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Post by omaklackey on Oct 3, 2009 15:56:29 GMT -5
So I got to my apt. yesterday and got into an interesting discussion with the doctor. I have been spending a lot of time researching HRTs. Got on some various websites and got a book by dr. Lee. The risk of some terrible things like breast cancer and such like makes me think there is no benefit to the HRT's. I'm continuing my research but it seems highly foolish to eliminate the ovaries that were possibliy causing the endo to grow so proliferate, and just add estrogen right back into the body. The current [glow=red,2,300]HOT FLASHES[/glow] aren't so bad. As long as I don't start having massive mood swings I think I'm okay! I'm overweight so my body naturally produces a type of estrogen. My doctor tells me okay then lots not do any for now but at some point in time I should go on them. Why? Menopause is natural even when its been done surgically. There is some concern that there may be boneloss and the need to watch cholesterol and blood pressure early but I don't have any problems with any of these yet so as Long as I'm going in every six months for my asthma meds anyways they will be checking my blood pressure etc... at the same time. I also take calcium supplements and always have as well as multi vitamins. I have heard absolute horror stories about the HRT's, although some people tolerate them just fine. Its going to be a continuing quest for the most information on this issue that I can find! I will be sure and update as much as I can on this and see what happens.
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Post by staceys on Oct 3, 2009 16:07:26 GMT -5
In answer to your question of why? Estrogen is cardioprotective and one of the main factors why men have more heart attacks earlier than women. After menopause, heart attacks will even out a bit. Also my doc said that also estrogen plays an important role in brain function, but I cannot elaborate any further on the physiology behind that - perhaps Jenaya can add some input here.
I do agree with you though, why remove the ovaries just to pour more estrogen back in? It was my thought about why do Lupron and then add back. Perhaps it is b/c they can regulate the amount of estrogen you are taking, where as with your ovaries, perhaps us endo ladies just produce way too much. This is all a guess.
I applaud you for tackling this head on with no HRTs. I wish you the best of luck and years of relief!
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Post by omaklackey on Oct 3, 2009 16:46:25 GMT -5
Lower estrogen does make for a foggy brain. As far as the cadio protective factor. I'm doing some research on that as well. There as some different studies they have done on this and whether its true or not. Right now they are unsure of this even being accurate. Dr. Lee's book had quite a bit of info on this. I'm still wading through it becuase its not an easy read!
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Post by omaklackey on Oct 4, 2009 22:36:39 GMT -5
So as to Estrogen being Cardioprotective. Dr. Lee's book did some research on this and he is pretty convinced that there is NO cardio benefit to Estrogen and only some cardio benefit to natural Progesterone. Of course this same idiot is assuring everyone that ENDO is magically cured with Progesterone. I know we have had this topic up a lot and few people have had success with the Progesterorne treatments so... What to think?
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Post by omaklackey on Aug 19, 2010 12:52:30 GMT -5
So I went back to school in january to get my pre-reqs. for the nursing program and since I have an obvious intrest in this particular subject I did a huge research paper on HRT's and their use. The reason that HRT's are considered helpful for the cardiovascular symptoms is because they are believed to lower the LDL's or bad cholesterol. There is a lot of research on it though and the benefits vs. the contraindications is still up in the air. The link to HRT's and breast cancer and high blood pressure is interesting. High blood pressure of course is very bad for the heart so its counter to the lowering of LDL's. The HRT's do help with the absorption of calcium since Estrogen is essential to a womens body being able to absorb calcium.
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Post by msheathieliz on Jun 17, 2011 13:50:18 GMT -5
Estrogen does wonderful things for your body. When estrogen levels decline you get things like the hot flashes you're experiencing as well as night sweats, confusion, anxiety, etc. But estrogen affects the inside of your body, too. Estrogen helps keep your arteries clear and flexible. It keeps your cholesterol levels from going up, thus helping keep blood pressure low. This is why many doctors believe estrogen helps you on a cardiovascular level.
