Morning
I’ve been on HRT for about 18 months. About a year ago my progesterone was changed to Utrogestan due to awful anxiety. At the same time I was put on short term diazepam and longer term anti-depressants to help with the anxiety. Fast forward several months and the anxiety had calmed but the depression had become worse. I came off the tablets as the side effect list included depression (!) and felt better for a while.
Fast forward to now and I feel absolutely awful. I’m totally uninterested in most aspects of life. I work at home and I’m desperate to get out of the house but then when the opportunity arises I don’t want to. I’ve stopped exercising, piled on loads of weight and I’m flat and tearful often. I don’t walk my poor dog as I can’t seem to get myself out of the door. I have trouble getting out of bed and some days motivation and concentration are virtually non-existent which is not at all helpful for my quite involved job. My jaw is so tight with tension and I think I’m grinding my teeth in the night.
I really feel like the HRT is playing a big part in this and I’m considering removing the current patch and leaving it at that. I inject three times a week for a condition and I’m just sick of being full of chemicals.
Are there any real reasons that I shouldn’t just stop HRT?
I am so sorry to hear you are feeling so low. Have you told your GP? It is important you get support through this.
I can see your dilemma about stopping HRT because if low oestrogen is contributing to your depression then stopping the HRT will not be helpful for you. It is also possible the ultrogestan is contributing to your depression as it can have this effect on some people. If you do feel it is the HRT then it is a good idea to stop it just to see how you feel. You can always go back on it if you wish too.
You may like to hire a dog walker to walk your dog just to help put your mind at rest over that. The more support you have the better you will feel as it will take some pressure off you.
