Anonymous wrote:So far three (THREE) separate docs, obgyn, online doc for BC and my PCP have agreed that I should be fine on BC all the way up until menses have truly and well stopped for like a year.

So I just stay on the BC.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, there’s no strong evidence that HRT when started within 10 years of menopause, and ideally done transdermally, creates ANY significant health risks.

I drink wine now and then, which is causally linked to all sorts of bad health outcomes. I drive in a car even though I statistically put my safety at risk every time. I eat saturated fat even though my cholesterol is over 200 and I’ll probably need a statin someday.

When I take HRT it makes me feel fantastic. I sleep well, I reversed my osteopenia (I also started lifting), my mood is good, I have energy and no brain fog and no hot flashes. I like to feel fantastic, don’t you? Isn’t that the whole point?

Did you know that trans women are freely prescribed *multiples* of the tiny HRT doses that doctors grudgingly, with warnings, prescribe to us? A standard dose for a trans woman is 4-8 mg of (oral) estradiol per day, or the patch (2-4 x 0.1 patches). I’m in surgical menopause and had to really advocate for more than 2mg per day for myself.

We already medicalize menopause by prescribing women SSRIs, sleep meds and supplements, osteoporosis drugs, etc. And yet doctors largely continue to be unwilling to prescribe the one hormone that our bodies make and that resolves so many of the health problems that women encounter in menopause.
I’m mad and you should be, too.

Cholesterol is OVER 200?!!! You are puttinf yourself at a huge risk for heart attack, stroke, diabetes. I'm more mad your Dr has not put you on a serious diet and exercise regime, and cut outbthe HRT until you lose weight and lower your cholesterol. YIKES.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, there’s no strong evidence that HRT when started within 10 years of menopause, and ideally done transdermally, creates ANY significant health risks.

I drink wine now and then, which is causally linked to all sorts of bad health outcomes. I drive in a car even though I statistically put my safety at risk every time. I eat saturated fat even though my cholesterol is over 200 and I’ll probably need a statin someday.

When I take HRT it makes me feel fantastic. I sleep well, I reversed my osteopenia (I also started lifting), my mood is good, I have energy and no brain fog and no hot flashes. I like to feel fantastic, don’t you? Isn’t that the whole point?

Did you know that trans women are freely prescribed *multiples* of the tiny HRT doses that doctors grudgingly, with warnings, prescribe to us? A standard dose for a trans woman is 4-8 mg of (oral) estradiol per day, or the patch (2-4 x 0.1 patches). I’m in surgical menopause and had to really advocate for more than 2mg per day for myself.

We already medicalize menopause by prescribing women SSRIs, sleep meds and supplements, osteoporosis drugs, etc. And yet doctors largely continue to be unwilling to prescribe the one hormone that our bodies make and that resolves so many of the health problems that women encounter in menopause.
I’m mad and you should be, too.

Cholesterol is OVER 200?!!! You are puttinf yourself at a huge risk for heart attack, stroke, diabetes. I'm more mad your Dr has not put you on a serious diet and exercise regime, and cut outbthe HRT until you lose weight and lower your cholesterol. YIKES.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I tried it initially a few years back and it made me very short-tempered and target - kinda like taking prednisone. Roid rage. I have pretty bad symptoms. Maybe I should try again? I’m only 48 and have been in full menopause for 5 years.

You get “roid rage” from anabolic steroids, which is totally different than prednisone. This post demonstrates how little people know about medicine. The views posted here on HRT and the above are ignorant. Embarrassingly so!

I’m not saying it was roid rage. I’m saying it felt like they. Calling someone ignorant for attempting to describe the sensation of being on HRT is not helpful in guiding more women to effective treatment.

NP, and a little off topic, but last time I was on high dose prednisone I could have stabbed a puppy. I have never felt such instantaneous rage. It was terrifying. And this is a relatively common reaction to high dose steroids. Every doctor I mention it to just smiles and says, yeah, some people have that reaction.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most of the doctors are relying on an old poorly designed study from over 20 years ago. The more recent studies show that IF YOU START HRT BEFORE you are fully through menopause it has significant benefits in protecting your heart and brain. If you wait until you are in your 60s, it’s too late because those receptors have turned off and so your body isn’t able to make appropriate use of the hormones and the effect is negative.

