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[babyjane]

Ckld is so right here about unsuitable prescriptions.  I was 'fobbed off' with HRT and anti depressants unnecessarily 13 years ago when I did not need either, in order to get me out of the consulting room in my allotted 10 minutes instead of the doctor listening to me and finding out the real problem.  Being labelled in my notes as being a depressive when I wasn't meant I was not diagnosed properly for another 2 and a half years when I had to pay privately for a specialist who wrote to my GP in no uncertain terms that I was neither clinically depressed nor menopausal at that point.

[CLKD]

Bed-side manner can't be taught  !  10 min appts. are Government 'guide-lines' - since when have non-medical people know what happens behind the Surgery doors 

When a patient is vulnerable it isn't easy to ask for what we need.

[babyjane]

I now make a double appointment if I need to talk through something.

[Dacia Felix]

I whole heartedly agree with your post GRL,
and we actually weren't designed to have periods also , they serve no real purpose and DR Currie makes that point. I bet if this menopause business was the same for men and it involved things like their dangly bits atrophying and tearing , anxiety , night sweats and the rest HRT would be an NHS/ medical priority and all forms of HRT given free like the pill.   

Peppermintyxx

I  found the same idea in a book written by Malcolm Gladwell, can't remember the title. He mentioned a study on an African tribe where women had menstruation only a couple of times every 2-3 years because they were either pregnant or breastfeeding. Menstruation was an odd event for these women.
Anyway I am taking progesterone (Utrogestan)  continuously along estradiol (Oestrogel) five days a week, two days stop, to avoid bleeding. I intend to take this combo for my entire life if possibly. Suffice to say I don't have any menopausal trouble although  postmenopausal (57 years old).

[CLKD]

I do that too.  Our Practice is accommodating.

Would be nice if GRLee's GP got a menopause conference 'going' so that ladies can discuss  .  Maybe if GPs started such groups, like a stone in a puddle, information would spread out for everyone's benefit!

   Dacia Felix - I wonder at what age these girls were marrying/pregnant?  Also the pre-school age death rate in these countries?  Every day is a learning curve 

[Winterose]

I wonder too how much the pill and all the hormones that are /were given to animals may have further disrupted our hormone systems, fertilisers etc, etc, plus  suspect a lot of this was never talked about , its not exactly dinner time conversation even in todays enlightened times, read somewhere that when Queen Victoria died her prolapse was down around her knees - now theres a thought

[peegeetip]

If we could get away from calling peri/meno a "natural" process that would help a lot.

We should really call it a "wearing out" or "Age-associated loss or impairment" which would be much closer to the truth.

In all other aspects of our physiology we determine that if our functions fail and wear into our old age and this is to our loss.
Loss of function in our pancreas (type 2 diabetes) or thyroid disease are a good examples of this in other organs.

Only in respect to menopause do we encounter a widely held view that this impairment should be seen as a positive experience.

Unfortunately, without proper maintenance as in any "Age-associated impairment" we will mostly encounter an ever increasing list of chronic complaints associated.

We can wrap it up anyway we like to cushion ourselves but to ignore any loss will never help us in the long term.
It will only continue the confusion and taboo we currently see.

[CLKD]

Winterose - it is known that ABs etc. injected into cattle has a knock-on effect on humans as part of the food chain in the same way that nitrates in the soil and the various DDT-type poisons had on river courses and wild-life in general.  It is said that oestrogen excreted is found in rivers 

GRL - where are you ? 

[peegeetip]

"As far as I can tell lacking oestrogen will not kill you"

HRT is proven to reduce the risk of Large Bowel Cancer for one example... So I think that statement is wrong.

Given that this is a particularly difficult cancer to screen for without invasive procedures then if we can help prevent it in the first place then surely thats a good thing.

[babyjane]

Isn't this forum great that ladies from so many diverse backgrounds can explore their options and opinions safely without fear of prejudice and judgement.  I am so glad I joined   

[CLKD]

"A problem shared" and "It's good to talk" spring to mind (springs? to mind?)

It's good that this particular GP at least is talking about menopause. 

[peegeetip]

Discuss and expand our understanding.
 
 

[CLKD]

Sometimes it is difficult to understand though why our bodies have suddenly let us down 

[Briony]

"As far as I can tell lacking oestrogen will not kill you"

HRT is proven to reduce the risk of Large Bowel Cancer for one example... So I think that statement is wrong.

Given that this is a particularly difficult cancer to screen for without invasive procedures then if we can help prevent it in the first place then surely that's a good thing.

Am inclined to agree with you. Although, in the short term, you won't have the 'life or death' equivalent of  what a diabetic (for example) would suffer without their medication, long term estrogen deprivation can lead to what my doctor called 'incredibly serious damage to the heart' - which, I would guess (?) could ultimately be fatal. He said, even with my family history of stoke under 50 years, and suffering from migraines, in my early 40s I would still be putting myself in more danger by not taking HRT/the pill than taking it.

I also wonder whether there's any data which links undiagnosed hormonal issues with increased suicide risk?

On a different note, does anyone know what the criteria is for whether or not a medication is paid for? For example, my dad must take several tablets a day for a heart/circulation disorder (with 'life threatening' consequences if he doesn't take them) but he had to pay for his meds until he turned 60. Perhaps it's because things like diabetes and thyroid disorders are chronic? I find it weird that on HRT I had to pay for both the oestrogen and the Utrogestan, but switching to Qlaira, I get it for free, because it's officially a CCP (even though I take it as HRT and the oestrogen in it is identical to HRT oestrogen).  Cant remember if my inhalers are free or not - so long since I have needed them, but that's another example of a potentially life threatening illness for which you have to pay for meds (I do stand to be corrected on that - ages since I last needed them). Confusing!

B

[Briony]

Isn't this forum great that ladies from so many diverse backgrounds can explore their options and opinions safely without fear of prejudice and judgement.  I am so glad I joined   

Absolutely. Would be lost without you guys - the reassurance, the empathy, the humour, the knowledge, the voices of reason and even the kick-up-the-bums I occasionally need (especially when I have my 'help it's not working' wobbles!).