Hrt and perimenopause

Hi Dawn..I am in peri and have just finished a month of patches..best decision ever. I am 49 and started getting flushes/night sweats, migraines, panic attacks amongst lots of other joys! But still having periods although very sporadic. I am in the Uk..not sure where u are..but it is possible but u would need oestrogen and progesterone..

Sure..I am on Evorel sequi patches. For 2 wks u use Evorel 50 which contains just oestrogen changing patches twice wkly then the next 2 wks u use Evorel conti which contains both oestrogen and progesterone twice wkly. Then u get a withdrawal bleed which was really very slight for me. I hope u get some help...xx

Ahh..bless u! I feel your pain...until I started doin some homework I thought I was dying too..lol.

Seriously though...if u find a doc that listens then hopefully u can get some help..I was lucky to find a very understanding female GP and within a couple of wks most of symptoms I had put up wiv for months had gone like magic! They dont blood test u here for menopause routinely as they say the hormones fluctuate on a daily basic just like the symptoms ..let me know how u get on..will keep everything crossed for u..xx

Hi Dawn,

I'm 40 and my new gyn started me on vivelle dot and progesterone to treat my symptoms. I started experiencing hot flashes and night sweats when I was in my mid 30's and my family physician (also performed my paps) believed my symptoms were stress related and prescribed ambiene since I was not sleeping very well. Long story short I had to find a gyn since a D&C was required. I love my gyn. She listened and said that she feels that all of my symptoms were consistent with perimenopause. After about 4 months of being on hrt including 3 dosage changes I am sleeping so much better and only experience minimal hot flashes, mood swings and my energy level has increased. I hope you are able to find a physician that is able to help you! 

Hi, I am 51. Four years ago I started getting symptoms of premenopause - irregular periods, heavy periods, vaginal dryness, and my GP said I should start HRT then so it would stop the symptoms getting any worse. The idea was to prevent the dryness turning into painful atrophy. I decided not to go on HRT and managed with coconut oil and vit e oil for a few years until even that couldn't help the dryness and I started getting hot flushes. Then I went on topical HRT (ovestin cream).

Hi Dawn, 

I am perimenopausal and now realise that I have been for years. I had a few physical symptoms, but for me the biggest issues have been mental: anxiety, depression, insomnia; recently I have had horrible and completely unprecedented problems with my memory and cognition. These last symptoms made me do some serious research, which led to me going to my Doctor and telling her that I wanted to try HRT. It took a couple of visits, but I have now been on Evorel Sequi Patches for a couple of months and I can honestly say that they have given me my sanity and my life back: I am sleeping well, my brain is working again and my mood is so much better. 

My periods are erratic, but they have not stopped completely, which is why I am using Evorel Sequi. The box contains two different patches: one has just oestrogen and the other has progesterone, too. The reason for having the two kinds is that progesterone causes the womb lining to shed. 

This is from the leaflet in the box: 

"What Evorel Sequi is used for

Evorel Sequi is used: •  It is only used in women who still have a womb. It is suitable for women who have had the menopause (postmenopausal) or who are around the time of the menopause (perimenopausal)" 

Maybe you could show that to your gynecologist? It does seem strange that someone who is supposed to be a specialist thinks that only once a woman has suffered through the entire perimenopause (which can take up to 10-15 years!) can she be given any relief. By that time, the worst will (Surely? Please, surely?) be over? 

To be honest, I was feeling so bad with the perimenopause symptoms that I don't think that I'd have coped if my Doctor had told me that I had to wait for years before I could get any treatment. I would certainly be unemployed and single...

I suggest that you go back and refuse to leave until they give you HRT to at least try, and promise to update their knowledge and skills, for the sake of all their other patients as well as yourself! 

Best of luck!

It's difficult.  I tried with horrid results. Hormones are bouncing, sometimes for the good, sometimes not. 

The one thing that works for peri is BCPs, because it shuts off your own system and provides a level, controlled amount of estrogen & progesterone. But I hated them. 

I started HRT treatment when I was in perimenopause. I was still having a regular period but was also suffering very badly from menopausal symptoms. I was constantly sweating, my face and neck running. But strangely worse by day, didn't really suffer from night sweats. When I first went to my GP for help, I had 3 sweats in the 15mins I was in her surgery. She put me onto Femoston 1/10. Then later to Femoston 2/10 as the others weren't effective enough.