We always hear about voice deepening, more facial hair, or hair loss, which I think scares people off, but have you noticed anything different with muscle mass (like maintaining what you have, or building more)? Or feeling more energized?
It’s great to know it’s helping with libido!
Hormone levels don’t really factor in during perimenopause. You could look at BCP/IUDs, or taking progesterone to help regulate/stop periods if bleeding is persistent. Otherwise, I suggest getting your iron levels checked as well.
Some find the better placement is upper back hip, where it doesn’t rub so much against clothing. Absorption seems to be better on fattier areas.
If you’re hot flashes are not MUCH improved in the next few weeks, then that dosage is not right for you. What is the dosage? You’re on the combipatch right?
I updated this section…
Yay! Hope you feel better soon.
Thanks for sharing that…I’ll take a look!
You’re welcome! It’s a long read, but hopefully easier to navigate.
Yes! Good for you for advocating for yourself! The side effects of MHT are actually very mild, and as your doctor stated, are usually only present the first few weeks.
My advice, slap the patch on and forget it…like try not to think about it, or relate it to anything you might be feeling (weird twinges, or whatever). Just keep busy and then over the course of a week or two…see how you feel overall, don’t focus on the day-to-day weird blips that come and go.
And keep us posted!
It’s great that menopause is coming up in prominent news feeds, but “having a moment” seems a bit diminishing, like it’s a temporary thing.
Hormonal testing only shows what your hormones were doing on the day the test was taken – nothing more. So your levels don’t mean anything really. You know you’re post-menopausal after you’ve gone 12 full months without a period, and that’s it. There’s no other test that confirms this. It’s just being w/o a period for 12 months.
So if you still have periods (even irregular), you are in perimenopause and not post-menopausal at all.
You never know, they may be feeling somewhat the same way, but just don’t want to share that information. Talking about our vulnerabilities is hard and when we do, we worry about other’s perceptions…like will they think I’m depressed? a whiner? So we put our best foot forward, smile and try to be in the moment, but it’s hard. Then there’s the person who seems perfectly put together, capable and exudes confident happiness. You just never know what’s going on inside, what their fears or worries are. It’s hard to stop making comparisons.
I like to think that knowing when to take a step back, and realizing you just want to be alone at home and feel whatever emotions…could be a superpower too. Like we enjoy our own company and that is enough.
I wonder if the more ‘social’ folk notice a distinct difference now in menopause. For me, I’ve always had a smaller social circle and preferred to be at home rather than out at different events, etc. I think the covid isolation contributed to being more of a homebody for a lot of people. Too much noise, too much stimulation, too much nonsense can really feel like an assault to our senses and our tolerance levels.
Well don’t feel guilty for thinking those thoughts, I think we can all relate.
yeah for sure, let me know how it goes!
I would think that taking it every so often should be fine, but because the Mirena more than adequately covers the progesterone side of things, you may also get some negative side effects from the extra progesterone. (increased anxiety/depression/bloat). I don’t think the progesterone tablet takes time to “build-up” in your system before it starts working, so you should notice sleepy effects shortly after taking it, but make sure you take it before bed.
yes, progeterone is a little round pill. Some insert it vaginally instead to lessen any side effects, but not everyone experiences side effects, the most prominent one is that you feel more sleep (if taken orally).
c/menopause is pretty much self-explantory
Yes it’s a constant struggle to get doctors on board! Good luck with your appointments :)
Hey I thought I responded, but maybe it didn’t save. Are you still using the black cohosh? You want to be careful with that as high dosages may increase risk for liver damage.
For ‘typical’ starter dosages of hormones, you want to go with an estrogen-only patch. The lowest dose is 0.025, then 0.0375 (in some brands), then 0.050, 0.075, 0.1mg. Generally it’s a good idea to start with the lowest dose, and if symptoms are persistent after 6 weeks or so, then you’d want to increase to the next level.
If you have a uterus, then you also have to progesterone. The common (lower risk) progesterone is Prometrium, and dosages are 100mg daily (which is standard). This is only increased if the dosage of estrogen goes up to around the 0.1mg range. Otherwise 100mg daily is good for any of the lower dose estrogens.
It is hard to determine ‘what is contributing to what’ in menopause, and it’s all a juggling act trying to balance out medications, vitamins, diets. It sounds like you are figuring it all out though! And it’s great you found a doctor who is willing to prescribe T.