Peri- needing to whinge! Up and down even trying HRT

Women's health
1

Hi Girls smile

It's been nearly a month since I've been on here, I didn't feel too bad up to two weeks ago as I started with and AD on the 29.1 and two weeks later aded HRT Femoston Conti 1/ 5mg to it. By March I suddently feelt a bit better, still small hick ups but not AS bad...Until about 10 days before the anticipated break of HRT (I got prescribed a contineous one even though I'm not 1 year without bleeding, but have gotten PMS so my Doc decided to have Oestrogen and Prog. daily and then do a 4 days break for bleed and restart again). I started to feel down the dumps again, weird thoughts, sluggish, like bit in la la land not quite here etc. Then stopped the HRT got my bleed and yes no improvment.

Soooo I started Femoston 2/10 because I felt that the break is not doing me any good at all and the Prog part probably with 5 mg was too low...

Anyhow, still not feeling any better sad Mainly mentally really, sort of doom and gloom thinking, bit spacey and gosh I'm tiiiiirrreeed, I could sleep so much its not funny! I think it's a mix of depressive and anxiety again, as I do have these doom gloom thoughts all is sh*t sorta thing...

I used to be really bad in November- January so I had to do something. I am 41 years old, and my FSH was postmenopausal already 2 years ago. I used to be on Lexapro AD for Anxiety (obviously didnt make the connectiong between Peri and Anxiety as by that time I didnt even knew I was peri or that a FSH of 110 is postmeno (i started to skip periods then).

Last year June even though on Lexapro I totally "lost" the plot, as in couldnt think straight, confused, cotton wool brain etc so I thought thats it, its Lexapro's fault and I weaned myself off it. Then was without for a few months in which of course things didnt get any better. It ended up me being nearly agrophobic, not wanting to leave the house, waking up each morning at 5 am with heart racing and weird thinking, not able to go back to sleep. Hot and cold sensations, feeling feverish etc. Being self employed it started to affect my business as yes I really couldnt do work like that.

I was in the ER once that time as I had 3 days straight very bad heart palpations and they asked if I was on HRT? Nope...

So during that time it dawned to me that I am actually perimenopausal and not that early into it either, we did a few blood tests and my Prog was down to 1, my Estrogen gone by November down to 80. Although in December it jumped up as my Ovaries found some sort of half decent follicle again.

Anyhows I think, supsect that after my good period I had in March (before that I had just light ones)  my Estrogen is on the downer again hence I might feel that spacey, crapey?

I am a bit at loss now, should I up the AD (Paxil, 20 mg atm), should I stay on Femoston 2/10 for a few months, should I go back to Femston Conti 1/5 where I have the prog part daily? I think my Prog. is a problem for me personally, as I remember during pregnancy I felt the best I ever have (they say thats when you have lots of progesterone) and once I needed a pill after, which is high Progesterone too, and I feelt great on that! - so perhaps I do need Progesterone on a continueous basis, but more than the 5 mg of the Conti, and not 10 mg just for 14 days....

Anyhow, I just needed to vent, as feeling rather blah at the moment again sad - This meno sucks!

2

Hi Manuela,

I am on HRT and have tried 3 different ones before I found details about the Oestrogel and Utrogestan (progesterone). My own cycle used to be 25 days and has been for a very long time. All the othe HRT which I have tried were all based on 14 oestrogen and 14 days of both oestrogen and progesterone. I used to find that on day 9-10 I would feel the brewing up for my period, so I never really found any relief from these types as I always ended up adding serenity progesterone creams for these days until I reached day 15 when the combination of both hormones were added.

After months of scanning sites to do with menopause I finally found a HRT which might up end suiting my own personal cycle.

Oestrogel you use daily and you add the Utrogestan from days 15-26, again tried this and some months I was ok but this week I started feeling out of source before I was due to add the Utrogestan so I again I added the serenity progesterone cream for two days and then started the Utrogestan earlier than prescribed and felt loads better and the next day I felt a little out source again so rather than the usual 2 pumps of Oestrogel I decided to increase to 3 pumps and bingo I am back feeling good again. Sleeping better, no anxious feeling, no heart palpitations, no hot feeling, no tummy issues and even sinus are feeling better.

My meno specialist said that I have agreat GP to prescribe this "Gold Standard " HRT for me as its the most natural of hormones to our own and the one with the fewest of risk! The good thing for me is that I can tweak it when I feel the need and it will be the easiest to come off when the need arises as I can just start reducing the amount gel applied each day, unlike the tablets and patches which will be much harder to achieve  without getting recurring symptoms. 

