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[Hurdity]

As there has been lots of interest in and support for a thread about alternatives to HRT and personal experiences so I decided to start one!  Many women are unable to take HRT for a variety of reasons and my heart goes out to anyone who is suffering from unpleasant symptoms and cannot use HRT. If I was in this position I would be looking around for any alternatives that I could lay my hands on! I don't consider it to be my thread but just thought I'd start the ball rolling.......

The best place to start to find out about alternative remedies and treatments is on this website:

http://www.menopausematters.co.uk/remedies.php
http://www.menopausematters.co.uk/phytoestrogens.php
http://www.menopausematters.co.uk/otherpreps.php

There is a warning at the start of the page which says this:

Some women choose to avoid HRT and prefer to use more "Natural "methods to deal with menopausal symptoms. Although this may be effective it is not an entirely risk free approach and little information is available about the effectiveness of preparations.

And this:

The use of alternative therapies is a hugely expanding market. Try to ensure that the products you take are actually doing you some good and their planned effects are not overlapping - thus wasting money.

There is a really good NHS information leaflet on this site too, produced by Dumfries and Galloway Menopause Clinic entitled "Alternatives to HRT"
(updated link below)
https://www.womens-health-concern.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/03-WHC-FACTSHEET-Complementary-And-Alternative-Therapies-FEB2021.pdf

As for my own experiences - well I knew very little about menopause. I thought it would be a few hot flushes, a few missed periods, then - they would stop and magically all my symptoms would disappear and I could continue as before - but with no periods!! Hurrah!

When the hot flushes started to appear I ate huge amounts of food high in phyto-oestrogens   soya and various seeds, which I sprinkled on my muesli, onto salads, and made delicious phyto-oestrogen cake  - recipe courtesy of a friend of mine. This was an attempt to boost my flagging oestrogen levels. It certainly improved my diet but had interesting effects on my digestion - since someone told me that linseed is not digested, so I ground them up! All these seeds contain all sorts of concentrated beneficial nutrients so I knew it would be doing me good anyway. I don't eat quite so many seeds now but still include some nuts of different kinds and some seeds in my diet regularly  .

Another friend swore by Black Cohosh so I invested in 6 months supply and off I went. It seemed that they worked - and if you had asked me at the time I would have said they did - so maybe they did? However what I didn't realise either (because I hadn't read about it then) was that my hormone levels were going up and down and when the flushes stopped I had another period or two - so who knows whether it was my own hormones coming into play? There are mixed results (from trials) as to its effectiveness and little information on long term safety - and that especially worried me. It was a natural product - which I liked, but I was concerned about using a herbal product like this over a long period of time. I don't think I used it for longer than 6 months.

After a while and my periods stopped for much longer (5 months) I was working in a job where I had lots of meetings and including with younger men  and it became embarrassing to keep flinging off cardigans as well as going absolutely beetroot in the process of having a hot flush. Added to that I was getting no sleep and couldn't function properly - also still had two boys in early secondary school - so reluctantly at the time (I so wanted to do it naturally) I went onto HRT (the most natural type that I could find ie bio-identical preparations) and have been on it ever since. However I still eat a good diet and follow many of the recommendations in the leaflet on this site (link above).

I realised after the event that maybe whatever I had tried during peri-menopause might or might not have worked depending on what my hormones were doing, but perhaps wish I had read a bit more at the time so that I knew what was happening to me.

That's my story and some information.  Hope some of you find it helpful - especially newbies!  . Have you had tried remedies like this and what have your experiences been?

Hurdity x

[CLKD]

Before I realised that I was headed towards menopause but knowing it was on the horizon, I bought bread for a while but it didn't keep …… had seeds in but memo-brain - can't remember the name  : tasty enough but I'm not a bread lover.
Linseed was supposedly 'good' to use but found it hard to grind up! and the oil was  so that went onto the compost. Used to improve my overall intake rather than instead of ……….

I think ladies find some herbals helpful initially but because hormones are up and down, those helpful effects don't last long!

[Cazikins]

8 years ago I tried a product called Femal:

"Femal, a herbal remedy made from pollen extracts, reduces hot flushes and improves quality of life in menopausal women."

It worked ok for about 3 months but then stopped, it was becoming a very expensive way to deal with the flushes etc so I went on HRT.

[honorsmum]

I took Menopace for a while a couple of months ago. Because you are meant to take it with your evening meal, and it's full of vitamins, I found it did nothing for my insomnia!
What has helped, I think, is taking magnesium citrate half an hour before bed. I am sleeping much better since I started taking it.

[honorsmum]

I've posted this on the anxiety thread, but here's other things I've tried that seem to have helped -

Various supplements - fish , vitamins D3, C, B complex, probiotics ( not specifically for peri symptoms), iron.
Exercise - I try to walk my dogs every day.
Baths - lavender, and Epsom salts.
Sleeping - trying to be in bed and asleep before 11pm.
Mindfulness meditation.

[Briony]

I'm one of the unlucky ones who spent hundreds on alternative therapies and supplements, with minimal  effect (beyond my bank balance). The only thing which has noticeably made a difference is HRT. That's not to say everyone is the same though and I remain open minded.

