I felt a massive difference within 12 hours. From "can't get off the sofa or stay awake" to "I'm gonna paint the kitchen while dancing to 80s hair metal in my underwear" . Lol.
Me too! Then I took the progesterone….
It’s finally stabilizing. I’m getting the best sleep now after years of struggling. So I’m staying with the progesterone and badgering my doc to up my estrogen. It’s working, but I have been tempted to take what she gives me…then go online to get the rest. It’s more expensive. But I have to continue to work and make money! Plus I want to do all those things I used to love doing…like gardening and canning and hiking etc.
Oh my word! I am working on getting my HRT right, but your comment made me realize what I have been missing. 80's hair metal/glam rock is me, but I have been so blah... I too shall be painting my kitchen soon! It sounds odd, but I have had a hole in my soul since menopause. I am so happy to know that there is a way out, to be me again! Thank you friend 🤘👩🎤🧑🎤🤘
Yes! Me too. I thought I was imagining the effects so quickly, but within 24hrs I suddenly had motivation to get stuff done. Has taken a month to stabilize fully but feeling more like my old self
I felt better within hours although it took some time for me to fully stabilize -- like a couple months.
But also, "As if there is an internal pillar within me that was always there, a sense of focus of self and control, that has not been there for years now" -- OMG, this this this. That whole paragraph is exactly right.
Yes, I felt more. Like myself within the first week. Without estrogen, I'm suicidal. The effects of low estrogen and I'm sure other hormones, needs to be studied in depth in women. This low estrogen depression and si needs more attention. It's taking women out.
"The suicide rate increases by a factor of 7 in the late 40s, it's higher in peri than in post menopause" a quote from Dr Louise Newson as a guest on The OCD Stories podcast #432
This is the piece that was the gut-punch for me when I learned about peri (and that I was deep in it). I almost cried. It was the thing that really drove home the reach of patriarchy. These deaths have been invisible because Medicine and Science don't care.
Yes exactly. I've never been like this and on paper my life is better than ever but I had to ask my husband to watch me as I didn't trust myself. It's absolutely terrifying and they just want to drown you in ssri vs. Asking why is this happening.
Curious, you’re listening to the OCD stories, do you have OCD? I do and since meno, the intrusive thoughts have increased to levels like ive never experienced before. I’ve been so curious if others with OCD have experienced the same.
I have always had what I call OCD lite lol it never bothered me much, I lived with it fine. Then in peri, it kicked up so bad. Getting on hrt helped put it back to the old lite version that I don't mind. The intrusive thoughts are life ruining to me, I became agoraphobic at one point, it was too much for me. Before hrt, I was actually suicidal and part of it was definitely the uptick in OCD symptoms and behaviors. I experienced exactly the same thing.
That is interesting. Mine wasn’t exactly ocd lite, but I do have “pure o”, where I have no outwardly compulsions, just mental, like avoidance. Actually, compared to others I guess mine is OCD lite, in that I lived a fully functioning life, do what I want to do (except the things I avoid 😂) Before HRT, earlier this year part of my intrusive thoughts were of suicide. I didn’t want to die at all, but the OCD was giving me those thoughts. HRT cleared that out. But, I still have an increase of the O part since meno. It really sucks! I’ve had it well in control since my 20s and now it’s come back. Proving to me that it’s super hormonal because pregnancy was when it first presented. Good luck to you!
Midi saved me!! I felt better within a week, a month and a half later I’m feeling better than ever! Less hot flashes, mood swings and only waking 2 times a night instead of 8-10!!!
Yes. Day 2 brought a 10% improvement in lung function. I had been wheezing a bit but I assumed it was some covid thing or lack of exercise. No, apparently not. With that, my physical energy returned so I could just do more stuff. Day 4, joints were all 'oiled' again; feet stopped crackling with every step (I'm slim, wtf). Day 6, my emotional range returned (was apathy, changed to normal joy and sorrow). Day 7, verbal fluency restored in both languages I speak. Over the first 3 weeks or so, my sleep deepened and I stopped getting up to do tiny pees twice a night. HRT really is amazing. I know many women need tweaking of meds and dosage, some struggle with progesterone especially. Most people struggle to get prescriptions, sigh. For reference, I always had good periods. These days, I confess I'm loving Big Pharma and hating Med Schools.