Have a a look on the web to find out more for yourself and went into my GP armed with my find and she was happy for me try this! 

Good of luck with your own journey and do hope that you find a new way of coping with journey too. Remember most of your issues will be peri related and once you get some balance once again all the symptoms that have only come a long since you perhaps started this peri journey will disappear as quickly as they arrived.

massive hugs to you ️xxx Joy

3

Oh manuela!

So sorry for you!

How I wish I could give you a big hug. This does get tiresome at times......thinking we've found a way to stablise only to feel out of sorts again. I've been there.....I honestly think this is a hit or miss thing and we (as hard as it is to feel it right now-please just  fake it to you feel it. Try and over ride those ugly low thoughts. They aren't permanent, yet for the moment they feel like it.

Not sure what combo will work for you, but just know, we're here for you and consider yourself hugged by me, as I know how frustrating this can get dear!

Annie XXxxx

4

Its up to you and what works with you I know what works with me and my menopause stuff

5

Thanks ladies for your answers

I shortcut the Estrogen Part by 4 days now and do feel a bit better, sounds like we need a bit more regular Progesterone Joy I wonder if perhaps it be ok to have Progesterone on the first 14 day's just on a lower dose too, as the contineous HRT is giving, but withouth having to stop all the hormones for 4-5 days for the bleed...

We don't get the Utrogestan here in Australia but i could perhaps get it done up via Comp. Pharmacy, we only get the synthetic Progestins off the shelf

Symptoms wise as in body I do feel better since on HRT, at least i don't wake up anymore on time each 5 am, the palpations have gone too, the warm sensations (flushes) aren't as previvalent anymore, on occasion I get a day but I used to get them daily and alternating hot + cold plus utterly exhaustion after with falling a sleep rigth there and then. Now I get warm/sweaty and thats it, and not each day either.

But those doom gloom bad off the plotter thoughts and feeling out of sink,they are still around, and I also have music stuck in my head. I find these mental symptoms the worst of them all,  mind you I'm also on a new AD for it and still get them.. (((

Going to see my Doc next week so might even look also in the Gel variation of HRT I read that oral at times is poorly absorbed so maybe transdermal delievery is better for me as well.

Big hugs to you ladies too xoxoxox

 

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Hi Manuela,

Its so tiring this journey isn't it?

My first experience of this journey was when I had missed my first period but at that time I was fine well until I did start brewing up for the next one and my doom and gloom lasted for two weeks, had nausea, loss of appetite, didn't want to leave the house. Even though I help run our business I couldn't face going into our office and face our staff so stayed out of the way, but once my period arrived I went back to feeling like my normal happy self. Doctors at the time tried to make me feel that I needed help and offered counselloring and offered me ADs. I did decline both because I didn't feel that I really had a problem of constant anxiety only cycled driven.  Since this time I have read and learnt so much that it's probably peri anxiety and nothing more and my hormones are out of balance, and when they are both in balance I feel great! 

Regarding the doom and gloom I have recently seen a homeopatiic who prescribed a remedy cause Ignatia and took this back in Feb and to be honest even though I have had times of feeling flat due to the PMT I haven't  had any worrying thoughts! It's all harmless to take so may be worth reading up on that. I certainly very skeptical before but did start to feel loads brighter and balanced. Massive hugs and Happy Easter to you and your family xxxx Joy 😝

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Sure is Joy

With me I actualy didnt realize that I was in the change until June last year. But I must have been in peri for years already but thought it was just me being a bit loony due to very stressful life cirucmtances (I moved from Switzerland to Australia in 2006 and after 9 months my ex did a runner with our son and I was basically on my own and had to fight with court to get my son back). I was on Lexapro that time (AD) and on occasion I started to skip a period , I thought it was the AD as I read up it can happen (I would been around the 35 at the time) . I also started to get one or two black hairs around my nipples which I found strange but did not make the connection between hormones and that, I guess being so young it didnt even cross my mind! Over the years I started to get PMS and even the lexapro did nothing for that, I never had PMS before, or problems with my periods, they where always on time and no drama associated with it. I just put it on "age" lol but not peri! - In 2011 I think it was I had a scan of my breasts as I had implants and a capsular problem and they told me I had cysts. Just like that....In 2012 my period really gotten out of wack , as in 3-4 months nothing so I went to the gp and we did a bloodtest and it showed an FSH of 110 which is already postmenopausal.   Long story short I had also a uterine Polyp and my Prog. was gone. Hence I guess the cysts, the PMS, the Polyp.  I must been Estrogen Dominant for years. In June last year constant problems started, with brain fog, doom gloom, feeling utterly crap to put it bluntly. Having had a few bloodtest my Estrogen dropped by November to 80...IBut to  top it off, I had another bloodtest in December and it gone up to 680 again! A doc told me that it can happen when the ovaries release a a half decent follice again as that is what rises then the estrogen. I had a real period (the last few ones where just spotting or very light for one day) in March and since then all goes a bit down again, so I think reason for that is that my estrogen has or is again dropping to where it was before the rise because of that folilcle.  Last night I cut my Pill in half as I usually take it at night but had yesterday hot sensations again and was blah  so I read one can spread it over day and night. Woke up at 5 am sweating and wet Beats me a bit perhaps I need to go on the patch or the gel for a more consistant delivery....I will have to talk with the GP about  that.