This contradicts 14:24.

From my mother's abysmal experience with HRT, I'm not touching it. Also, it doesn't make sense to me for "normal" menopause. And the constantly changing medical recommendations do not inspire me to change my mind.

+1 my mom had a horrific 18 months on hrt and died of ovarian cancer 15 years later.

Most women do not have a horrific experience with HRT. It has also changed a lot over the years. In the WHI study, they were taking synthetic oral estrogen and progestin. Now it’s often given as a bioidentical estrogen transdermal patch with bioidentical oral progesterone, which has lower risks of side effects. There is always a small risk of breast cancer, of course, but often the benefits outweigh the risk. My mother and grandmother both had osteoporosis, and I am in almost in menopause at age 45, so I am taking HRT for now.

This is not conclusive:


From the Mayo Clinic:
Are bioidentical or natural hormones safer and more effective than hormones used in traditional hormone therapy for menopause symptoms?
Answer From Tatnai Burnett, M.D.

"No, they aren't. According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and several medical specialty groups, the hormones marketed as "bioidentical" and "natural" aren't safer than hormones used in traditional hormone therapy. There's also no evidence that they're any more effective.

The term "bioidentical" means the hormones in the product are chemically identical to those your body produces. In fact, the hormones in bioidentical medications may not be any different from those in traditional hormone therapy. Several hormone therapy products approved by the FDA and prescribed by doctors or other health care providers contain bioidentical hormones."

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/menopause/expert-answers/bioidentical-hormones/faq-20058460


From the Cleveland Clinic:
Conventional hormone therapy vs. bioidentical hormone therapy
"Compounded bioidentical hormones are advertised as being a safer, more effective, natural and individualized alternative to conventional hormone therapy. However, these claims remain unsupported. Also, the lack of FDA oversight for compounded hormones generates additional risks regarding the purity and safety of compounded bioidentical hormones."

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/15660-bioidentical-hormones


From Harvard Medical School:
Are bioidentical hormones superior to hormone medications?
January 1, 2022
By Toni Golen, MD, Editor in Chief, Harvard Women's Health Watch; Editorial Advisory Board Member, Harvard Health Publishing; Contributor, and Hope Ricciotti, MD, Editor at Large, Harvard Women's Health Watch

"While advertisers may claim that these bioidentical hormones are "natural" alternatives to hormone medications, the truth is that the two are often very similar — but bioidenticals may come with less quality assurance. Many FDA-approved hormone therapies also meet the description of a bioidentical (although they're not usually advertised this way). In some cases, they are actually made using the same ingredients as bioidentical hormones. There's little evidence that bioidenticals are superior to FDA-approved hormone medications, and in fact, bioidenticals may be riskier, because they aren't scrutinized or tested by the FDA to verify dose and purity."

https://www.health.harvard.edu/womens-health/are-bioidentical-hormones-superior-to-hormone-medications

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, there’s no strong evidence that HRT when started within 10 years of menopause, and ideally done transdermally, creates ANY significant health risks.

I drink wine now and then, which is causally linked to all sorts of bad health outcomes. I drive in a car even though I statistically put my safety at risk every time. I eat saturated fat even though my cholesterol is over 200 and I’ll probably need a statin someday.

When I take HRT it makes me feel fantastic. I sleep well, I reversed my osteopenia (I also started lifting), my mood is good, I have energy and no brain fog and no hot flashes. I like to feel fantastic, don’t you? Isn’t that the whole point?

Did you know that trans women are freely prescribed *multiples* of the tiny HRT doses that doctors grudgingly, with warnings, prescribe to us? A standard dose for a trans woman is 4-8 mg of (oral) estradiol per day, or the patch (2-4 x 0.1 patches). I’m in surgical menopause and had to really advocate for more than 2mg per day for myself.

