Menopause Discussion > Alternative Therapies
Anyone had early menopause and not used HRT?
BrightLight:
--- Quote from: silverlady on February 12, 2015, 03:40:03 PM ---Does HRT protect women from heart disease
Well done BrightLight and janm on your balanced posts.
Women should not be frightened into taking HRT, to its got to a point even for me that we are frightened to take it and frightened not to take it.
--- End quote ---
Thank you and yes I agree about this fear factor - lets remove it :) There isn't a right or wrong, there is only an informed choice. That, as you say is undoable. Hurray........freedom :)
peegeetip:
Nobody is frightening anyone into taking HRT!
You just have to do a few searches on this forum to see the extent of the problems out there on this site alone.
Any subject that deals with normally private parts of our lives is never going to read well to some.
We can't sugar coat some of the topics on what we've experienced.
As Brightlight has said a few times now, she can read and make up her own mind in her own time.
If she chooses either way it wont affect me directly.
I'll be glad for her and supportive either way on this forum.
HRT certainly affected me but also those around me.
I've said a few times I actually felt a failure at the start for taking HRT at all.
This was partly due to how my doc put it across to me but also a general feeling out there that we should put up with a lower quality of life (that I was decending into) and just get on with it.
This was just wrong for me and I see that now but thats my view.
This gets to the core of where I'm concerned about the way we see and treat peri and meno.
If someone started thyroid or type two diabetes drugs no one would raise an eyelid.
We'd take it gladly from our doctor and understand that our body was not working in the way we'd like.
Why is it when we get to the letter M for menopause we suddenly "loose" our minds and are wracked with the choice we've got to make?
Is it due to all the attitude to it, or the scare stories out there about BC etc(when we are told smoking and alcohol are far more damaging to that part of our body) or feeling less of a woman or the ignorance that exist etc etc.
I don't suddenly see all my friends drinking less or becoming teetotal btw.
So why such angst and soul searching about the HRT when other things impact our general health much more?
Perhaps some might look at these other dangers in context for their quest for the answer.
I for one have never had the same guilt trip on alcohol from my doc that I was given for HRT.
I find that quite unusual and quite a biased starting point already.
The only other thing in recent years that's come close to this situation of fear with peri and meno is the MMR debacle. Once parents gladly chose to have their children immunized. Then someone throws up a scare story and suddenly we all suddenly question the validity of this.
I'm not in any camp and certainly not pro anything apart from my DH and family that put up with me so far through my peri years so far (thank goodness).
This is a forum for discussion and we should not try to pigeon hole those who are trying to pass on their experience and understanding thus far.
I could pass judgment on others on the forum but that would be rude.
It is what it is ;)
If someone asks and I have time I will always try to pass on my thoughts and information.
If that requires me to back things up with another piece of information then I'll gladly provide it.
:-*
Dancinggirl:
Well said peegeetips
Honorsmum - I think you hit the nail on the head when you say "we only consider the menopause when we are in the eye of the storm" - probably not the easiest time to make rational decisions! There is so much debate and the scaremongering against HRT has been so powerful, it makes our decisions of whether to treat meno symptoms or not very challenging. For me HRT is the lesser of the evils - I would love to be one of those lucky ladies who either sail through the meno or just have symptoms for a couple of years. Only you can decide whether it's right for you or not - all I will say is "don't be scared of trying HRT - you won't know till you try it".
This thread asks 'Anyone had early menopause and not used HRT' - well my mother had a premature menopause and didn't have HRT - she is now 86 and though she has shrunk by about 4 inches she is actually quite fit and active and I'm sure there must be plenty of other women who had early/premature menopause out there who are also doing well.
janm - I am so sorry to hear that your had such a bad time and that HRT didn't help you - it doesn't suit everyone and it's a real shame you were not given better help. I do wonder if, had you had better advice and guidance in finding appropriate treatment, you might now be feeling differently?
I feel I must take issue with you about your comments regarding HRT and other drugs. You describe HRT as an "easy approach" and I find this somewhat condescending. This is implying that women are weak if they choose to treat their meno symptoms with HRT. All too often women are told by their GPs to "Ride the Storm". I think I read on a post that one women went to her GP complaining that sex was terribly painful and her GP told her she needed to have sex more regularly to toughen things up (or words to that effect) - frankly outrageous!!!! :( You talk about 'mothers little helper' and I assume you are referring to valium and other ADs? The modern types of ADs/SRRIs act in very different ways to the old fashioned types and are a valuable way to treat many forms of anxiety, depression and often menopause symptoms as well. If appropriately prescribed these drugs can and do offer great benefits, however taking ADs/SSRIs is still something that many feel is a sign of weakness and we need to change this view if we are to address society's attitude to depression, anxiety and support people with these problems better.
