My doctor must be distracted half the time. I let him know that I wanted blood work done because I'm starting menopause and having a lot of uncomfortable symptoms, wanted hormone levels tested so he would know what to recommend. After I had the bloodwork done he called to announce "your test results show your starting to go through the change"....🙄 Brilliant-- I tell him yes, I was aware, if he recalled that I had let him know I was in menopause and that's why I wanted my hormones tested. His response was that "your hormones confirm your going through the change"😖 Again, I state yes I realize that, could he go over the levels with me, and he said ok, well your estrogen is low. So, I can give you antidepressants... It was like pulling teeth-- having to explain what I thought already did, that I wanted to understand my hormone levels and how could he address that so I can feel better. He finally said ok he could prescribe Premarin...
is that all I needed to be tested for is low estrogen?? I thought there were other hormones and things to test for in order to best know how to address the symptoms-- but I don't know.. did he cover it pretty adequately?
Doesn't sound very thorough and be aware that a lot of GPS dont even know what to look for or how to read results properly. My doctor only works with hormones both women and men and my first blood work was..
Sodium
Potassium
Chloride
Bicarbonate
Urea
Creatine
Egfr
Ur ate
Calcium
Adj. Can
Phosphate
T. Protein
Albumin
Globulin
ALP
GGT
AST
ALT
LD
Bulirubin
Glucose
Cholesterol
That was my first lot of testing and he also got previous blood work to make comparisons. I'v since had 2 more lots of blood work to track my progress on bio identical hormones. Hope this helps.
Oh wow that is a lot! Did he explain what all of those mean? It took me prodding him to finally cough up just a simple "your estrogens low... do you want antidepressants?" What kind of doctor do you have that did all that and did he just do it or did you somehow know what to request??
He went through some of it with me. Obviously estrogen, progesterone, testosterone & thyroid, liver function, etc. The stuff I'd understand. My boyfriend put me onto him. He treats complex metabolic disorders. Peri/post meno, infertility, menstrual disorders, chronic tiredness, pcos, erectile disfunction plus others. He's in his mid sixties and is a gp/surgeon but started doing hormones probably 20 years ago now he one of the best. It isn't just about how much estrogen you have its ultimately about having your hormones balanced and from what i'v learnt so far its incredibly complicated. I have very high estrogen and testosterone but my body fat is very low and I show no physical signs of my estrogen being high. For me it showed itself as severe mood & emotional problems and explains problems i'v had for a long time. Without a doctor who Understands so much about women's hormones I don't know where I'd be right now.
Hi Azzumi, your issues sound similar to mine as I've always had high estrogen except when I was breast feeding, and then I actually felt great, so the whole 'low estrogen' issue doesn't seem to apply to me, what bio identicals did they recommend for you??I think it must be something to do with the balance...I'm getting my hormones tested next week but if you could pm me the details of your doctor if they are in the U.K. That would be useful thanks
I'm currently on oral progesterone only. I have it in a troche each morning plus i'v been on myomin an estrogen aromatase for a few months and currently on dim anti estrogen. Once my cycle stops completely I'll go back onto a combination troche of all three hormones and stay on for life. I'm 7 months into BHRT and feeling a lot more balanced. I'v had emotional and mood problems on and off since I was a young teenager but Peri took it to a whole new level and it scared me to death. I live in Australia but I'm sure if you search the internet you could find someone similar where you live. Be interested to hear when you find someone.
The language/terminology to all this hormonal imbalance stuff is quite complicated, along with complicated medical terminology many people won't understand. At best, if your doctor is a gynecologist, he/she would ask or suggest putting you on HRT or BHRT or BCP's or give you the option to alternative medicine if you refuse.
My doctor suggested I try medicine to help stop my crying with bcp's , and gabapentin for my hot flashes,which worked for the time I took it, I spent tons of money on other stuff that didn't work too. Black Cohosh, & Estroven were total scams. I took Sage, that worked really well, but it made me sick. Maca, works great, Don Quai was excellent, Chia & Flax seeds are excellent, I also took Flax seed oil. I also took a vegetarian multivitamin, extra Vitamin D3, Vitamin C and ate lots of yams, since they were also recommended by my doctor. I bought progesterone cream that worked the first time but not the second time around. I was given antidepressants, but my body screamed traitor, so I stopped it. Listen to your body cells, send them positive affirmations, tell them it's just your estrogen that everything's going to be alright. Feed them yam's. This will help a lot. Depending on your symptoms I can suggest some herbals I took, that helped. But without knowing your symptoms, it would be hard to say what to suggest. If interested let me know or send me a pm. Best of luck.
Hi this is really interesting, I'm trying maca at the moment after 18 months on estrogel, which worked at first and then stopped. Hormones have been all over the place since coming off it but I'm hoping the maca will help to balance things out - you said it worked for you social is there any reason you stopped it?
Danielle,
You are correct your doctor seems slightly uninterested. But something I really recommend is that you request a copy of your labs be mailed to your home address. You paid for those labs and you should have that record for your files.