Thank you for the tip re Ignatia, I certainly will read it up! Anything that may help

Happy Easter to you and your family too xoxox

8

Hi Manuela,

Like you I may have been suffering without at the time put the connection as only ever put hot flushes, dry vagina, and period becoming irregular. I had a miscarriage 6 years ago and was dignosed with PSOC again without any real symptoms.

I am so sorry that you have had such sad time with your son and no wonder you were so bady effected and that your ex did what he did. My son was enticed by my ex to go and live with him at the age of 11 but what saddened me that my own my Mum him to do this. ( I have never really got over this) and even though my son is 23 now and we are both so close I truly believe he has been effected by my exes actions. Children love both of their parents and I will never really understand why my ex did this as he was the person who broke up our marriage with his affair and I guess when I met my current husband my ex realized that there was no going back ( long story) and screwed up so the only way to get back at me was via our son! 

My trial and errors of HRT I guess have not really made things completely better but to be honest the current one is the most flexible and the most natural one to our own hormones which I can tweak when the need arises.

My nice lady GP did say to me the other month that when my anxiety gets bad I would be low on oestrogen but I still am confused because why was it those times when I had been brewing up 2 weeks before my period had arrived with really bad lowness and doom and gloom to me that would have said I was low on progesterone and not Oestrogen. I was never really that interested in science when I was growing up (I sure wish I had been) coz now I wouldn't feel so out of my depth.

I must be honest if you can get hold the Oestrogel and Utrogestan then you may find things do improve for you. With the gel you start with 2-4 pumps daily and then you add the utrogestan from day 15 (but in my case I think I should add it sometimes from day 11-22/23 to perhaps get back to my old period route and hopefully by doing this will give fewer symptoms.

Good luck with your appointment with your GP and let me know how you get on.

Joy xxx☀️☀️🌹

9

Your mum sounds a bit like mine, how could she do that.....I and mine are not going on well with each other, I firmly believe she suffers a narcisstic personality disorder, so does my ex, as boths behaviour and acts are defs not what is considered normal and acceptable...

Sounds like your ex has some sort of control/ power problem as well....

I am not sure what causes the PMS I thought it was more the lack of progesterone, isn't progesterone more anxiety and the doom / gloom (depressive) the estrogen? Normally in the second half of the cycle the progesterone rises and estrogen falls eventually both fall (menstruation) and then estrogen starts to rise. The way I understand is, and my bloodtest confirmed that, progesterone depletes first, estrogen declines later in peri.

I'm confused myself at the moment to be honest Since the PMS before my last period (in March ) started I haven't feelt really right again. I think my estrogen just gone downhill again since my (heavy) period then...as it used to be very low in November before in December/ January my ovaries found they had to releaes some more folicles again.

Feeling suppppppeeer tired recently, I can get up at 7/8 and by 1 pm I feel like a nap which ends in 2-3 hours sleep! At night I sleep but do wake up 2-3 times, and fall back to sleep again. No energy again at all either which I had before my period in March for at least 3 weeks! Feeling little "tingle" sensations again also in my forearms and face so I dare say my estrogen said "bye bye"!

I agree the HRT you have is at least adjustable, if you feel not quite right you can add or take less, depending on symptoms! How much Oestrogel is 2-4 pumps? I am taking the 2 mg estradiol femoston version, but perhaps my body is not utilizing the estradiol good...I have a very fast metabolism so it wouldnt suprise me if thats to why I don't really feel that good....(mind you I'm also on 20 mg paroxetine! wouldnt want to know how I would feel without it!)

I will certainly let you know how I go with also my GP I am going to suggest him the Gel version or otherwise the Estradot Patch (for at least consistent delievery!) , seeing what he has to say for the Progesterone as we do not get Utrogestan here in Australia Was even thinking perhaps the Mirena as that be constant 24/ 7 Progesterone, and where it is needed, in the Uterus. Could be worth a try also....

Manuela xoxox