Hi all. I'm new to this forum and hrt but have been reading around the site and other forum posts. I just wanted some advice/support re changing to sandrena gel 1mg. My GP prescribed elleste duet 1mg about 7 weeks ago after I requested hrt in the hope of sorting my life out a bit! I am 50 with irregular periods and have been having hot flushes at night for years with the occasional hot flush during the day, mostly in the mornings. Apart from not sleeping at night without some sort of help (half a nytol or a nurofen - I am very sensitive to anything that makes you sleepy and could sleep for days on a single nytol!), and lots of aches and pains I thought I was managing the perimenopause ok. Until 8 weeks ago when I had a stressful event and then spent 4 days at home in floods of uncontrollable tears for no apparent reason. After searching around on the internet and reading lots of posts on this amazing forum it suddenly dawned on me that it was likely my hormones were causing all this.
So, long story short, I asked my GP for some hrt and she prescribed elleste duet 1 my which I took for about 7 weeks. Felt sick and dizzy with the first couple of weeks but after the first couple of a days slept a baby for the first time in years and no hot flushes. Then took the progesterone tablets and felt even more sick and dizzy, but kept going. Onto the second pack and managing to hold it all together, then out for dinner last weekend and was engulfed by hot flushes, nausea and dizziness. Then last week sitting at work with hot flushes coming at me every couple of minutes, feeling very sick and dizzy. Next morning, major panic attack, nausea, and crying all the time. Saw another GP who was lovely and listened sympathetically as I used up all her tissues (!) and then suggested I try sandrena gel 1mg with 200mg utrogestan for 12/14 days a month. Moved over to these on Friday evening starting with the utrogestan as I had already taken 2 of elleste duet progesterone tablets, and then used the sandrena gel on Saturday morning. Same routine Saturday night and this morning.
The utrogestan made me feel a bit heavy headed Saturday morning which eventually wore off and same this morning but less so, so looking good as nausea and dizziness has eased up _ hurrah! However, I have been sitting here all morning with wave after wave of hot flushes which has unsettled me completely and I feel panicky and weepy (the latter most likely because I was really hoping to get back to work tomorrow as I feel such a fraud).
Oh dear this has turned into such a long post - so sorry. My question (finally!) is whether it might be that the Sandrena gel just isn't doing it for me? I thought that 1mg in elleste would be the same as 1mg sandrena. Or is it just that I've got it bad this week? I can honestly say I have never felt so bad!
I'm struggling to leave the house, which is so alien to me. Can I opt out of my 50s and jump straight to 60?!
Any advice would be appreciated.
Thank you