I've been on Evorel 50 patches and utrogestan tablets which I take for 14 days of the month and then I have a bleed.
I have been on it for roughly 4 months now.
It has stopped my sweats which is brilliant.
However I am very wound up like I'm stuck on autofast. Have a racing heart with palpitations which I am now on a low dose of beta blocker(propranolol) My doctor said my pulse rate was 127bpm which I knew. My whole body including my ears buzz all the time. I don't sleep well even though I must be shattered. It just feels like loads of adrenaline. It's really horrible. I take Sertraline for anxiety already. Been on it 3 years. All this seems different. I have read up a lot on too much estrogen or too much progesterone .I am 46 and have been going through all the horrible peri symptoms badly for 8 months. The anxiety and racing thoughts are terrible. Could the HRT not be balanced?
I am going to the doctor AGAIN tomorrow or Thursday. They always pass it off as me being anxious.
HI Michelle, from my experience being on HRT 7 months. It makes me calm and no anxiety. I take progesterone 100 mg and estrogel .06 bioidentical which is better for you. The dose is to high. Tell your Dr your symptoms and the other medicatons you are taking. You should take the medication before going to bed as well. I hope this helps.
Something seems to high. I take low doses of both. We as woman produce enough estrogen in our bodies even in menopause. Did you do a hormone test? I am no doctor but it seems it is not sitting with you well if you are having that anxiety. I took HRT because I had so much anxiety.
Not all women produce enough or even 'any' estrogen in our bodies during or after menopause. Mine is zilch and I am always struggling to keep sufficient estrogen in my body even with hrt. I use the highest level that I can get.
Try to get a hormone test to see the estrogen and progesterone level in your body. Do you see a gynecologist or even see a naturapath? If that is a choice for you.
Michelle, either your dosage is too high, or the type of HRT you are on is not suiting you. Did you try any natural alternatives before Dr put you on the Evorel?
Black Cohosh, Evening Primrose Oil and Isoflavonoids can all help with mood, night sweats, hot flashes and a few other symptoms.
You need to refer back to your doctor and work out a plan to see whether you would be better off them for a while and try OTC alternatives, or whether a dose reduction would be best.
michelle, I have asked the same questions to doctors. ask them for a lower dose patch evorel 25, and try that for a while. I am having full hormone panel done this week, at the height of symptoms because I want to see what the two are while I am at my worst. So they've done them. Then I can say for definite that it is too high oestrogen causing anxiety attacks and I believe too low progesterone. When i tried the evorel patch (50) I felt mad, anxiety overload. Because you've been on it a while, I would ask for the lower dose patch, or cut them in half so that's 25 instead of 50?
Well the doctor was useless. All she said was did I want to up my Sertraline and I said no. I asked about the HRT being adjusted and she said the best thing is to up the estrogen to 75mg and reduce the utrogestan to 100mg. She said reason I'm anxious is possibly too much progesterone and not enough estrogen. I'm totally confused now with what you said about lower dose. It's made isn't it? How old are you?
You are not alone I am totally confused with all the different side effects medication and advice. What I can give you is what seems to work for me you seem quite young at 46 I was 51 and I couldn't stand the night sweats and particularly the anxiety attacks at night that kept me awake. I have been on propranolol for the last 25 years but I still had palpitations at night due to the menopause so I wouldn't worry about taking those however I had to do something and my last Resort was to go on HRT. I am on everol Conti which is a combination of oestrogen and progesterone (lowest dose) and it actually seems to work no night sweats maybe a tiny bit of anxiety but not enough to worry about although this is my first three months so far so good although I have experienced quite a lot of bleeding but apparently this is normal in the first few months don't feel a nuisance at the doctors that's what they're there for and that's how I feel, but this is our bodies and we have to live with this horrible change X
I experience palpitations and racing heart with both too much estrogen (patches/gel/tablets) or too little (perimenopause then surgical menopause).
Progesterone didn't have these side effects, just a whole host of other ones.
Testosterone also causes palpitations and racing heart if I use too much, though this level is lower than the point the testo boosts my energy levels.
My life on HRT is a constant balancing act, trying to figure out which imbalance is causing which symptom.
At least I no longer worry about the racing heart, which used to make me feel anxious in itself. Now, I know it's a side effect that can be attentuated by changing doseages, so I feel much less anxious.
Excuse the long post, I thought it might be useful to run down my history so you can see finding suitable HRT isn't always an easy process!
Way back in my 30s, I had a fibroid removed and it seems to have caused premature ovarian failure which went undiagnosed for about 15 years - I ended up pretty much disabled.
I started HRT and things improved in some ways, except I had terrible side effects from the progesterone (initially Uterogestan capsules, 12 days per month, then tried Mirena coil for a year). Eventually I had an hysterectomy because I refused to take any more progesterone.
The hysterectomy has sorted out lots of things, though my energy levels are still pretty low. There were consequences from the hysterectomy itself, too, though that's another story
I have used both Evorel and Estradot in the past, two patches per week. They seem to be essentially the same for me, both very effective but both had quite strong palpitation side effects. I've used Climaval tablets too, which were less of a problem, though not all my drs were happy to prescribe them.
Different drs seem to have their 'favourite' meds to prescribe, though they may not necessarily be the most effective meds for everyone.
I've had an estrogen implant for about 18 months, I also use Estrogel to top it up.
I'd use Climaval now, as my 'top-up' because I'd prefer not to have to use a topical gel, but I find it too difficult to cut the tablets up accurately. I eventually gave up trying to cut them up and now use the Estrogel (Climaval seems to be more effective, for me, than the gel).
I also use Tostran Testosterone gel. I have it prescribed for daily useage. I don't have palpitation side effects if I only use it for 4 days a week, but anything more and I get palpitations.
I have lots of problems absorbing medications, it's been a very hit and miss affair, trying to figure out which works, and for how long they'll work. The estrogen implant should be providing enough hormone for me, but it doesn't seem completely effective (yet?).
Palpitations are the most common side effect I get with both Estrogen and Testosterone, but, like I said in my earlier post, now I know what causes them, I'm much less worried about it.
My theory is that, since the palpitation side effect was so similar to feeling very 'nervous', it actually made me feel nervous, even if I was actually feeling quite relaxed (sounds contradictory, I know!). Now I understand what's going on, I just ignore it most of the time (it does get annoying when I'm trying to sleep sometimes, though).
Hope that isn't too confusing, and is of some help!
Forgot to say, one of my peri/menopausal symptoms was palpitations - had 'vibrations' for years before finding out it could be sorted with HRT.
I take the testosterone for both migraine and depression. Both have been problems since my early teens, but never recognised as symptoms of hormonal fluctuation.
Thankyou so much in your detailed reply. Poor you! Do you recommend me seeing a gynaecologist? My doctor doesn't seem interested and I'm sure is just guessing the dose. Today I have felt all fired up and body buzzing and in overdrive. I don't really know what to try next. What do you think? Xx