Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Sarokel]

Hello lovely people, my specialist has increased my estrogen to a patch and a half so 150mcg in total. I was on 100 mcg patches but was still burning up at night. Not just intermittent patches but it's like I'm a 1000 degrees all night. To put it in context we are on holiday in Aberdeenshire and are in a wooden house on a peninsula in the North sea in October. I'm sleeping naked with the heating off and still waking multiple times a night because "too hot"    last night was the first night on a patch and a half and I've woken up this morning really zoned out. Might just be coincidence but I'm wondering if it's the increase. Anyone else in surgical menopause who needed a higher dose of HRT? I'm 48 and went into surmeno at 46. I can't tolerate progesterone due to PMDD. I've had everything out so no womb to worry about

[Gnatty]

Hi there, I'm in surgical menopause since June. I'm 55 and I have increased my oestrogel to 5 pumps. I think that might be a rough equivalent to 125 mcg patches so just slightly less. I bet the zoned out feeling is a result of increasing so if you can stick with it should settle down. I did find I had to increase after my operation. Just thinking about it, that's quite a big jump up all in one go. So no wonder you'll notice side effects. With the oestrogel I went from 3.5 pumps up to 4 then 4.5 and finally 5. So more gradual. I was still having periods so I think it was quite a hormone crash after my op. So were you ok for the first couple of years after your operation, and it's only recently you have been having trouble?

[Sarokel]

Hia Gnatty, thank you for the reply. No I don't think the dose I was on entirely controlled my symptoms but I just kind of put up with them. Initially I was on the gel using 4 pumps and then it stopped working pretty much altogether which was awful. I had major anxiety, felt weepy and depressed just awful. I changed to patches which stopped the emotional issues but not the sleep issues, the doc has tried me on mitrazapine and amitriptyline for the sleep issues but both left me with other side effects that I wasn't happy with. I crossfit and lift weights so I'm wondering if a drop in body fat has affected my absorption. Anyway I got to the point where I was totally fed up with having disrupted sleep do spoke to a specialist I'd seen previously who said to up the dose so here we are now, slightly fazed and blurry! Like you I was still in a normal cycle when all was wipped out, so a bit of a sudden change. I think I was so grateful to not be constantly bleeding or having pmdd issues that I just put up with night overheating and restless sleep. Right now I want to really enjoy life though. I have heard that some of us in surgical menopause need a higher dose of Estrogen to feel normal. How are you generally?

[sheila99]

You may (or may not) need that much oestrogen but you may feel better if you increase more slowly so your body can adjust to it. You could try a quarter patch and increase again if you find you need it. Some people seem to need higher levels to feel well and others just don't absorb it well.

[Gnatty]

Hi Sarokel, thank you for asking - I am feeling well at the moment but you might have seen from my other posts that after my hysterectomy and oophorectomy I was very ill with anxiety. After an unsuccessful trial with Sertraline I settled very well on Mirtazapine. Yes it made me sleepy at first but it has really helped me get through probably the hardest time in my life. Hopefully will wean off it on the Spring. We shall see. I forgot to say I also take testosterone.

[Sarokel]

Ah that's brilliant, I'm so glad your anxiety is better. I found mitrazapine amazing for sleep but I was hungry to unnatural level all the time which was really quite uncomfortable and I became forgetful. It's funny how some things work brilliantly for one person and not another. This is why we need to keep an open mind

[Sarokel]

You may (or may not) need that much oestrogen but you may feel better if you increase more slowly so your body can adjust to it. You could try a quarter patch and increase again if you find you need it. Some people seem to need higher levels to feel well and others just don't absorb it well.

If I still feel weird in a day or so I will x

[Gnatty]

Yes it made me forgetful at first but luckily it wore off after a few weeks.

[Salad]

I’m prescribed high dose Oestrogen because I absorb so badly.
I currently use Estradot 200mcg and Lenzetto Spray x 3 sprays a day. I’ve also had Tostran added into the mix to help me feel well.

It really isn’t the dose but the symptom control - I’m lucky to have an excellent Menopause Trained GP.

It’s worth giving the increase time to settle Sarokel, hope you feel better soon x