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[maureenm]

Hello everyone
My name is maureen, i have already done a couple of posts but just seen the newbie bit so thought i would intoduce myself properly!! I feel like i am going mad at times.
I have just turned 41 and was diagnosed as being in menopause 3 weeks ago which will explain all the ill health i have had for last 2 years!! I have not had a period in nearly 4 months and for the last month i have started the daily hot flushes and night sweats of which i get about 3/4 each night. I have bad indigestion and down below i get dry and itchy and i did have a bad smell but that seems to of got better since i had my mirena coil out last sept. My dad had osteoporosis and My doctor is insistent that i think very carefully about going on HRT....i am terrified to take it because of all the bad things i have heard and read  my doc said to go and see her again in 3 months time (if i do not have a period) and she will send me for a bone density scan, she said to take the time to think about.
I have put on weight, my hair is thinning and i look a absolute wreck, i am ashamed to look at myself in the mirror i look so bad 
I have young children youngest is 7 and i work part time.....i have noticed how tired i have been getting and fall asleep as soon as i sit down on the sofa!!
Well this is my rant over, thank you for taking the time to read this
maureen

[Suzyq]

Maureen I was terrified too but please don't suffer like this. When symptoms are extreme and at your age, you should use hrt. It is not an instant fix - took me 3 months to feel stable but I feel sooooo much better - not like I did before this all hit, but just so that I can live life and function everyday. Read the current evidence on the safety of hrt and maybe you will feel brave enough to give it a try.

[Galadriel]

 
Hi maureenm - I'm relatively new to the forum and like you, I thought I was loosing the plot with what was going on. All I can say is thank goodness I found this site and the lovely ladies on here.

Given how young you are, some form of HRT for bone and heart protection would be a good idea if you want to try it- up to you how you take it - pills, patches, gels, combinations of methods.

The green menu to the left has loads of really useful info.

Whatever you choose, someone on here will have experience and be able to offer advice 

Galadriel x

[Cassie]

Hi there welcome. Given your age, I think you would be foolish not to take HRT, you are doing yourself a huge injustice, your bones, heart and mental health need protecting, you will feel like a new person. I would strongly advise the bio identical HRT such as the Oestrogel followed by the Utrogestan, which is the progesterone side of the HRT, you will still get a monthly bleed and tick along as if you were 21 all over again, do not hesitate, at least until you are 50, you are only replacing what your body is no longer naturally making, all the best in your decision. x

[maureenm]

thank you
I think i will give it a try.....i don,t know whether or not to wait until July ( then it will be six months since my last period) or go now to the doctor.....what do you ladies think would be best?

[Suzyq]

The sooner the better! Hrt is unlikely to be an instant fix and may need some tweaking and time to build up in your system - for me it took 3 months. Plus there is no guarantee that you will not have another period before July - nor does it really matter!! Try to relax about it all - hrt is much lower doses than birth control pill and nobody really stresses so much over taking that!!

As Cassie said bio-identical hrt is good - I use estradot patches with a separate progesterone, others use a gel which you apply daily. Talk through the options with your gp.

[Galadriel]

Hi maurneenm - get your appointment as soon as you can. The sooner you get started, the better.

Give it time to settle and above all be extra kind to yourself. No more beating yourself up about everything - concentrate on getting you feeling better inside first 

Galadriel x

[Cassie]

I totally agree with the other ladies, I wasted 2 years trying everything natural and avoiding the HRT out of ignorance, best thing I ever did was to start it, have had no side effects from it and only good benefits, being so young when I went into meno... I can understand being hesitant and perhaps wanting to try alternatives, when you are the "normal" age for meno, I prob would have done the same to start, but not at your age, you are way too young to be depriving your body, all the best.

[maureenm]

thank you so much for all of your advice
After doing nothing but think about HRT for the past 4 weeks i have decided to go on it.....i just cannot live like this for the next 10 years or so....first thing in the morning i shall be making an appointment with my doctor....i think i would prefer a patch as i am not very good with tablets.....hopefully the patch will suit me.
A BIG THANK YOU i am so lucky to of found this site, you are all very helpful

[Cassie]

Good for you, all the best. The patches or the gel are the best as they are delivered transdermally, keep us posted.

[Suzyq]

I started with gel and moved to patches after 1 month. I find them easy to use and pretty consistent in their dose. I was initially worried like you, but after the first week didn't give it another thought! I also was not prepared to spend the next god knows how many years feeling like I was dying every day. Good luck qnd keep posting

[armrget]

Hi, I started HRT on April 1st and all i can say is that I am so glad that I did - the bottom line is i did not know what menopause was until i was in situation that led me to needing this. I read up on it and also was scared but then i decided if I was diabetic and need insulin would I say no way? answer is no I would use it.
I feel like amazing and its only day 10. I sleep, my overheating is calmer, i can do work out and feel good. I also eat more veggie stuff and fruit than  ever before my family will be amazed when they see me in June.
I made my own choice I found that being propatinate and trusting heather currie ( who I never met) advice helped me and my GP say okay lets do it.
The only reason menopause is hard is because its is I was gald that I am single - You deserve to be happy in life its a hormone that you need once you have regualted whats missing then you be amazed.
fortunatley for me I just need Oestergen as I had major surgery so calbarting me was easy.
good luck