I have experienced life with and without HRT - i feel it is wrong to assume that you will just experience the bad symptoms later when you come off HRT. Nobody can tell us how long meno symptoms will last - for some it is a few months to 2 years, for others it can be 10 or more years. When is a good time to go through this stage - assuming the symptoms do return after HRT? In our 40s and 50s when we have to work, support our families and older relatives or later when we are retired and have more time to concentrate on ways to cope?
My first 3 year break from HRT (my lost years)was horrible, life was stressful at the time and I kept hoping the symptoms would subside - sadly they didn't. My second break from HRT 4 years later wasn't nearly so bad and I actually coped quite well apart from the terrible discomfort of the VA and urinary problems. I have always tried to eat well and do lots of brisk walking etc. but this time I was able to cut back on the amount of work I did - TBH I had to as I was getting so tired through lack of sleep. I decided to go back on HRT for a variety of reasons and I have to say life is sooo much better with HRT.
Have I taken the 'easy approach'? I need to be able to work for at least the next 7 years, I want to be a nice person to live with and not feel tetchy and tired all the time, I don't want to be constantly going to the GP in the hope I will get some magic treatment to help my VA and bladder problems and I want to cuddle my husband without feeling horribly hot.
At 58 I have made the informed choice, knowing there is a small risk of breast cancer, to take the 'easy approach' to getting my energy and quality of life back, not just for myself but also for my family and friends who depend on me being at my best. I am now able to do more work again as well which takes the pressure off my lovely husband.
As Hurdity rightly pointed out, the science and research is telling us a great deal about the ageing process and is trying to help us lead a longer healthier life.
IT IS ENTIRELY UP TO THE INDIVIDUAL WHETHER THEY CHOOSE TO FOLLOW RECOMMENDED ADVICE OR NOT. We are told to give up smoking but there are those that smoke and drink into their 80s and 90s without any real problems - our generation have been given more information and it's up to us to make positive choices or take the risks.
Time will tell whether HRT is a truly good idea or not - the research is now swinging more in favour on many fronts. None of us know what the future will bring - we just have to live in the here and now.
I feel terribly sorry for those who suffer bad meno symptoms and for one reason or another do not find a way to treat them - this is really tough.
What an awful ramble - so sorry :-\ Dg xxxxx
peegeetip:
Thanks DG, its good to better understand your journey.
But certainly not a ramble. You covered so much in your great post :)
I'm hoping by the time I get to 5 years I wont have any doc pestering me to have a break, cut down or stop (if thats why you stopped for a break).
Its a pity so few of us "sail our way through" ;)
Thanks
:-*
BrightLight:
--- Quote from: peegeetip on February 12, 2015, 05:43:11 PM ---Nobody is frightening anyone into taking HRT!
HRT certainly affected me but also those around me.
I've said a few times I actually felt a failure at the start for taking HRT at all.
This was partly due to how my doc put it across to me but also a general feeling out there that we should put up with a lower quality of life (that I was decending into) and just get on with it.
This gets to the core of where I'm concerned about the way we see and treat peri and meno.
If someone started thyroid or type two diabetes drugs no one would raise an eyelid.
We'd take it gladly from our doctor and understand that our body was not working in the way we'd like.
Why is it when we get to the letter M for menopause we suddenly "loose" our minds and are wracked with the choice we've got to make?
Is it due to all the attitude to it, or the scare stories out there about BC etc(when we are told smoking and alcohol are far more damaging to that part of our body) or feeling less of a woman or the ignorance that exist etc etc.
:-*
--- End quote ---
I totally respect where you are coming from and sorry that you were made to feel this way about taking HRT when you felt and have experienced it's benefit for you. I do disagree about the fear factor - I think fear plays a major part in the topic of HRT and I had no idea and wish it wasn't so. It should be offered and explained in the same way as any other treatment choice - this forum does a great job of helping women understand it all. I do think there is a lack of support for women that don't take it and find other ways, but perhaps that is because they don't engage online or because the only recognised options are medications of one sort or another (?)
I really can appreciate that we all approach things differently, I would not class the menopause in the same category as diabetes or thyroid conditions unless it was ovarian failure at a young age. These are real and permanent 'failures' of the body. Saying that, I also don't dispute that ongoing and challenging symptoms shouldn't be treated with hormone replacement, it is a hormonal imbalance and HRT is the proven remedy in medical terms. I do wonder why so many people on here don't seem to feel good though - that the imbalance continues in some way, but perhaps I am mis-reading and that's only at the start when sorting out the regime etc.
I also think that this forum is invaluable for anyone taking HRT - there is no way on this planet I could imagine visiting my doctor with all sorts of questions or concerns when taking it - I would be left to get on with it. That's another concern of mine - you ladies that 'manage' your own treatment are braver than I am and that's another aspect of the fear for me.
My partner recently had to start taking a medication and the side effects and changes to his body have been quite profound, it's the first time either of us have taken anything long term and I have to be honest it's caused so much stress. He feels unwell in a different way but isn't actually unwell (?) That's just what happens I suppose - he tried, as I will to balance things in life to avoid medication but it didn't work.
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