For me I find Sandrena works better with a split dose. I never bothered with Oestrogel (except when it stopped working).
But with Sandrena, I do find that on work days, if I've put my gel on before 7am, I find by 4 or 5pm I'm a bit anxious. So I do 1 sachet 6.30am 1 sachet 4pm
On a lazy day like today, only got out of the bath at 2pm! I put both sachets on the
But on a normal non-work day I might use 1.5 late morning then 0.5 in the eve.
You'll have to play around with it x
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I split mine. I take 1 sachet in the morning and 0.5 in the evening. Works well for me.
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GP changed my prescription today to 2x1mg sachets a day. She was unsure about taking them all once a day or slipping the dose. I will see what the leaflet says in packaging. I feel anxious about starting something new.
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Hi Christone79 ,
I would possibly start off with 1.5mg and see how you go and then increase if needs be. I have had a review with my doctor today and she did state that 1.5mg was really the maximum women should be taking. She did say it would be okay to increase odd times when I felt I needed too. But if I was going to increase permanently I would have to increase the Utrogesten. I currently take 2 tablets every 2 weeks.
Alternatively reduce if you feel 2 sachets is too much.
I do feel the Sandrena is stronger than the Oestrogel.
I hope this helps. x
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Hey folks - I have just today switched to Sandrena from Oestrogel.
I'm on 4mg Sandrena, which should equal about 8 pumps of Oestrogel although we absorb these products differently so who knows.
I find it was much stickier for much longer than the Oestrogel but luckily it did then absorb. And there is generally much less (quantity) of gel on me, so there is less of me which is sticky(!?!).
Not feeling anything different yet. I just hope my sleep improves.
The ongoing saga of getting my NHS GP to prescribe the right quantity of things continues. I have a little rural surgery where you go to the practice itself to get your prescriptions a few days after ordering them. And often what you've ordered turns out to be something else when you collect it ;D This time I've got just one month's worth of Sandrena so will have to request more in a couple of weeks. I don't know if it's because I've switched to a new product or if calculating how many sachets I need for a month is just too much Maths....