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[rozzer63]

Hi all I am 63 and was diagnosed with anxiety, which in turn, led to depression in Sept last year.
All due to COVID and not being able to see my children who live abroad.
Without wishing to sound smug I think I got off lightly when I went through the menopause around the age of 52 and have never suffered with hot flushes or any other symptoms to speak of. I have used Vagifem for a number of years tho for vaginal atrophy.
I am currently taking a low dose anti depressant and undergoing therapy and although both help I am still not back to my old self and the last 8 months have been horrendous.
At a follow up visit to my GP last week she suggested I try HRT so I have been prescribed two pumps of Oestrogel per day  and 2 x 100 mg of Utrogestan for the first 10 days of the month.
Of course when I read the accompanying leaflets I was scared half to death by the side effects, particularly as one of them was depression!
I’m not 100% convinced HRT is the way forward for me and would like to hear from anyone who may have had a similar experience and can offer some advice?

[Dotty]

Hi welcome to the forum  .

Your GP sounds like a good one to be offering you HRT , as many wouldn’t and would say that you are too old. HRT has made such a difference to me, so I would say give it a try.

The only thing I would question is the Utrogestan. As you are post menopause then you should be taking 100mg of Utrogestan every night. You have been prescribed the dosage for peri menopause / someone still having periods. X

[sheila99]

I think your doctor is probably right. My anxiety was due to low oestrogen (cured by hrt) so IMO hrt would be worth trying. Agree there's no need for a bleed but doing it this way you can tell if utro causes you any problems. You can always change to a conti regime once you know you're OK on it.

[rozzer63]

Thanks for your quick replies ladies. Do you mind me asking if you started HRT in your sixties?
Also, how long does it take to have an effect and will I bleed when I stop taking the Utrogestan every month? I have a great GP but she was a little rushed when I saw her so I didn’t get to ask her many questions.

[CLKD]

I think that we can forget the age, it's a number.  Many GPs still believe that there is a cut off point for HRT ........ because they aren't up to date!

H.replacement.T - worth trying.  I would however, ring your GP - one shouldn't EVER feel rushed! that is their problem, it shouldn't become ours.  I never read the leaflets until I get side effects  . Everything has side effects or drugs wouldn't work ;-).

Let us know how you get on.  Which AD are you taking and how much?  If my mood is low for more than 3 mornings I up my dose from 10mg at night and 5mg in the morning to 10 night and morning.  If the mood continues to be low: which is its' usually : after 5-6 days, I would speak to my GP.