Does this sound normal....

Thanks for such a fast reply gailannie, so is this quite normal or should I speak to a doctor? Guessing it's all part of the process we are going through!

I guess that depends on how you want to deal with all this.  Some woman are afraid of HRT because of the WHI.  I'm not one of them!!!

I've watched my friends and family do this menopause stuff without ever considering bioidenticals.  They are now all over weight, squishy fat on their middles, taking numerous drugs for all the issues that we know are correctable with estrogen and progesterone therapy.  So I say yes, give me hormones.  Life's just too short, and I want to have comfortable sex till I die!

yes, exactly (also no UTI's anymore or that eerie "buzzing" in urinary tract that the docs say is not happening. Or the UTI symptoms and the lab says there are no bacteria, just a few white cells and red ones...) I think of it as a quality of life thing. However, if a person has hesitations about HRT, she certainly deserves to explore the pros and cons and the many options to HRT. If you don't mind digging even deeper, take a good look at the actual WHI study and stats. I feel they were ethical in stopping the study, but also they neglected to point out how very low the heart and cancer occurances actually are. sorry -- ranting again. ; >

Thank you so much Laura, I can relate to the UTI symptoms too!

Thank you...I have the tummy fat even though my jeans are falling off of me! Seeing doctor on another issue next week (bleeding everyday!) so will ask about HRT.

Go right ahead and rant, I'll join you!!  The products given to woman in the WHI were not hormones, they were hormone like DRUGS.   This scared so many woman from considering the options.  

But the thing that bothers me to no end, is that there are many very serious issues that do relate to menopause, that our time and money should be spent on understanding the effects to the entire endocrine system.   

As just one example, woman have heart attacks JUST LIKE MEN after menopause, when we lose our estradiol.  I just read a study today that says that we get fat in our hearts once our estradiol goes down.  Age doesn't seem to matter, just how low our estradiol level drops.

Or how about the connection to estradiol and insulin?  Any wonder that woman become insulin resistant and then type two diabetes comes on after menopause?   

 For me, it is about careful study and understanding the changes in the body after we lose these important hormones.   I did 4 years of chronic pain in all my ligaments and muscles, that apparently was completely related to estradiol.  Yet not one doctor I saw looking for answers, ever asked me when my periods stopped.  

If it hadn't have been for the vaginal atrophy and dryness, I never would have had the answer as to why my body constantly hurt.  

So yes, I say HOORAY for estrogen, because my body was screaming and it wasn't asking for ibuprophen. 

So well put, gailannie. Reading your note reminded me of

One More Thing. : )  Imo it's all about oxygen, really. O2 to the brain and other important organs like muscles (esp. heart muscle.) Ages ago I used to work w people who had OBS (organic brain syndrome) and they were always sullen, is the best word I can find to describe a certain frame of mind, that certain mood. When I recognized this in myself: sullen, I recognized that I need more oxygen to the brain. I happen to believe that estrogens help our brain cells pick up oxygen. Lower estrogen means lower 02 to the brain = feeling dull and sullen and Get me outta here. We are quite fortunate to "be aging" in a time with ways to keep our bones strong and our 02 as well. I cannot tell any diff, going from years on Premarin to 18 months now on estradiol bio-identical gel. But it makes my Gyn happy and so many here and elsewhere really feel there is a huge difference in styles of estrogen replacement. Happy to join you. Thanks, gailannie, I feel better now. : )

This is an interesting read...I certainly wouldn't find this out from my doctor!

at the time I made up this theory about 02 and nerve cell walls and estrogens, the docs/pharmacist/scientists were still denying it. I think it may be more in fashion these days. If I come upon anything convincing, will pass it along.

I was doing fine on the estradiol and provera but i think the estradiol, provera, and the neurontin for anxieties and depression made me start bleeding heavily since Tuesday. I have also been light headed dizzy and weak with all the bleeding and my OBGYN said phsych meds can bring on bleeding 

So I don't know what to do. For right now I am not taking my HRTs and my neurontin i am only going to take 100mg once a day and that will be at night not in the morning or afternoon 

I have been bleeding heavily