So, I'm on the last birth control pill I ever care to try. I thought maybe my body hated progestin, so I asked for Ovcon-35 or something similar. I ended up on generic Balziva for it (35mcg estradiol, 0.4mg norethindrone). I asked for it because it's one of the few packs available with the lowest potency progestin, and it also is under 1mg. I figured, if I'm progestin intolerant, this might be the only one that will work. None of the "Fe" family worked for me (i.e. Lo Loestrin Fe, etc.), and I started on 10mcg estradiol, then 20, and 30, etc, each with somewhat increasing norethindrone acetate. Nurse makes me wait 2 months on each pack before she'll let me switch. Last pack was Velivet, which was triphasic with desogestrel, which turned out to be one of the the most potent progestins. It stole my ability to sleep...at all. And I already suffered insomnia. Which led me to beg for Trazodone. Ah, sleep at last! But the depression ultimately is still in my life. Hence, I wanted to try dropping the progestin potency this time and cutting its dose even further.
I ended up refusing to go on the second pack of Velivet, and started on Maca to reboot my ovaries. It took a couple of weeks, plus a second random period, but suddenly my mood began to improve. I got a week off from being depressed! Interestingly enough, my libido came back a bit, which I haven't had in over a year really. It wasn't that impressive, but it was something. Early last week I suddenly couldn't sleep much even with Trazodone, but didn't care because I was crazy happy. Extremely wired, but happy.
I started the current Balziva pack the day after the wired-out happy insomnia started. The first 3 days the positive mood continued. By day 4, though, I was slipping again. Today, I feel terrible. Very sad, depressed, struggling to fight away the anxious/traumatic thoughts. I suspect my ovaries booting back online caused a spike in...estradiol?...that enhanced Trazodone's antidepressant properties. And now that the birth control is taking over, the happy feelings are gone. One would think 35mcg estradiol would be more than enough to make me happy (especially after the mere 10mcg I started on so many months ago). But, if I'm intolerant to even such a small amount of progestin, that could explain some things.... Or, an absorption problem with the pill form of estradiol?
I know it can take months to find out if something is working, but feeling worse again stinks. Anyway, as I resist the temptation to not stop this pill pack early and go back on the Maca, I'd like to prep for the next OBGYN nurse appointment in a little under 2 months. Yes, it's very pessimistic of me to assume this pill won't work after only 5 days, but I'm used to all these pills failing me at this point. I'm honestly not confident in any of it anymore.
Anyway, I need information to help me steer the nurse practitioner in the right direction. When I was last in the office, she was contemplating putting me on just the Mirina coil by itself, or just micronized progesterone by itself, with ZERO estradiol. (Why, God, why?) I'm hoping I can talk some sense into her. I have a feeling that will go very, very badly. No doubt, the hot flashes will return if she does that, and I who knows if I'll just get even more depressed.
So, some of you in perimenopause have been helped by the Prof John Studd way of doing things? Transdermal patches or creams for estradiol, and low dose micronized progesterone? The most intolerable symptom I have is the unrelenting 24/7 depression. It never stops. It's such a fight to get through each day, and I can only hope I don't have anxious thoughts in my sleep that turn into nightmares. (And yes, I saw a shrink. For what good that did. CBT just made me cry because the beach I was supposed to imagine was empty and lonely.) I know it's possible to be happy again. I've tasted it. I got a week off from feeling crazy. I want my life back. I'd trade having the hot flashes return and the heart palpitations and even the muscle weakness in exchange for being happy. Even being a happy insomniac is so much more tolerable than being depressed and sleeping on Trazodone.
For those of you who have had a consult with Prof Studd or someone who adheres to his school of thought, what is the first thing I should try with the nurse? Do I still want to stop ovulation? What's a good starter dose of estradiol and micronized progesterone? Do I want only the vaginal kind of progesterone? Or is that being too shy? How about testosterone (if I can even get her to give it to me)?
Thank you so much for your help/advice. I wish I were in the UK so I could see Prof Studd for myself. Alas, I have to endure the US doctors who all seem oblivious to the latest and greatest research. I appreciate any ideas you have to offer based on your own experiences.
Sorry this post was long. I'm just putting out my experience so far in case someone has an insight I didn't think of. Thanks again!