Anonymous wrote:I’ve read exhaustively in the literature because I had a dear friend who was convinced her breast cancer was from the HRT she went on the year before diagnosis and who demanded I promise, while nursing her on hospice status, never to take it.
I experienced devastating symptoms from surgically induced early menopause and over a decade lost my career, my home, most of my possessions and nearly all my good health - I struggled with suicidality for nearly a decade from chronic debilitating insomnia that made me clinically depressed. I finally went on HRT and got my life back, or what’s left of it. I can work full time again and have some modest future hopes and don’t think all the time about killing myself.
I’m happy to risk the .whatever increase for breast cancer to avoid the certainty that I would have eventually succumbed to suicidal ideation. Don’t shame anyone who chooses HRT - you have no idea what battles they’ve endured.
HRT for surgical menopause is different from HRT for normal hot flashes. And you should not have let it get to that point.
Different poster here. Oh my god, you’re a truly horrible person. Your response to PP actually shocked me.
Look. That PP was engaged in some severe fear-mongering and outlandish tale to, I don’t know what, convince people that we all need HRT? I’m sorry no, losing all your possessions and becoming suicidal is not because you did not get HRT because your doctor is mean. Nobody is shaming anybody for taking HRT - but I surely will call out people making absurdly exaggerated claims about it.
NP. The suicide rates in women around menopause are quite alarming. It’s not just anecdotal. There are real data. Not saying HRT is the answer for everyone, but it probably is one solution among many.
That doesn’t mean that HRT is the answer for suicidality. Obviously.
But if those symptoms only appear during perimenopause and menopause and HRT resolves it, HRT might just be the right answer for many. Most anti suicide/depression drugs have way more risks/side effects than HRT.
No, SSRIs do not have “way more risks” than HRT. come on. Have we entered into the “make anything up that you want” phase of this discussion?
They come with risks and some have "black box warnings". They serve a purpose and are beneficial for many but don't think they are risk free. Many drugs people take have risks. PPIs were a great invention, but they were not intended to be used for long term use, which is what many people/doctors prescribe them now. They have many long term effects. Yet most doctors do not even discuss those with their patients or try to find ways to treat the issue so that PPIs are not needed daily long term (and hint: there are many ways to find the cause and treat Gastro issues without using PPIs, yet most doctors don't even attempt diet changes or other factors, they just prescribe something not intended for long term use).
Point is there are many many medications that are used routinely in this country that carry risks. HRT has less risks than many of those medications. So get educated, look for ways to best solve the issues, and if including HRT as part of your menopause plan is what works for you, go for it, knowing the small risks. Be educated. But if you are a woman of menopausal age, had many issues, then tried HRT and it solved 95% of them, you would realize that yes the risk is worth it to many. We have our lives back
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