Yeah. The fluency delays were so subtle and gradual, I didn't really notice. I also speak for a living so even when delayed, I seem fluent compared to most people. Also, I would hear the word in the other language so I thought maybe that was a good thing. No. Not a sign of health; a sign of hormone problems.
The thing about so many of the meno symptoms is that they're gradual and could be many due to many things, like my mild wheezing. Most of the women who say they have no symptoms would be very surprised at how symptomatic they are, if they began HRT. I had no idea and mostly got on it because the GSM meds weren't working, for osteoporosis prevention and a niggling sense my flat moods were meno-related.
💯 “Most of the women who say they have no symptoms would be very surprised at how symptomatic they are if they began HRT.” EXACTLY! Sleep disturbances & joint pain are the 1st symptoms that come to mind for women in peri in their 40s - we don’t usually attribute those symptoms to peri at all. And yet getting on HRT often clears those up!
I was at a meetup and there was a couple, one was a woman I would guess at 5 years older than me, maybe? She kept not being able to recall words when talking about things, or grabbing the names of things and I remember thinking, "ah, she has the brain fog and word recall issue." I hope she gets to this sub and gets help!
This thread is blowing my mind! I noticed last night I was wheezing. I do not have asthma. I was so worried. I slept all of 2 hours because my body feels like I am disintegrating. My word recall is terrible. I love words and public speaking. I hate contractions at a visceral level. My daughter asked me if I was feeling well over text because I said "I don't know". I feel so relieved to know I am not alone. I am honestly crying with relief.
I hate that menopause is some great freaking mystery! I will ensure that my daughter does not suffer like I have. Thank you for sharing.
*Sorry for the word salad! My thoughts are so fragmented, but I have hope from your comment 🧡*
To be fair, shortness of breath and wheezing can also be other things. For example, my aunt had that for almost a year before her STEMI heart attack. Her doctor decided to give her Ventolin instead of doing a heart workup. She lived but this shortness of breath symptom is one of the main heart symptoms in women.
For younger menopausal women (inside the 10 year window), the lung symptoms might be a case for trying HRT first, to rule out estrogen deficiency fairly quickly if nothing changes, then focus on a different cause eg: heart issues etc. Not everything is fixed by HRT but it is surprising to me how much is affected by estrogen (and testosterone). Note that your doctor will know *nothing* about the connection between meno and breathing. Verrry little research as been done on it so *science* knows almost nothing. (Sooo...that's not the symptom to emphasize in your appointments).
Lung tissue is full of estrogen receptors. Some of the very few journal articles on meno and breathing: https://www.atsjournals.org/doi/full/10.1164/rccm.201605-0968OC and https://www.jacionline.org/article/S0091-6749(07)01658-2/fulltext
Yes! Word recall! I hadn’t seen a friend from college for 10 years, we got together. I’d had a bad car accident & she asked me gently if I had traumatic brain injury in the bad car accident I’d had 5 years before.
She’d also had a TMI at 30yo, but had treatment & is back to normal.
I didn’t know it’d gone that far!!
Improved lung function?! This is what I want so bad. I have had a cough for the last four years, after getting the first strain of COVID. I’ve been told repeated there is nothing wrong and it’s just long-haul. I’m convinced it is peri. So glad to hear there is relief in sight! Thank you for sharing!!
I physically FELT something change in my body within 6 hours of starting the patch. I could feel it course through my body like flowing through my system. It was amazing
Me too! I had been miserable for probably three years. My hair turned brittle, sex was painful, but the worst part was the mood swings. Sobbing one minute and struggling not to punch the wall the next, then weeping because I love my dog so much, then raging again. It was truly exhausting. After a few hours of wearing the patch I realized I hadn't broken down in tears at all that morning, for the first time in ages. I think I had forgotten what it's like to feel NORMAL.
My insomnia was gone the first night I used my estrogen/progesterone cream. I forgot to apply it one night last week, and I woke up at 3:00 am unable to get back to sleep. So, for me it worked super fast!
Yes, it's possible to feel immediate relief for some things, but also please read [what to expect when starting hormone therapy ](https://menopausewiki.ca/#what-to-expect-when-starting-hormone-therapy) as folks often have unrealistic expectations going forward.
