HRT after medical menopause at 40

Thank you for replying there is very little out there for hrt for early menopause. I'm worried that I'm going to wake up from op a different person after my natural hormones go and not be able to do all I do now. Busy mum and work full time. I've been in two minds to put up with pain of endometriosis. Drs look at me like I'm mad when I say does hrt really do the same thing as natural hormones!

It was a gradual process. I felt ok following surgery and it was about 3 months later I started to feel tired and fried started to notice I wasn't my usual self. It took a little while to realise something wasn't quite right. I eventually saw my GP who fortunately realised I was menopausal.

Thank you so much. I have decided to go for patches when I get to that part for exactly the same reason. Did you find that hrt helps with weight. I'm a chubby 14 now and am hoping I can do something about it when I'm pain free. I'm afraid I cheer myself up with treats. My Dr said 5 years hrt taking me to 45 but you can obviously take longer if I choose to then

When I had my op the surgeon put an HRT implant in, as I mentioned I was on implants for 8 years. I had to have a new implant put in every 4 or 5 weeks if I was lucky. Hormones used to be up and down, great when I had the implant put in and as the weeks went by you could feel yourself going down hill.

Then when the implants came out they were marvellous, I couldn't believe how stable I felt, no more ups and downs only only a lovely laid back feeling it was fantastic and still is.

Didn't really affect my weight as some people said it would. Always remember you will be having HRT as a replacement with having no ovaries or womb and not as a supplement as people who go through the normal menopause do.

Rubbish about taking it for only 5 years, maybe if you take the tablet form and are going through the normal menopause yes, The risks are miniscual when you have a hysterectomy with ovaries removed too   and use the patches.

The research by 2 USA University medical schools Yale and Pennysylvania don't say that, in fact over 50.00 women in the USA alone have died needlessly because they came off HRT when the WHI results came out and were afraid to take it. The women in question are women who have had a complete oophorectomy and a hysterectomy and not women with everything intact, there is a very big difference, please remember that.

I hope I don't sound too preachy, but it really makes me sick to hear about these doctors and women too who really don't have a clue about these things. I have researched for years about HRT and I am totally committed in using the patches, When I am about 75 I will try to go to the 25 size to see if I still have the same side effects, but I shall stay on the 25 micrograms size until the 12th of never.

Thank you. Not too preachy its confirming what I hoped that I could carry on whilst I wanted it. I hope that your comments are picked up by all others in my position now as they have reassured me no end.

So pleased about that, I have never had any problems with the patches at all so be happy it won't change your life, just painfree after the op.

No mood swings at all unless the size is not adequate,

Best of luck

Jean

Here I am in a dreadful state after having hysterectomy with ovaries removed just 9 days ago and feeling I ve shortened my life by having ovaries took away. My surgeon has said I ll go on HRT just until I m 51/52 which would be for 2/3 years. But reading about losing ovaries has frightened me so much stating that you get heart disease and osteoporosis, wishing now that I had kept my beloved ovaries . I m so worried about it and know it's too late,I can't have them back. I keep crying because of the fear of the unknown

I know I will have/do have exactly same fears and following everything you've just been through it is worse when you have no choice to turn back. I can think of nothing else at the moment about cancelling the lot but then I think just remember anything can happen in life and we have to make most of it. I decided to look at actual figures before completing this reply. Quote from most sites and from this whi study that panicked everyone

For women younger than 50 years at the time of hysterectomy, bilateral oophorectomy was associated with significantly increased mortality in women who had never used estrogen therapy but not in past and current users. Please note the NOT with users of hrt. You are planning hrt aren't you? Just think you can ask for health reviews and heart disease can be monitored and treated but things like ovarian cancer harder to keep an eye on (looking at positives) saying all this the mortalilty is still reaching good age. I Dont think they are talking tens of years. Try and keep calm and recover from your big op and tell Dr how you are feeling. I'm sure I'll be back on here in a few weeks wanting my own details back. Sending you big hugs as sounds like you need them xxxxxxxx

Oh froggy

Thank you so much for your help, I do need it. My mind is on nothing else at the moment to the point where I could nt stand getting out of bed today, it's upset me that much. So does it mean if we re under 50 having ovaries removed and go on HRT it's not so bad results? Good luck with your op xxx

