Should I come off HRT after 8 months?

Posted , 5 users are following.

Posted 39 minutes agoRemains a Dilemma for me. In Meno range with FSh/Lh in May 2013, and went on Femoston 1/10 Feb 2014 then accidental break 2 weeks on holiday.  Felt fine but resumed on my return and it did not seem to work.  I got very stressed and dr put me on 2/10. Still did not work and now in sequi Evorel 50 patches.

Have had low mood and insomnia since this time and am now wondering if I should not have resumed hrt on return from holiday as perhaps my own hormones were stabilising, OR if my hormones took a big slump. Not great on last 2 weeks of patch and now on 2nd 4-week run with oestrogen patch.

I would love to be brave and wean off HRT to see if anything improves as part of me has not been truly convinced by HRT for me for next 5 years till normal meno age! but very nervous in case things get worse, but I would really rather know when I have my last period. Never suffered from hot sweats at all, but low mood and slightly dry vag, which has improved the latter.  Hope this makes sense and would love bit of advice from the helpful ladies on this forum please. Cheers KL xF Report g Share

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1 like, 11 replies

11 Replies

  • Posted

    Hi King

    why not try and wean off ... See how it goes..

    i am fine on no HRT .. Just supplements.. Age 50 and now 15 months post meno .

    there is also the vaginal estriol cream you can have for dryness..

    i use occasionly ovestin estriol ovules, they are good.

    i only use half of one per week or fortnight..

    no matter when you decide to wean off, you will still have the peri symptoms return HRT just postpones it..

    food for thought

    jay x

     

  • Posted

    Hi Loretta I am 46 and had FSH of 57 LH 40 and another similar reading both in meno range at 44 in May 2013 but think I have been there for a while but had been masked by being on pill. Had to come off it and that is how I realised there were no periods. 7 months with no period before M at 2013 FSH then bit of spotting between May 2013 and Feb 2014 when I went on HRT so cannot be sure if this would have continued or not.  KL

    Hi Jay yes that is my worry as I have seen previous postings from you stating this which does scare me. Also frightened to wean off in case I am 10 times worse but I do regret the decision to go onto HRT when I came back from holiday in July. So confused as to what to do right now. KL

    • Posted

      Hi Kingliz

      only you can decide hun, its all personal choice, i dont post info i find to scare, only to make awareness .. 

      Docs dont seem to tell their patients anything, i find it quite disgusting.

      your right ... If you had fsh bloods while on the pill, then you wont know what your true levels are.... 

      Weaning must be done gradually so no shock effects ..

      I hope you find a way that suits you hun..

      jay xx

    • Posted

      Thanks but no I wasn't on the pill when FSH tests were done Jay. I had been off pill at least 7 months and tests done because I had no period during that time. Having researched the ranges since, it would seem my results were meno rather than even peri, although I do appreciate that formal absence of 1 or 2 years depending on age is the conclusive basis. On ION site my levels are where a 52/54 year old would be yet I was 44 at the time. KL 
    • Posted

      Hi Hun

      Sorry, i getting in a muddle .. 😳

      well theres no set age, we all vary, i was age 40 / 41 when my peri started and i am post meno aged only 50..

      my mum was age 42 and she was done and dusted by aged 44, think she gave me her peri years  😩

      once a woman has had no periods in 12 months then they say your post meno, i was lucky i had a good Gyno who confirmed it for me, vaginal scan of the non functioning ovaries and thin uterine wall thickness .. 

      hope you can decide whats best for you personally, its not easy is it ..

      big hugs 

      jay x

       

    • Posted

      Hello Kingliz,

      Yes I am in a similar dilemma .... Hrt has given me back my life. This is the 3rd time I have tried to wean off....symptoms start to creep in. I can deal with hot flashes.its the mental and emotional symptoms that literally dibilitate me.  So if I begin feeling them as I am now, I stop weaning .Quality of life is far more important to me than quantity . So the risks are minimal in comparison even if I remain on HRT for the rest of my life.  You and you alone can only know what is best for you. Whatever you decide is the right decision . I have wrestled with all this information for quite some time. I know without it I am useless too myself and my family. I refuse to live that way and there are many woman who feel the same . Make your decision stick with it and get back to living.  God Bless you.  God bless us all!  Loretta

    • Posted

      It's not easy at all. Just feel if hrt not helping the symptoms which concern me then have to rethink. My sisters do not endorse hrt and this does influence me a lot, naturally. If it helped me emotionally then I would be more receptive but not sure of the tangible benefits of it right now. You state b6 helped your anxiety. Was your anxiety bad? I have always been so confident and not feeling that in last couple of months, although lack of sleep not helping this either. Was not good on Implanon implant or pill, so maybe false hormones just do not agree with me, although Femoston did seem ok for a few months. KL
    • Posted

      Hi hun

      well i felt all the peri symptoms over my ten years of peri, but i suppose i just went along with it and was kind to myself.. My attitude was we cant avoid it so we live and ride the wave.

      in the last year of peri the part when the 12 periods are not present, was when my anxiety hit me more, but then i also had alot going on to, live overseas, partner works away so dont see him for weeks, so i have had to get a grip, when my anxiety hit most and the hormonal tears from no where, and feelings of doom, was when i got the 150mg ( what i take) of B6 plus other vits, and i felt so much better in just a couple of weeks, i dont suffer anxiety now, and havent since, i take each day at a time, and keep positive...

      people say to me, ' your lucky you didnt have to take HRT' simply i chose not to have it due to family history and my own history, plus didnt want it, i wanted peri done and over with, not posponed until older age.

      so i wasnt lucky ... I just coped with it and i now feel quite liberated and proud of myself ..

      keep positive, i found that if i started dwelling on it, it became a burden, so i just plod on and enjoy everyday 😃

      HRT is all personal choice and so only you can decide, works for some, and doesnt for others .. 

      Big hugs 

      jay xx

  • Posted

    Glad to see you were able to post your question on her Kingliz. I see your dilemma regarding the wanting to come off the HRTs vs quality of life. It concerns me that you feel you need to be brave to come off the HRTs and totally understand your worry that things could get worse. When we feel low, we certainly don't want to get any lower if at all possible. Believe me, at the beginning of this past year (thank God it has flown by) I was very scared because my body and hormones were totally unpredictable, depsite anything I tried to correct it. Thankfully, that time was brief, even though while going through it felt like an eternity and I have leveled off and have implemented some things to help me get on with this journey.

    You are doing what is best for you and if in the end changing to a different HRT to help you feel as you were prior to your accidental break, so be it. While it would be lovely for all of us not to rely on certain meds during this time, some women really do better with the aid of HRTs or in some cases even ADs, although in my case, it has not happen that way. I really on supplements, yoga, exercise, relaxation cds at night, keeping busy and enjoying this forum whenever I can.

    So in answer to your question, please discuss with your doc on how you are feeling and if there is another med that might help you better or is it possibly time to try another route. Only you and your doc (and I pray that your doc will guide you onto the best path........as ask many on here, some of our docs could use a bit more education on our area of concerns.......yikes!) will know what the next step should be for you.

    Praying for the best for you dear!smile

    Annie xx

     

  • Posted

    Thanks L and A. Praying hard too regarding this. KLx

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