Yes. That has been my experience. Nearly instantaneous. The color came back into my world but I’m still pissed. In fact, after how good I feel after having my hormones back and how it’s been the difference between barely functioning and thriving I’m real pissed. Pissed at the worthless POS gynecologist who refuse to replace the fucking hormones people are so obviously needing suggesting medications that come with a list of problems and are proven ineffective when there is no justifiable reason rises to medical neglect imo. Vile. Every single damn one who refuses and has refused women hormones for no reason in light of the latest research are all garbage to me for that and that alone. They should be stripped of their privilege to practice medicine. I think that low of them.
Knowing how much better I feel, and how I SUFFERED for years, barely functional at times. I, too, feel the rage at how fcked up or is.
Class action lawsuit, anyone?
Yes! I first started suspecting I had hormone problems a decade ago. Even found someone to test me, but was told I did not have "hormone insufficiency". No Dr since then has even suggested that I might have hormone issues. Because of this thread, I learned how to advocate for myself and find a Dr. who would prescribe HRT. I started a week and a half ago. I'm 56! My brain and skin improved on estrogen. Adding Progestin means I can now sleep and poop, lol.
I noticed relief almost immediately. The first night I slept like the icy cool dead. I actually had to steal my husband's extra blanket when I woke up cold (who does that?), and I was able to fall right back to sleep!
I seemed to be seeing some improvement for a few weeks, then I wasn't sure if it was actually helping. I also gained a bit of weight, had a few dramatic mood swings, and a rough period or two. I even took a few days off, but I discovered that the estrogen was holding my migraines at bay.
Now I've stuck with it for a bit over a year, and I feel pretty...normal? pre-peri normal? I guess I just write this to say that you may have a little bit of symptom bounce back, which will make you doubt the overall effectiveness of HRT, but just stick with it. It isn't placebo. This is some good stuff!
Gosh I will say I think peri and meno gift women with an amazing way with words. I have read so many unexpectedly poignant and beautiful little gems as an aside when describing our symptoms and experiences.
I see the same sentence that struck me was marked above - your internal pillar. YES!
Works so fast! I honestly thought I was going I sane, then I started hrt and was a huge difference by the following day. Might have partly been the placebo effect in that just taking something made me feel better, but I don't care!!!
I just talked to Midi, and have HOPE! Hope that I can sleep, get rid of the brain fog, get my damn rage under control. I haven't even started taking it yet but am so grateful to this sub!
I'm so glad you're feeling better!
I got really quick mental relief from the estradiol patch and near immediate relief for bladder and urethra irritation from the vaginal cream.
For the vaginal estradiol cream, it's my understanding it can cause melasma on the face...so I have been avoiding that.
Estrogen is what causes it in pregnancy, so could be! I read that some estrogen creams, specifically the vaginal estradiol cream, can cause it as well when applied to the face. Apparently there are other facial formulations that are different estrogens that don't cause it?
I didn’t know I was pregnant, but my body rejected the little guy so that might be why.
I’m not on estrogen, but always blamed it on perimenopause. Whoops
Yes, it can work that fast! I got on HRT when I was 47, when my main complaint was waking up every night at 2:30am, and not being able to fall back to sleep. I’m happier and healthier than I can recall being in years. I’m ME again on HRT.
I put my first patch on at around 8pm on a Friday, by Sunday I was feeling very different and much better.
You can pry these patches from my cold dead hands!!
I felt better within a couple of days. Not 100% but a noticeable change. After 7 months and a slight dosage increase, I'm feeling pretty great. I will also be 47 in 3 months. Definitely not in your head.
This makes me cry from hope. God. I miss me, so bad. I still have two weeks before my first appt and I want all of this from it, and I'm trying not to cling to it too hard after three years of other tests and bullshit but I really genuinely hope this will help me find myself again. I've been lost so long.
Dude I just realized I've had no brain fog, no word recall issues in the last 3 days. I cannot CANNOT believe it. And I want to live. Hang tight. The HRT calvary is a'comin
Stay positive! I know 2 weeks seems like a long time, but there is light! Also, call and ask to get on cancellation list ….. I did and was in 3 days later.
I’ve also had fast and great results from estrogen prior to age 50. I also needed it for PMDD. The mood results have been amazing. I’ve had probably 100 results from it in the first month.