That's how I read all the literature. Most studies to do with increased mortality looked at oophetectomy without hrt. I guess hrt is never going to be as good as the real thing but with all the evidence and culture of law suits I really can't see any consultant advising an op without it being safe for patients and above 45 the statistics are even better so if everything was textbook I should be worse off than you. My hubby has no thyroid so is life Dependant on artificial hormones. He literally can't not take it. I'm sure they'll be a worrying study about that soon too. It may take a while to find right hrt but I'm sure we'll both get there. I've got to get thru op yet xxx

Honestly Froggy the actual op is the easy part, I was so stressed out about it but was given a spinal block to numb the pain and a general and I don't even remember 'falling to sleep' they woke me up and I was feeling great, I wasn't so good the next day and have found it a hard recovery. I was ok until I wrote on the hysterectomy forum about being 9 days post op and one woman on there was quite nasty I thought, saying she could not believe I d

had them removed just because of my age! She s gotta have her op yet and is adamant to keep her ovaries and then gave me all the reasons why. That's when I googled it and it sent me into a depression when reality kicked in that I d let mine go. I obviously needed the hysterectomy but I was undecided whether to keep my ovaries and the surgeon gave me reasons not to keep them so I went along with her thoughts, if I had done a lot more research I think I would ve said to keep them if they looked healthy while operating but I did nt and now they're gone. I honestly cannot stop crying, when's your op?

6th May. There are so many conflicting theories but you have to trust professional advice and you dont have to stop hrt in a few years if you dont want to. Everyone is different, different lifestyles, and drs with different opinions. We can't let what ifs ruin our futures xx

How are you feeling today? Xx

I m feeling a little better today, felt awful yesterday, depressed over losing ovaries and seemed to ache all over. It is a very slow recovery but I think the surgical menopause has made me more emotional so I get upset easily. Thank you for asking, this forum has been a god send to me. Hope yr ok another day closer to your op xx

I'm so busy at work at mo I've not really had much time to think but I know it will hit me soon. I'm worried about getting ovaries removed too much more than anything else but I also worry that ifddon't and just have hysterectomy I'd always be worried something nasty would be going on with no where for any bleeding or discharge to come out naturally. Sorry too much info there but it all gets sewn shut doesn't it? When do you get your hrt appointment. I hope that helps the lows you going thru xx

Think these always gonna be fors and againsts to keep/remove ovaries and everyone's reasons are unique. I don't see my surgeon until 5 wks tomorrow that's when she should she would sort my HRT out. I have thought about going to see my doctor but I think surely the gynae will be better for advice. We will get there in the end cx

Dear Jean 44299

This post gave me the impetus to go back to my GP and  'sort' myself out. I will try to be as brief as possible. Had TAH 17 years ago at 39. Endometriosis. Straight on with Estraderm patches. No problems with them whatsover. Last Summer had a suspected TIA, had MRI of brain. Scans, bloods etc. no sign of TIA. What a relief. However, the HRT was withdrawn immediately. Ten months down the line...anxiety, panic hot flushes, sweats, irritability, depressive episodes...and the list goes on. Saw my GP. Young man said not wise to return to the HRT. Gave me Sertraline antidepressent as this will help. Tried and was really unwell, said to persevere as it takes time to work. Couldnt tolerate it at all. Just about at the end of my tether and returned to surgery. Saw different GP,  female. Ran through the chain of events and she could well have been reading from your post Jean. Said to remove from HRT after 17 years after a total hysterectomy was a bad idea and at least to wean off over an 18 month period if there were any dangers to health. . However, she did remind me that producing no oestrogen would have a detrimental effect on the way I am feeling and it possibly would benefit me more to have it than not. She said I could have the 50mg patches for the next 3 years and maybe then do a review. I didn't hesitate.  i am  hoping I  pick up where I left off last  Summer.

A helpful post. 

Thank you

Hi Sue

So pleased to hear that, it hasn't been plain sailing for me either but I have fought to be able to stay on HRT, giving the GP lots of info that I had gleaned about recent research from the USA. I feel very strongly about the information that some GPs give out which is sometimes negative and misleading and blinkered especially male doctors concerning HRT and they are not always up todate with the facts concerning surgical menopause and the detrimental effects on women of not having HRT given to them from the very start.

I hope that I have been of some help.

You certainly have. ☺️Reading through this forum pushed me into going back to the GP. Your post struck a chord. 

Thanks again.