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[ellie66]

Disclaimer: Before I begin I have an NHS background and my utterly lovely GP is a colleague. He has never prescribed the estrogel and ultrogestan combo before so we are learning together! This is very much a shared 50/50 learning experience! I am 47 and have been perimenopausal for about 4 years

I am known to be sensitive to progesterone and have suffered from PMT so my old GP prescribed Femston 2/10 which has been fine for the last 3 years. However I am some PMT symptoms back so through this web site I discovered estrogel and ultrogestan.

So far he has prescribed just a month to see how we get on. I am going to try 3 pumps of estrogel (as I am having some hot flushes on Femston) and ultrogestan from days 15-26 days.

We where reading Menopause Matter when he wrote the prescription and he prescribed according to Dr Currie's recommendations!

Hurdity or anyone else do you have any more advice re this prescription?

[meno lesley]

I have estrogel and utrogestan 25 days out of 28. This is my fifth attempt at hrt and has been the best for me. I think the good thing about estrogel is that you can tweak the dosage to suit. I am 55 and have sort of settled on one and a half pumps. I am not symptom free but am a hundred times better than I was when all this meno craziness kicked off.

Hope all goes well for you.

Lesley x

[ellie66]

Thanks Lesley dying to try it! I start next Thurs when I finish the current pack of Femston. My old GP was on the ball to prescribe Femston as I am progesteron intolerant and prone to PMT from what I read though Ultrogeston and Estrogel is the best in my circumstances.

I will keep updating this thread to let everyone know how I am getting on. Looking at Ultrogestan they are huge to swallow they look more like pessaries to me!   

[devonhil]

hello ellie66!

At the risk of sounding like 'single white female' we could be twins! I'm also 47, have been perimenopausal for around 4 years (shortly after the birth of my youngest son). I am also keen to start the same regime of Estrogel and Utrogestan as I really want to use bioidentical hormones rather than synthetic. I've read that lots of women who are intolerant to progestins have no problem with progesterone in it's bioidentical/natural form so fingers crossed for you.

I've got an appointment at the doctors a week Saturday so hoping they will prescribe them. They are both on the NHS I hope?

Looking forward to learning how you get on - good luck swallowing the Ultrogestan!

hil x

[ellie66]

Ha, we are the same I will keep these thread we can compare notes!  Yes they are both available on the NHS. If your GP queries it the NHS price is the about same as patches. I checked GP have to keep their Prescribing Dictators happy whoops sorry I meant "Advisors" 

I am extremely fortunate my GP is colleague and he took me on as a patient as my medical history is quite complex so he is fully supportive. We are learning together.

I am starting on 3 pumps of estrogel a day I was on 2/10 Femston and still have the odd hot flush several times a week. I am also fairly progesteron intolerant so this is the gold standard HRT regime for me 

[devonhil]

hi again,

thanks for replying so quickly 

It's really useful to have the info on prices. I might not have any problems with my GP prescribing it but so many women on this board have had nightmares over prescriptions so I want to be prepared just in case! I'm going to the one female post-menopause doctor at my practice so I'm hoping she'll be sympathetic.

How do you take them - is is continuous or in some kind of cycle?

hil x

[devonhil]

Lesley,

it's so good to hear that the bioidenticals are working better for you than other treatments.

Why do you have a 3 day break? I really am new to all this so am full of questions!

I hadn't really thought about how flexible the gel was - it's great that you can adjust it so easily. Do you find that you can work out how much you need and adjust it on a daily basis?

hil x

[ellie66]

Hi HIl,

My understanding is you take estrogel everyday and ultragestan from days 15 to 26. You can split when use estrogel to say half the dose in the morning and half in the evening.

[meno lesley]

Hi Hil

I am post meno so take utrogestan 25 days out of 28, I think some women get a tiny bleed on that 3 days but I never have.  I have played about with the dose of estrogel but put one and a half on first thing. I did try splitting it between the morning and evening but was all over the show. I found the tablets upset my tummy so the gel put a stop to all that.

Lesley x

[ellie66]

I am perimenpausal so etsrogel every day of a 28 day cycle and ultrageston from days 15-26 inclusive

[ellie66]

Hil,

I have done a separate post on this but the is cost of various forms of HRT from the GP prescribing bible MIMS. Our Oestogel is £4.80 and Ultragestan £5.13 a total of £9.93 versus FemSeven Sequi at £13.18. Hehehehe we are saving the NHS money 

I have an NHS/Pharmacology background hence why I know MIMS is the GP prescribing bible 

[Hurdity]

Hi ellie66

Sounds good to me. I presume it's 200 mg dose you have been given?

ellie - yes the capsules are quite large but smaller than some cod liver oil ones that people take! I use them vaginally because I've had a nil-by-mouth approach to HRT, but if you are OK taking them orally - you should be OK. However the cyclical dose - of 200 mg per day taken orally might give you too high a daily spike in progesterone if you are prog intolerant - but just try it and see how you get on.

One option in these circumstances - instead of using them vaginally is to split the daily dose and take 2 x 100 mg twice a day - but I don't know anyone who has done this.

See how you get on first and then there are other ways to tinker with the dose! So glad you have a lovely GP - it is so important to be supported in our journey!

Good luck and keep us posted with your progress.

Also just for info in case anyone else is reading make sure you ask for the correctly spelt product which is Utrogestan. Some doctors haven't heard of it but it is listed as "Micronised progesterone" rather than the brand name, in some of the books.

Hurdity x

[ellie66]

Ha thanks I have been spelling it wrong yes its the 200mg I have been given they are huge. Think I may try them vaginally they look more like pessaries to me  Hurdity I shall keep this thread to chart my progress I start using the Oestrogel next Thurs can't wait to try it