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[Delilah]

Good luck to all of you,  i hope you can all manage to come off without much distress, that time will come for all of us and stories of success gives us all hope. Keep us posted.

Delilah x

[Eddie]

Looks like the plans have changed again . Saw Gyn today, they finally believe me that steroid creams are making no difference to vulval pain. And that possibly hrt could be responsible! Phew. So, new plan is to chance to femoston conti. Only trying it for a few months to see.
Eddie. X

[Smokey]

Good luck Eddie with your new HRT !

[Tingly]

Funny enuf, ive been suffering with bladder problems and after 6 years on hrt oral, specialust gynae last night told me to come off estro and progest cold turkey and to use vagifem

Am really frightened tho so might have the fist 3 days of vagi with the other stuff to make sure its working and then come off

Good luck and let us know how u get on

Luv tingly xxxx

[Tingly]

Ps have u tried lidocaine cream for your bits n bobs...sort of numbs it for a bit
Xxx

[Eddie]

Hi Tingly. I was looking for something to numb the area, Gyn didn't suggest that and after years of religiously using nothing down there I am a bit dibious about it. I will google the ingredients and see if I can work out if I think it may irritate me. Thanks.
Eddie. X

[Eddie]

Started my new hrt today. So now on femoston conti, does feel strange but worth a go for a few months to see.
How's everyone else doing who stopped or changed?
Eddie . X

[Dancinggirl]

Hi Everyone
I thought I would join in as I'm slowly coming off my HRT to see what happens following a very positive meeting with practice nurse about my options re HRT.
I became peri in my mid 30s so have been on HRT a longgggg time.  I took a break when I was 49 as I knew I would be out the other side of meno and hoped flushes etc would settle down quickly. I persevered for 3 years ever hopeful things would improve (suffered every symptom inclu.  flushes 3 or 4 times an hour, night sweats, creeping sensations, awful vaginal problems, dreadful headaches, aching joints, exhaustion etc.) but eventually gave in and went back on. 

I tried a variety of conti pills but ended up with a Mirena and Oestrogel which has been ok. Now 4 and half years later my Mirena is coming to end of it's life and as I don't want to have withdrawal symptoms in summer (so much worse!!!) thought I would do it now. I'm now 57 by the way so hopefully they will allow me a few more years of HRT if I struggle with this break. I need to keep working for another 9 years so NHS need to support we women though this.
 
I'm slowly cutting down my dosage of gel over the next few weeks and then I will have the Mirena removed. I am not hopeful that the withdrawal will be ok as I did slow reduction last time and the meno symptoms just slowly emerged and kept on goinggggggg!
I was told it was important to have a slow withdrawal as going cold turkey can have adverse affect on bones - not sure whether this is true - anybody know anything about this?
I'll report my progress and I look forward to hearing how you all are getting on.
Good luck to us all. xxx

[honeybun]

Good luck with it DG I hope you manage this time.

I am struggling and have put on a half patch. The night sweats and not sleeping is making it hard to cope. I just need to sleep to be able to cope with everything that is going on.

I hope you cope better than me.

Let us know how it goes.


Honeyb
X

[Lucky Stone]

I'm also coming off HRT, my own choice - just thought I would cut down and see what hapens. I'm only on 1mg of oestrogen anyway so am taking one pill every other day. So far I have noticed no difference. I don't get night sweats anyway and still get an occasional hot flush, HRT or not.  With me, the Sertraline has made a difference and with my GERD under control thanks to Lanzaprozole (and the thyroid meds) I am feeling less anxious (and of course I am having the CBT so doing breathing exercises etc.) Anyway, we will see what happens. The GP has just given me some more HRT so if I need to take it again I can - I'm not due to see her again yet so it will be interesting to see how I get on and I can report back when I do. I have to say that the Sertraline has improved my life no end so I am not keen to stop taking that 

[sweettooth]

Hi everyone, i havent posted in quite a while.  I used to be on 100mcg estrogen only patch and found i had to reduce as body couldnt seem to tolerate dose anymore.  I am now on 50mcg but thought i would try to stop altogether about a month ago as i always wondered was the estrogen causing my headaches.  Well, i was great the first week & half then i noticed headaches became even more frequent, hot hot flushes and my mood was awful - everything was negative and everyone!

I am now back on the 50 patch since last weekend and am feeling so much better.  Main reason for trying to stop was the headaches.  Like some of you have said, Menopause is so so difficult to cope with at times but I have to say i dont struggle so much with my hormones these days as i did in perimenopause.

Sincere good wishes to all of you and especially those who are really struggling - it will get better x

[Dancinggirl]

Hi Sweettooth,
Interesting to hear you have a problem with headaches. I get headaches quite badly and when I came off HRT before they definitely got worse. I found the very hot humid weather this summer absolutely exhausting - even on the HRT (though I'm taking a very small amount)I was finding it difficult to regulate my body temperature - got very hot a bothered. I'm withdrawing the HRT as winter approaches in the hope that if and when flushes return I can cope better.
One of the recommendations for coping with menopause is plenty of exercise but the problem is the hot flushes make exercise a nightmare. I'm an ex professional dancer so love keeping active  - my joints are not particularly good and need to keep them moving or I'll seize up!
I'm trying to feel positive about the next few weeks but it's hard.
xxx

[sweettooth]

Hi Dancingirll,
i sometimes get the headaches with the heat but then other times they start anyway, they mostly arent that severe - heavy fuzziness and are sorted with paracetamol.  There have been times when i have thought i have got rid of them but then a cycle begins again!

What dose of gel are you on now? You seem to be going through this a long time like myself, i am 52 but started peri in my mid thirties.  I hope you have better luck this time coming off, perhaps now that you are 57 it wont be so severe x

[Dancinggirl]

Hi Sweettooth
Interesting to find someone else with similar menopause history. I'm on just under two doses of gel each day - the gel makes it easy to slowly reduce.  I'm not sure how quickly I should reduce the dose as last time I reduced over 2-3 months but this time I think I shall do it quicker. My body didn't adjust well to the withdrawal last time & meno symptoms continued for 3 yrs afterwards before I gave in and went back on HRT.  I also spent a fortune on herbal remedies etc. which never helped.
I think it is all in the genes - either your body adjusts well or it doesn't. I have friends who mention in passing that their periods have stopped and when I ask if they have had any flushes etc they shrug and say one or two a day for the first few months!!!!! Oh! how I envy them.
My mother's periods stopped when she was 37 and in those days there was no HRT - I remember her always complaining about being hot and she was very tetchy for many years.
Life doesn't seem to get any less stressful for me with older relations needing so much support and still needing to work, I think the pressures are worse in your 50s?!
The nurse has given me Vagifem to help keep things healthy down below - hopefully this will mean one area of my body will not be causing problems as a result of withdrawal!
I think my headaches are very much linked to how well I'm sleeping. A couple of bad nights and a headache will come on. Off HRT I get terrible nightmares and the quality of sleep is much worse.  I remember when I went back on HRT that the first thing I noticed was I started to get good REM sleep which meant I felt more refreshed in the morning.
I'm rabbling again - too much to share!
Love DG xxx

[Dancinggirl]

Hi Sweettooth
Got your PM - I couldn't reply - not a member.
Maximum dose of Gel has been 2 pumps. 
After this week I've got a quieter time through october so hope to get some 'me' time.
Just hoping I can cope with withdrawal.
DG x