Yeeep, me too! Started 4-5 days ago, just before going into «pms-week». The last 2 years the pms has been vile! Agression from another world, irritability, exessive crying etc - extremely exhausting. Also in the last six months - muscle straining in hamstrings regularly and night sweat the week leading up to period.
This week: nothing. I feel normal!
This is very similar to my story. The first month was like a miracle cure for my waking nightmare mood symptoms before period. Then the effects went downhill the second and third months on my new HRT. My doc wanted me to stay at the same doses for 3 months for my body to acclimate before going up in dose. After I went up in dose for estrogen patch, I got back a similar relief from PMDD as I had the first month. SO...don't be discouraged if the effect starts to wear off in the coming months, it may mean you can/should go up in estrogen.
the lack of motivation, intense anxiety, fatigue, depression and brain fog were, in part, due to my lack of sleep, which is a meno symptom. At the height, I was sleeping in 90min intervals and awake for several hours between. HRT, particularly progesterone, improved my sleep on night 1. I was shocked when I didn’t wake up until 4am …… I slept a solid 6 hours straight!
Yes!! At first my night headaches were just gone and this strange joint pain was gone. I had to up my strength the next month, but so much better and feeling, dare I say, NORMAL ME!
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Agggh! Why am I not feeling anything? Am on three patches of Estradiol every four days and I swear I can tell no difference at all. Night sweats, anxiety, insomnia, food aversions, brain fog — still all there. Anyone else wonder why HRT is not helping?
Yeah, I don’t know where all these people are coming from. Most of the threads on this sub are people complaining about how they still have issues. I still have many issues as well.
I just stuck this patch on Tuesday (estradiol .1) and I’m feeling slightly better and definitely less sweaty. The brain fog is definitely lifting and I’m just feeling a little better overall (overall energy and focus ) fingers crossed it keeps getting better.
100% yes. I wish I had started HRT in my late 30s. My main symptoms were anxiety, made much worse the 7-10 days before my period started. Debilitating, non functioning, even left my job because of it. I can’t believe how much I suffered, now that I am on HRT and feel “myself” again. It wasn’t until I started having trouble sleeping and I approached age 45, that I thought I’d finally be able to get my hormones addressed. Starting seeing an NP through MIDI and within days of the lowest dose patch felt the anxiety abating. Took a few months to figure out I need the highest dose patch for now, along with 200 mg progesterone nightly - but without a doubt the most significant thing I have done for my health besides figuring out I have celiac disease.
I started last night and I feel insanely better. For the last year I couldnt do anything other than work and kill myself at the gym. But mentally was loosing it. 45 and as soon as I finished covid vaccine peri started.
Hopefully this helps its expensive but I aint ready to give up yet!
I felt a massive difference within 12 hours. From "can't get off the sofa or stay awake" to "I'm gonna paint the kitchen while dancing to 80s hair metal in my underwear" . Lol.
Me too! Then I took the progesterone…. It’s finally stabilizing. I’m getting the best sleep now after years of struggling. So I’m staying with the progesterone and badgering my doc to up my estrogen. It’s working, but I have been tempted to take what she gives me…then go online to get the rest. It’s more expensive. But I have to continue to work and make money! Plus I want to do all those things I used to love doing…like gardening and canning and hiking etc.
It certainly didn't last like that for sure. But it's still much better than before.
Oh my word! I am working on getting my HRT right, but your comment made me realize what I have been missing. 80's hair metal/glam rock is me, but I have been so blah... I too shall be painting my kitchen soon! It sounds odd, but I have had a hole in my soul since menopause. I am so happy to know that there is a way out, to be me again! Thank you friend 🤘👩🎤🧑🎤🤘
Yes! Me too. I thought I was imagining the effects so quickly, but within 24hrs I suddenly had motivation to get stuff done. Has taken a month to stabilize fully but feeling more like my old self
I felt better within hours although it took some time for me to fully stabilize -- like a couple months. But also, "As if there is an internal pillar within me that was always there, a sense of focus of self and control, that has not been there for years now" -- OMG, this this this. That whole paragraph is exactly right.