We already medicalize menopause by prescribing women SSRIs, sleep meds and supplements, osteoporosis drugs, etc. And yet doctors largely continue to be unwilling to prescribe the one hormone that our bodies make and that resolves so many of the health problems that women encounter in menopause.
I’m mad and you should be, too.

Anonymous wrote:it is SO FRUSTRATING.
I dont want to be an old twisted hag when i could have had magical youth potion. But my dr says evidence still strongly points to cancer risk. who is right? what to believe? halp.

Anonymous wrote:You really should have genetic cancer screening before going on hrt.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, there’s no strong evidence that HRT when started within 10 years of menopause, and ideally done transdermally, creates ANY significant health risks.

I drink wine now and then, which is causally linked to all sorts of bad health outcomes. I drive in a car even though I statistically put my safety at risk every time. I eat saturated fat even though my cholesterol is over 200 and I’ll probably need a statin someday.

When I take HRT it makes me feel fantastic. I sleep well, I reversed my osteopenia (I also started lifting), my mood is good, I have energy and no brain fog and no hot flashes. I like to feel fantastic, don’t you? Isn’t that the whole point?

Did you know that trans women are freely prescribed *multiples* of the tiny HRT doses that doctors grudgingly, with warnings, prescribe to us? A standard dose for a trans woman is 4-8 mg of (oral) estradiol per day, or the patch (2-4 x 0.1 patches). I’m in surgical menopause and had to really advocate for more than 2mg per day for myself.

We already medicalize menopause by prescribing women SSRIs, sleep meds and supplements, osteoporosis drugs, etc. And yet doctors largely continue to be unwilling to prescribe the one hormone that our bodies make and that resolves so many of the health problems that women encounter in menopause.

I’m mad and you should be, too.

This. I was given klonopin for sleep and became dependent. And then it stopped working. And coming off of it was hellish. I was also given Trazodone for sleep, which had me drowsy all day. I had been struggling with insomnia and broken sleep for a few years. No one suggested my sleep issues might have anything to do with menopause, and I didn't know. I just knew my hot flashes were awful. New doc put me on HRT a few months ago and my sleep is 100 percent fixed.

I can't believe I spent months tapering off klonopin, suffering horrible withdrawal, when someone could have just given me the Estradiol. Which works significantly better anyway.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you don't have cancer risk in your family, it really is doctor dependent on how they chose to read the info. I do my research and the two I have gone to, when I present my case for HRT, have no problem with it. I started at 49.

But I also go to younger women rather than any age male.

NP. I have always found male doctors to be more compassionate than female doctors, in any specialty. YMMV

Anonymous wrote:Anyone take supplements too?

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, there’s no strong evidence that HRT when started within 10 years of menopause, and ideally done transdermally, creates ANY significant health risks.

I drink wine now and then, which is causally linked to all sorts of bad health outcomes. I drive in a car even though I statistically put my safety at risk every time. I eat saturated fat even though my cholesterol is over 200 and I’ll probably need a statin someday.

When I take HRT it makes me feel fantastic. I sleep well, I reversed my osteopenia (I also started lifting), my mood is good, I have energy and no brain fog and no hot flashes. I like to feel fantastic, don’t you? Isn’t that the whole point?

Did you know that trans women are freely prescribed *multiples* of the tiny HRT doses that doctors grudgingly, with warnings, prescribe to us? A standard dose for a trans woman is 4-8 mg of (oral) estradiol per day, or the patch (2-4 x 0.1 patches). I’m in surgical menopause and had to really advocate for more than 2mg per day for myself.

We already medicalize menopause by prescribing women SSRIs, sleep meds and supplements, osteoporosis drugs, etc. And yet doctors largely continue to be unwilling to prescribe the one hormone that our bodies make and that resolves so many of the health problems that women encounter in menopause.

I’m mad and you should be, too.

Anonymous wrote:it is SO FRUSTRATING.
I dont want to be an old twisted hag when i could have had magical youth potion. But my dr says evidence still strongly points to cancer risk. who is right? what to believe? halp.