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[kittywells]

Hi, am hoping someone on here can help as my GP is utterly clueless!

I am on sequential HRT patches but have not had a bleed since late June. Since then have also experienced a return of bad menopause problems that made me go on HRT - flushes, insomnia, terrible moods and bloating, which the HRT had sorted when I started it following early menopause 4 years ago (at 43). Since then my periods are usually every 40 days or so ish, occasionally I miss a month but not more than one.

I am wondering what could have made my periods stop? I did go on a low carb diet for the month of July, but this was nothing extreme, and could this have made my periods stop for that long?

I was taking evorel 50 alternating with Evorel conti patches (2 weeks/2weeks as directed) in order to maintain my sequential HRT during the time that there were no sequi patches available over the winter and early spring. My GP's response was to go back on Evorel Sequi which is now available, but I don't see what difference this would make as sequi is just 50 and Conti in the same box?!  I did have a couple of months where I had to use estrogen gel instead of a patch but that was back in March-April and I am not sure that could be the cause of this disruption.

Anyone got any ideas what could help? I feel awful and really would like to restart my periods as I feel so much better on a cycle. Thanks

[Uptick]

Hi kittywells, I can think of two possible reasons, new Evorel patches are different from the old ones or your early menopause diagnosis wasn't quite right and you're now in full perimenopause with erratic ovarian function which can override HRT. I might be talking BS... so if you don't mind me asking, which Evorel 50 and Conti you were on, Janssen's or Theramex's ones? And how did you end up being diagnosed with early menopause? And the last question... when you swapped to gel for a couple of months, what did you take as the progestogen part of your regime? If nothing, then it can explain the sudden change in bleeding pattern.

[kittywells]

Thanks for your help Uptick. So, it was the Theramex Evorel conti and 50 I've been on this spring and summer when they came bacl on the market in April-May. Before that I had been able to build up a supply of theold conti patches so used them for the progesterone half of the month, so I never stopped the cyclical regime. they may have been a mix of Femseven and Evorel, I can't quite recall now. I did try Urtogestan in maybe January just a few days but I really didn't agree with it so kept to the patches.

I was originally diagnosed five years ago as I had completely stopped periods for a number of months and had concurrently experienced horrific hot flushes and other symptoms. Felt immediately better on HRT. No one seems to be able to explain why early menopause as no family history etc, but it had been a very stressful year or two before that with some mental health problems.

[Uptick]

Thank you for replying. Do you remember exactly how many months you'd been without periods? Maybe stress and mental health issues could have been the triggers for lack of periods.

[kittywells]

Hi Uptick. It had been several months, but I don't remember how many now. I also just remembered that I had two separate blood tests and both showed FSH in the range that indicated menopause had started in earnest - was referred to gyno consultant and she confirmed this.

[Uptick]

Thanks, kittywells. FSH levels fluctuate when we're still cycling, in perimenopause when ovaries go haywire and at the beginning of the menopause transition. To be certain that you're postmenopausal only 12 months without a period is a definitive criterion.