Premarin is the standard go to. Can I presume that you had a hysterectomy? You can't take Premarin (estrogen only) if you still have a uterus.
danielle35642,
I think you have done more homework than your doctor and do know your body better and when it doesn't feel right. You are wise to be asking your doctor to run blood work and question the results. It is a shame that so many doctors don't know what their doing and prescribe anti depressants for women that are really not depressed at all they just want relief from the awful menopause symptoms caused by declining hormones in our bodies. The next mistake they make in my opinion is prescribing premarin. This is a synthetic form of estrogen that really does not belong in a womans body. Not sure if many women read what premarin is. It comes from pregnant horse urine. Yes you heard that right. Doctors still prescribe this stuff knowing the effects it had on countless women years ago and instead of taking it off the market they just lowered the milligrams and dosing of it. I would strongly recommend seeing a qualified doctor that will run many many things in your blood work and take the time to explain what your numbers are. They will put you on exactly what your body needs, not a one size fits all deal. They will moniter you regularly through lab work and your symptoms. My personal opinion is only bio identical hormone replacement . Read up on the premarin. Its no wonder so many women don't get good results through hormone treatment. Its just not done properly. I've been on bio identical hormone transdermal creams for almost 2 years. Estriol, Estrodial, Testosterone and Progesterone. Women need testosterone too as it declines and really can make a difference in our well being, I Turned 57 this year and in full menopause over 2 years. I feel great. A good qualified doctor will no doubt put you on various supplements to compliment your hormone replacement too. You can't put a price on good health and happiness at this point in our lives. Many women shy away from paying out of pocket because typical insurance does not cover bio identical hormones or alternative doctors and initially it can be pricey but once you know what you need it is very affordable. Best decision I made at this point in my life. Good luck.
I completely agree with everything you said. My doctor uses blood work plus my symptoms to workout what hormones to give me. My visits are a little costly but my BHRT works out at $7.00 per week which is incredibly good value. I think we need to be patient with BHRT as it isn't always a quick fix and I found it took longer than expected each change my doctor has made for the hormones to really get in to my system. In saying all that its been worth every cent and every bit of effort to finally start to feel good. My doctor truly saved me and believe BHRT is the only real fix for a lot of women.
Gailannie,
I didn't have a hysterectomy so now I'm confused. Is this correct it should only be given if you have had a hyst?? This gp doctor I thought was fairly good but come to think of it he was good up until the point my health needs became more than just a flu or allergic rash--- this hormone thing I realized how he is either apathetic or really underinformed and out of the loop on how hormones work and should be tested/ treated. I didn't know if I should laugh or feel upset when he called to announce my test results-- I had already told him I was starting menopause and that's why I wanted my hormone levels tested. When he called to tell me the results I thought he would be going over all that was tested and explain the different levels etc but all he said at first was "your test results show that your going through the change"
Danielle, my mom and I were both given Premarin cream and I've never had a hysterectomy. My mom didn't take anything with the Premarin either. My doctor, owns an all women's clinic, who sees about 100 women a day, would never make such a mistake knowing all too well I also worked in Ob/Gyn as a Doctor's Assistant in giving me or my mom medication that wasn't suited for us. If you were given the Premarin pill, then request for Premarin cream and forget about taking it. There are better alternatives than taking the pill for which was never offered to my mother who had a partial hysterectomy.
Danielle, Premarin is a synthetic estrogen. As I read back through your posts, you didn't mention how you were given Premarin. A pill, or a vaginal cream? Dosage? Women who still have a uterus are given Prempro, which is a combination of synthetic estrogen plus a progestin, which protects the lining of the uterus from over growing. This is why I assumed you'd had your uterus removed, because it was learned decades ago that menopausal women with a uterus needed both the estrogen and progesterone for uterus protection.
So true Azzumi. The cost of BHRT is cheaper than a dinner for 2 every month. Very affordable. I feel the same way about my doctor. Saved me from a lot of grief in this stage of my life.
Hi Azzumi, can you let me know which progesterone you are on and how much each day? I was taking ultrogestan which I noticed really helped, so I starred taking it every day at 100mg / day, but after a week and a half my symptoms would come back again so I think that might have been too much...?
I have mine made by a compound pharmacist as a troche. 200mg each morning and it dissolves under my tongue.
Thanks Azzumi, I'm seeeing a bio identical specialist on Tuesday in London who has had great reviews so I'm praying that will help, though not convinced the blood work will show anything so trying to identify my symptoms and when they occur - typically I have always felt worse post period which always confused me, as all the medical explanations are focussed on pre menstral problems, but i think you mentioned you also had this?? Sorry to keep bugging you! But I've been on bio oestrogen before which didn't work so hoping for an alternative thanks
Don't mind you bugging me..I feel worse post too. I hardly bleed now but I still go through a cycle and post I tend to get agitated and feel low. It isn't bad anymore but I can still feel it. The person you're going to see if they're really good, will know what's going on through blood work and symptoms. You tend to know first visit if you trust them enough. That's a big part of all this as I found out it can be tricky and take time for even an expert to sort things out. You'll know when you meet them. I did as soon as I met my doctor the first time he would fix me..please let me know how you go.
Karen, I was taking a lot of different things at the time, that once I ran out, something else would pop up, & I'd buy something else for that symptom or take a prescription my doctor would suggest. The Maca worked for my hot flashes such that once they went away there was no reason to buy it again. Sage worked really well too but I broke out in hives due to being allergic to Sage. Chia I found was excellent for hormones, and eating yams too. Some women I know swear by the Maca for hormone & hot flash balance, but with me, I would have one symptom at a time. Let me know how it's working for you. Hugs.