Please tell me Estradiol helped you 😩

And yes! I’ve been literally ‘sick’ with this unable to function .. no life! Faint dizzy fatigued ... ready for bed at 4.30pm. 

It has been HELL . I too live a very healthy. Lifestyle and no matter what you do you can’t replace estrogen . Good for you ! Life is too short to feel so awful and I would have taken anything to feel better . Only day 2 but I’m awake at 10pm so here’s hoping ! 

Hi Lori, i’m 51 and yes I take 2 mg. of   estrogen. Your dr. prescribed 5 mg.? ! Wow, mine told me 2 mg. was the maximum dose! As far as my actual estrogen levels were before bhrt, I don’t know because I never had the testing done because I read that during peri your levels fluctuate wildly. I just go on my symptoms. Like I said, my bhrt has helped reduce my symptoms by about 80%. My only regret is being so afraid of hrt for so long that I waited all those years trying to “fix” myself. 

I hope you get good results from yours. Please don’t give up till you find the right combination or you’re symptoms! Good luck!😍

Ok it’s 0.05 mg not 5 mg 🙄 which makes me feel better as I’m sensitive to meds and always take 1/2 of what dr prescribes . I’m keeping to the regime this time though ... only been 3 days so far and woke up soaking wet last night .... hopefully it will kick on soon and my sleep most of all will get back to normal . 

Hi Lori, I take my estradiol orally. I guess  symptoms of high estrogen are like severe pms, sore lumpy breast, mood swings etc.  I actually think at times my levels are too low even on bhrt ..I guess whatever my own body produces dips a little lower and then I start experiencing low estrogen signs like depression and constant urinary tract infections. Some day I hope to find a specialist that I can work with, but for now I see my gp. Before I started taking progesterone, I had horrible insomnia. I had trouble going to sleep, and once I was asleep, I would wake up 2 hours later wide awake but exhausted. I hope your hrt solves your problems! 😍

I don’t mind a bit of irritability sore boobs .... that’s NOTHING compared to the fatigue lethargy and pure depression. 

Im curious as to whether you had any other symptoms like depression or mood problems prior to bhrt, and if so do you think that it helped these symptoms?

Im confused in this area as i hear that bhrt can not help mood issues.

So far they did not help me in all my months of bhrt, maybe the dosing was minimal. Im thrilled to hear that you have your life back. Thats what im talkin bout!!

x0x0x0

Mauiblue, Thank you! But, oh yessss! I had so many symptoms during peri, but the severe depression was the main reason I started bhrt. I was so afraid of hormone therapy, but after trying everything else, I decided that my quality of life was so bad, that I had to try it. My depression was horrible and I was usually stuck in bed with a migraine,  crying till my eyes were almost swollen shut for 3-4 days out of every week. I still have kids at home. Many people say they won't take it because when they stop, they will have to go through it even if they are 70 years old. Well, by the time I'm 70 I won't have young children depending on me...besides I don;t ever intend to go off it willingly! lol  The way I see it, my condition is that of hormone deficiency.(no different than taking synthroid for my underactive thyroid) and as long as i can find a dr.to prescribe it, I will take it. For all the ladies that get through it without hrt, I think it's wonderful. Some of us aren't so fortunate and we all have to be proactive about our health and happiness.If I were you, I keep tweaking my hrt till I got some relief. Good luck! 

I have tried for many months on end though. The progesterone was awful, or maybe my imagination? It was though...

and maybe i am not getting enough estrogen..thats what i think it is.

Why they are dosing so miniscule is beyond me other than the usual risk that i dont care about at this point.

As you say, when you have kids at home (and i do... have 2 teens single mom)then when your 70 who cares..

Its also very interesting how you approached the therapy, meaning your doc introduced the Prog first then estrogen, perhaps this has something to do with it.

Well i wont give up on it entirely, youve renewed my enthusiasm thank you! Especially because this has helped with your depression, WOW.

x0x0x0x

You know I never gave it a thought before about the progesterone being started first followed by the estrogen about a month later...maybe it had something to do with the favorable outcome. When I started the progesterone it was like taking a prescription sleeping pill...which was wonderful because I was suffering with insomnia. I do know that women usually become progesterone deficient first. I guess I got my levels back up before starting the estrogen so I was able to avoid the temporary estrogen dominance many women experience when they first  start hrt. 🤔 I read about many women having difficulty with finding the right hrt. I wish everyone had an easier time finding the right combination because the Lord knows they’ve been through enough by the time they seek help! 😍Please keep trying, because when you find the right one it’s so worth it!

Hi Moody

Yes it was what i thought of first.

It makes sense because progesterone goes first..i remember doing tests several years ago even (late 40's) and my progesterone was low even then.

Another option would be for me to do a small dose of progesterone an then add estrogen later like your doc did for you.

Obviously, and sadly  im my own doctor now because i have no resources or trust in anyone anymore.

This whole world of bhrt/hrt is verrrry complicated and never a one size fits all. Ive realized this. We must look at it as a case by case individual basis if we are to get well, or balanced us women who are off totally.

There are so many levels of assessment that need to take place before one begins to figure it out if it ever gets figured out.

Body type, meds, history, sooo many variables that will affect how you go about your regimen/experimantation

Even the best in this field are GUESSING most of the time.

xoxoxo

That’s the truth...we are all so different! I just wish there was a way to assess women’s hormonal needs instead of trying so many weeks of first one then another treatment. I never realized how complicated our bodies are! Personally  I think women need to have their hormones measured before peri starts instead of waiting till they go haywire. If we had an idea of what our levels were when we felt “normal” then it could take some of the guesswork out of the dosage of hrt when we need to supplement. Oh well, maybe some day in the future ....😊

Not sure if this hormone thing is going to work for me I can’t stand more months of feeling ‘weird’ and I think putting more stuff into your body can do that .

I’m happy for the women that say it’s changed their life and they feel great ... but as a few women have mentioned it doesn’t alleviate depression or mood . 

I feel the same, I just wanted to feel "normal." It was because of the ongoing depression that I started bhrt. The aches, pains, urinary tract infections, incontinence, etc. were bad , but omg, the depression! Don't get me wrong, it's not completely gone, but manageable.