Hi Pebbles - you do sound low and with all that you have on your plate that's hardly surprising.
From experience I found that HRT lifted my low mood a little but that was because the meno symptoms such as hot sweats and vaginal dryness had impacted on my life and it was a relief to feel "normal" again.
HRT does tend to delay menopause rather than help us through it. For some women the meno symptoms do return when you stop HRT and that happened to me. I have taken HRT for six years and when I try to stop now the symptoms do return so I restart. I am getting to the stage (60) when I will be advised to come off by both the doc and the menopause clinic. It is up to me, of course, if I continue with it but it seems as if not many trials have been conducted on women still on HRT in their 60's so the risk of stroke and breast cancer are thought to be higher. I look on it that even if I am going to have a tough time next year when I stop at least I have had a few years of feeling better. There is no way of knowing how long meno symptoms will last - menopause is for ever after all - and I have friends who didn't use HRT but who are still suffering in their sixties and now wish that they had given themselves at least a few years of HRT to alleviate the symptoms and others who used it and have stopped without too much hassle although they are all on some form of vaginal oestrogen therapy to help with dryness.
From what you have said I would think that you do have a slight depression which may benefit from anti depressants or, maybe, if you can identify the cause some counselling sessions?
Are you sure that the spots on your face are age spots. I thought they were mainly on the hands and body? Do you have the pigmented patches mentioned on another thread which are caused by hormones?
It is normal to feel fearful of the changes which are happening but you do get used to a slightly different you. Most changes happen gradually. "Much energy is wasted by us trying to stay as we were "- that was from my lovely GP who is now retired - and I try to remember that.
Taz x
![big hug :bighug:](https://www.menopausematters.co.uk/forum/Smileys/extended/bighug.gif)