One thing I did do was alter my daily multi vitamin to one without vitamin A and this seems to have slightly helped with my hair shedding. It was a friend who suggested it. Being in peri menopause, I also take a post pregnancy multi vitamin rather than one targeted at those at menopause (same company makes them) . The reason for this was that, from what I could tell, the contents suited my needs - as an active vegetarian with crazy hormones rather than no hormones - more than the one for slightly later in life. Only recently swapped so early days ...

Finally, I should add that is it could be worth having your current levels checked out professionally before self supplementing. I was convinced I had low vitamin B12 and/or iron and supplemented both. When I later had my blood tested, the doctor said he'd never seen such high levels and suggested I switched to a general multi vitamin rather than targeting single vitamins which, on occasions, could do more harm than good. My diet was better than I had realised (though I was found to be deficient in vitamin D which is in my new multi vit - probably because I don't like much sun!).

Will be interesting to hear what others have tried,

B x

[toffeecushion]

and made delicious phyto-oestrogen cake  - recipe courtesy of a friend of mine.

Could you share the recipe please

[Dancinggirl]

I would absolutely agree with honorsmum's list - definitely front line strategies to try to maintain in the long term as well.
I would add - 'be organised'. I find being on top of things helps to reduce my stress and anxiety.  Piles of things that need filing and sorting, a cluttered house that is difficult to clean, not being able to find things when I need to, all add my stress and I can quickly become overwhelmed.  My husband and I have become very minimalist and want to make life simpler. If problems arise I want to be able to deal with things efficiently, quickly and easily and being organised can really help.
Try to do a wardrobe edit once a year.  Chuck out those old garments made of artificial fabrics which you can't wear any more and buy some cotton/linen layers that are more comfortable.
DG x

[honorsmum]

I'm one of the unlucky ones who spent hundreds on alternative therapies and supplements, with minimal  effect (beyond my bank balance). The only thing which has noticeably made a difference is HRT. That's not to say everyone is the same though and I remain open minded.

One thing I did do was alter my daily multi vitamin to one without vitamin A and this seems to have slightly helped with my hair shedding. It was a friend who suggested it. Being in peri menopause, I also take a post pregnancy multi vitamin rather than one targeted at those at menopause (same company makes them) . The reason for this was that, from what I could tell, the contents suited my needs - as an active vegetarian with crazy hormones rather than no hormones - more than the one for slightly later in life. Only recently swapped so early days ...

Finally, I should add that is it could be worth having your current levels checked out professionally before self supplementing. I was convinced I had low vitamin B12 and/or iron and supplemented both. When I later had my blood tested, the doctor said he'd never seen such high levels and suggested I switched to a general multi vitamin rather than targeting single vitamins which, on occasions, could do more harm than good. My diet was better than I had realised (though I was found to be deficient in vitamin D which is in my new multi vit - probably because I don't like much sun!).

Will be interesting to hear what others have tried,

B x

The problem with having levels tested is that the accepted "normal"  range can be wide, and "normal" can be a long way from optimal. So, for example, the start of the "normal" range for B12 in the UK is very much lower than, say, Japan - which means a lot of people complaining of the symptoms of B12 deficiency are considered to be "normal" and not being treated.
Also, the standard B12 test only shows what's in your blood stream - not what's being absorbed. So, as a sufferer of Crohn's, my B12 may well not be absorbed but still show as ok in tests. An active B12 test is more accurate - but not generally offered on the NHS.

[honorsmum]

I would absolutely agree with honorsmum's list - definitely front line strategies to try to maintain in the long term as well.
I would add - 'be organised'. I find being on top of things helps to reduce my stress and anxiety.  Piles of things that need filing and sorting, a cluttered house that is difficult to clean, not being able to find things when I need to, all add my stress and I can quickly become overwhelmed.  My husband and I have become very minimalist and want to make life simpler. If problems arise I want to be able to deal with things efficiently, quickly and easily and being organised can really help.
Try to do a wardrobe edit once a year.  Chuck out those old garments made of artificial fabrics which you can't wear any more and buy some cotton/linen layers that are more comfortable.
DG x

Yes, yes, yes!
Nothing stresses me more than feeling like I'm not on top of things. It's further complicated by having young children, one of whole has ADHD and not only creates more chaos and stress, but needs routine and order.
Hubby and I had a rather heated "discussion" about this very subject last night.

[Briony]

I totally agree Honorsmum, and nearly added a similar 'caution' to my own message. That said, when I stopped taking such a high dose, I noticed the tingling in my fingers reduced. Ironically, that was one of the things I had been taking it for!  x

[Briony]

This made me laugh (re organisation and being on top of things) as whenever I am very stressed or have a hard decision to make, I need the house tidied from top to toe before I can think straight. My partner really does not get this!      x

[honorsmum]

This made me laugh (re organisation and being on top of things) as whenever I am very stressed or have a hard decision to make, I need the house tidied from top to toe before I can think straight. My partner really does not get this!      x

That's me to a T!!

[Millykin]

 
Me too!
My hubby wouldn't bother living in a "lived in home " but me I just can't stand it, need a clear house and mind. I've even sent him up the loft to clear out and make sure it's tidy, it upsets my feng shui or whatever it's called x

[purplenanny]

This made me laugh (re organisation and being on top of things) as whenever I am very stressed or have a hard decision to make, I need the house tidied from top to toe before I can think straight. My partner really does not get this!      x

Finally, someone else! I am just the same and hubby thinks I am mad