It HAS been suggested that high levels of estrogen over time will increase the risk of breast cancer and possibly other cancers. But you're not looking at maintaining a high level of estrogen for years to come. You're looking at just enough estrogen to stay in the safe zone. Hormone Replacement Therapy in the 50's and 60's was a chemically produced treatment that had a lot of negative side effects, especially in older people who became at risk for dementia. But nowadays most estrogens are natural plant-based, and much lower doses.
Your concerns are definitely valid, and they are questions you should ask your doctor about. I had the same questions and my doctor took the time to talk with me about them.
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Post by Karen on Jun 17, 2011 19:23:17 GMT -5
Although I haven't read through this whole thread in a while, I think it's incredibly important to point out that there is a HUGE difference between synthetic hormone replacement and bio-identical hormone replacement. There's all sorts of talk in the news about how bad HRT can be to women, but keep in mind that those studies focused on synthetic HRT only. Obviously, if you're on ANY type of HRT, it's best to talk to your doc and do the research, but just know that the doom-and-gloom studies about HRT are only one-sided!
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Post by omaklackey on Sept 25, 2012 20:09:04 GMT -5
Ladies, I need some serious honest input here. Ever since July when I was put on HRT's I have had very mixed thoughts about them. It hasn't helped with my mood swings at all but sex with the Premarin is SO much better. It was horrible before and kept getting worse due to the atrophy of the vaginal tissue. BUT now sex hurts so bad due to the lower back pain/cramps I keep waking up with. It used to be I went to bed hurting but woke up feeling better. Now I hurt every night and its getting worse. It was only after I had sex or took the Premarin the night before. Now I wake up every morning with these horrible cramps. How can I get FREAKING cramps when I have no Uterus and no ovaries! So I put in a call to the doctor. I think we are going to have go over there as I doubt they can do this over the phone but what I do I tell her about the HRT's. Do I keep going with the HRT's and just ask for more Progestin and see if it helps or do I tell her I'm done? I know this decision has to be made by myself eventually but please... any comments would be helpful. I need to talk through it with someone. The pro's and Con's of HRTs are so confusing.
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Post by hellsbells on Sept 26, 2012 14:43:18 GMT -5
Awww Karla I'm sorry you have the pain. I wish I knew more about this so I could help but I don't. The only thing is maybe finding other options for making sex more comfortable if that's what you're worried about.
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Post by Karen on Sept 26, 2012 18:28:49 GMT -5
Karla - In my opinion, if you're on something and it's causing new symptoms that alarm you, you should rethink why you're taking it. If you feel your new symptoms are to blame because of something else, consider going off the meds for a few days/weeks and see if your symptoms resolve. And obviously, talk to your doc about this. You need to know for certain if they are to blame. I know you've heard me talk about bio-identicals before, but if it were me, I'd only consider HRT with bio-identicals. Everything I've read about supplementing hormones says you should start at a low dose, increase slow, and only use as much as you need based on ongoing labs. Bio-identicals are the only type of HRT that alllow that to happen. When I was tweaking my levels, I could go up or down by as little as .5 mcg (depending on the hormone). With a prescription, you're kinda locked into their standard doses. On premarin, your labs will be off because it's a synthetic - it's hard to monitor and determine how much you actually need. I'd be hesitant to ask for more progesterone without knowing your levels, too, because too much of that can have its own side effects. However, I think having a good balance of estrogens/progesterone is critical when supplementing hormones. I'm just saying it's best to increase levels only when you know you should, not when you think you should. One more thing - premarin only has 2 types of estrogens (synthetic) in it. It's missing the third - which is critical for protection against the scary things that the HRT studies with traditional HRT have shown. The names are escaping me now, but with bio-identical hormones, you can be prescribed tri-est, which has all three types of estrogens in the right quantity. If you're planning on being on HRT for a long time, I would strongly recommend it. It's left out of premarin because it's thought to be the weakest form of estrogen and people thought it didn't do much, but it's very important to have! Hormones are all about balance, and when one is out of balance with the others, you're opening yourself up to other issues. I know you've heard about some studies about traditional HRT with premarin - the scary ones - there are so many out there in the medical community that are screaming to be heard that the third form of estrogen was excluded from the study. I can totally relate to uncomfortable sex, and how great it can be when the hormones get better. But, at the end of the day, you have to keep the long term health benefits in mind. In my opinion, it's worth having at least a discussion with your doc, and asking if you can go off your meds for a bit and have labs taken to know exactly where your levels are. Without that, both you and your doc are just guessing. If your doc isn't receptive to that, I can send you a few links to some doctors that are known to prescribe bio-identicals, as they are typically more knowledgeable. I know your options are limited due to your location, but you may even be able to find one that you only have to see once a year and can have labs done locally. Hormones suck. But when you can find the sweet spot, all the effort is totally worth it!
