miniville patch..To patch or not to patch? Anyone with experience welcome.

I could not survive without my oestrogen patch plus a gel satchet now and then to supplement. It is a bio-identical hormone - much healthier than the tablets.

The oestrogen implants were much better, my body was able to draw on the oestrogen as I needed it, but they stopped making it due to lack of support by drs. Studies on menopausal women using HRT were flawed as they tested it on up to 10 yr post menopausal women. Not good - need to start it early.

I would never use the testo pellet - lack of libido, dryness, etc can be offset with Vagifem pessaries, and oestrodiol cream. Although the cream is meant to be inserted, it is messy as it comes out again and a big turn off. I use the Vagifem pessaries 3 times a week, plus the cream around the vulva to keep it nice and moist, the collagen it generates repairs the tissues, some on the urethra to strengthen against leakage, and sometimes some Bio-oil, and I am ready to go!!!!

I hope this helps.

Thank you for reply. I am wondering if you are in my age group and if you have a uterus and if you have had a history of fibroids as I have. I think I would not be as nervous about the estrogen if I didnt just have surgery and the fibroid issue.

I will be 63 this year but I had to have my uterus and ovaries removed at age 38. 1: because of a tumour on the outside of my uterus and attached to the bowel, and 2: ovaries full of endometriosis, size of a lemon. The uterus was the size of a grapefruit but I was not told why that I can remember - fibroids maybe? Endometriosus all through abdomen as well.

So I have been using HRT for 25 years now with no problems caused by HRT. It is best to search real medical studies for yourself, rather than just listen to stories, even from drs as they do have their biases and do not keep up with the latest. I just googled "bioidentical hrt and fibroids" and got some positive info. So don't be nervous until you have all the facts.

Actually I did have a problem, for 6 years I suffered severe and debilitating sweating from head and face, like a permanent hot flash. On HRT, so it was deemed not to be menopause symptoms, thyroid ok. That is as far as I was checked for 6 years. Went to a botox dr to see about getting botox in scalp to stop the sweating, she sent me off to a endocrinologist. He checked my pituitary gland hormones and found I had excess prolactin caused by a tumour on my pituitary gland!!!!

While excess prolactin does not cause excess sweating directly, it was doing so indirectly because it was making my oestrogen inefficient and ineffective and women with a prolactinoma needs extra oestrogen. So my body was being starved of oestrogen and I was, in effect, in severe menopause for 6 years. Once I was given the medication that reduces prolactin, everything came good again.

That is why I am never, never, ever going off oestrogen. As oestrogen activates any endometriosis that may have grown again (surgeon could only remove what his eyes could see), I also take progestrogen to deactivate the endometriosis, but that was started years after the hysterectomy, so no doubt I still have some endo growth in my abdomen.

So, yes, I am different to you as you still have one ovary and your uterus. Two things I would suggest you try. The vagifem and cream and use as I suggested for immediate relief. The other is pregnenolone which is the precursor to DHA with is the precursor to oestrogen, progesterone, and testosterone - or something like that! It will take whatever path your body requires.

I am getting a compound chemist who specialises in hormones to chase it up for me to give me an extra boost.

ok thanks. I will look for the cream here in the US we dont have access to what you have access to in UK but I will see what we have that is comparable. Thanks for your reply. The prenenolone info was interesting.

The Vagifem (brand) is Oestradiol - a bio-identical hormone - closest to natural.

Ovestin Cream is Oestriol - ditto above.

Estraderm MX patches (Matrix - which mean your body slowly absorbs it as opposed to Estraderm patches which give you a hit of oestrogen in one go). Estraderm MX is also Oestradiol.

Provera (Brand) which is medroxyprogesterone acetate - not bio-identical, but best that was available to me.

You may need more progesterone for your fibroids, but if you read the websites, they usually talk about a mix.

Plenty of pregnenolone available in US, even on internet, but keep to script - 25 mls I am told.

Correction: Pregnenolone is a precursor to DHEA not DHA!!

Look for Dr Christiana Northrup's book "The Wisdom of Menopause". Very informative.