Hi and alibeau
At your age Clonidine is not the right treatment - your GP is quite wrong to give you an AD instead of HRT unless you have a strong family history of breast cancer or any other health problems that prevent you using hormones.
HRT is the front line treatment for menopause symptoms. You can use HRT until at least 60 with very few risks and actually coming off HRT when deeper into post menopause (so late 50s or early 60s) can be easier for many women as life can sometimes be a bit less stressful and you can concentrate on lifestyle choices more. If you are still working full time then it's probably wise to stay with HRT till you stop working.
You are young to be oestrogen deficient so HRT would be advisable to protect you heart and bones for the long term - an AD can give side effects (weight gain, feeling numb or drowsy, dry mouth etc.) and is not easy to come off. Nobody can tell you how long menopausal symptoms will last and for some women the symptoms never truly subside. Quality of life is very important so don't think about when or if you ever come off HRT but think about living life to the full NOW.
WE get asked all time about what will happen when you stop HRT and at 62, having stopped HRT 2 years ago, I can say that my flushes are greatly reduced but the effects of oestrogen deficiency continue to cause problems, as they do for most women - menopause is permanent. Some mown sail through the peri meno stage to then develop all sorts of oestrogen deficiency problems in their mid 60s and beyond. Urogenital atrophy ( caused by a lack of oestrogen) can be very distressing and many of us will be using local oestrogen for the rest of our lives. I am very grateful that I had HRT when I did as it enabled me to tackle all the stresses I had in my life at that time.
Think about the here and now - the future will take care of itself. ADs are not the right thing for you unless you have clinical depression. So I strongly advice you pop back to your GP to discuss HRT. Femoston 1/10 is a good one to try first.
Dg x