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Post by omaklackey on Sept 26, 2012 19:52:04 GMT -5
re Karen: I'm on a low dose 0.5 of bio synthetic four day patch. I'm only on Premarin one day a week, lowest dose possible for the vaginal dryness and atrophy. I would have a hard time giving up the Premarin because of the horrid itching that it fixed due to the dryness and vaginal atrophy. Only using the lowest dose, one day a week really limits its systemic effect!
So I'm already on the Bio's, and you already talked about them before in this thread and you are right. (Hence why Dr. Mos gave my bio-synthetics) I really hadn't thought about a "pill vacation" since that is a bad idea with hormones as I will immediately go back to menopause, hot flashes, mood swings etc. since I have no estrogen of my own. Its pretty dangerous too because of the risk of depression. I don't think it changed the mood swings to much but I'm not exactly the one to judge that? I keep asking my hubby if it helped!? Something is causing horrible cramping and I'm worried that there is Endo in there growing, because its getting fed a nice dose of estrogen. I don't know if more Progestin will help with that.
We have been working on the tight muscles in the pelvic area, front and back, in case it was a muscle sort of thing. But it only took a few days and we had worked out most of the kinks and ran out of sore spots.
I had horrible swollen breasts and even discharge but that has calmed down a little bit. They grew a size, so maybe that's a good thing? (I'm sure my hubby thought so but since they hurt so bad, I won't let him touch them, so maybe not).
I also went on the hormones hoping desperately that I could finally lose weight, instead I gained almost 15 pounds. That's with diet changes and all the exercise I have gotten this summer, hiking and swimming. Its horrible! I can't add weight to my already obese self. Stupid! I just hate not knowing what to do.
I know that Dr. Mos knows what she is doing but the whole thing was handled rather oddly. I know I should just trust her! I just don't know what to do.
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Post by Karen on Sept 26, 2012 20:27:52 GMT -5
Are you on any progesterone right now?
Did you know you can get bio identical estrogen in a cream to apply topically instead of premarin for the same kind of effect?
Has hyster sisters given you any useful info about this? Have you called your doc and expressed your concerns?
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Post by omaklackey on Sept 26, 2012 20:41:43 GMT -5
My insurance won't cover bio identical cream. I'm on a 5 mg. Norethinendron/Progestin currently.
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Post by omaklackey on Sept 26, 2012 20:45:50 GMT -5
I have called her once to tell her about the pain and she put me on the Progestin. I called her RN yesterday and left a message and talked to her RN this morning. She was to get back to me after she talked with Dr. Mos, but she called while I was in class. So I'm waiting... I did discuss all this with the hubby but his classic response is I don't know, and what I really need is to discuss back and forth what to do.
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Post by semicolon on Sept 26, 2012 20:58:40 GMT -5
Your insurance won't cover it? That's bs. Is that because it is usually compounded? I'm not very knowledgable on hormones but I do think working with the doc on this one is the best plan. I'm sorry you feel so lost on all this, but I think Dr, Mos is both very good and very busy- keep talking it out with her and the staff until you feel like you have a good handle on the plan.
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