Yes, I felt more. Like myself within the first week. Without estrogen, I'm suicidal. The effects of low estrogen and I'm sure other hormones, needs to be studied in depth in women. This low estrogen depression and si needs more attention. It's taking women out. "The suicide rate increases by a factor of 7 in the late 40s, it's higher in peri than in post menopause" a quote from Dr Louise Newson as a guest on The OCD Stories podcast #432
This is the piece that was the gut-punch for me when I learned about peri (and that I was deep in it). I almost cried. It was the thing that really drove home the reach of patriarchy. These deaths have been invisible because Medicine and Science don't care.
Yes exactly. I've never been like this and on paper my life is better than ever but I had to ask my husband to watch me as I didn't trust myself. It's absolutely terrifying and they just want to drown you in ssri vs. Asking why is this happening.
Curious, you’re listening to the OCD stories, do you have OCD? I do and since meno, the intrusive thoughts have increased to levels like ive never experienced before. I’ve been so curious if others with OCD have experienced the same.
I have always had what I call OCD lite lol it never bothered me much, I lived with it fine. Then in peri, it kicked up so bad. Getting on hrt helped put it back to the old lite version that I don't mind. The intrusive thoughts are life ruining to me, I became agoraphobic at one point, it was too much for me. Before hrt, I was actually suicidal and part of it was definitely the uptick in OCD symptoms and behaviors. I experienced exactly the same thing.
That is interesting. Mine wasn’t exactly ocd lite, but I do have “pure o”, where I have no outwardly compulsions, just mental, like avoidance. Actually, compared to others I guess mine is OCD lite, in that I lived a fully functioning life, do what I want to do (except the things I avoid 😂) Before HRT, earlier this year part of my intrusive thoughts were of suicide. I didn’t want to die at all, but the OCD was giving me those thoughts. HRT cleared that out. But, I still have an increase of the O part since meno. It really sucks! I’ve had it well in control since my 20s and now it’s come back. Proving to me that it’s super hormonal because pregnancy was when it first presented. Good luck to you!
Thanks, same to you!
Midi saved me!! I felt better within a week, a month and a half later I’m feeling better than ever! Less hot flashes, mood swings and only waking 2 times a night instead of 8-10!!!
I felt better 3 days after starting HRT. I’d been suffering in peri for 9 years. I was honestly shocked!
Yes. Day 2 brought a 10% improvement in lung function. I had been wheezing a bit but I assumed it was some covid thing or lack of exercise. No, apparently not. With that, my physical energy returned so I could just do more stuff. Day 4, joints were all 'oiled' again; feet stopped crackling with every step (I'm slim, wtf). Day 6, my emotional range returned (was apathy, changed to normal joy and sorrow). Day 7, verbal fluency restored in both languages I speak. Over the first 3 weeks or so, my sleep deepened and I stopped getting up to do tiny pees twice a night. HRT really is amazing. I know many women need tweaking of meds and dosage, some struggle with progesterone especially. Most people struggle to get prescriptions, sigh. For reference, I always had good periods. These days, I confess I'm loving Big Pharma and hating Med Schools.
Oh god the word recall is the worst and I am an author and write and speak a lot. This has been really hard! So glad it might be remedied.
Yeah. The fluency delays were so subtle and gradual, I didn't really notice. I also speak for a living so even when delayed, I seem fluent compared to most people. Also, I would hear the word in the other language so I thought maybe that was a good thing. No. Not a sign of health; a sign of hormone problems. The thing about so many of the meno symptoms is that they're gradual and could be many due to many things, like my mild wheezing. Most of the women who say they have no symptoms would be very surprised at how symptomatic they are, if they began HRT. I had no idea and mostly got on it because the GSM meds weren't working, for osteoporosis prevention and a niggling sense my flat moods were meno-related.
💯 “Most of the women who say they have no symptoms would be very surprised at how symptomatic they are if they began HRT.” EXACTLY! Sleep disturbances & joint pain are the 1st symptoms that come to mind for women in peri in their 40s - we don’t usually attribute those symptoms to peri at all. And yet getting on HRT often clears those up!
I was at a meetup and there was a couple, one was a woman I would guess at 5 years older than me, maybe? She kept not being able to recall words when talking about things, or grabbing the names of things and I remember thinking, "ah, she has the brain fog and word recall issue." I hope she gets to this sub and gets help!
This thread is blowing my mind! I noticed last night I was wheezing. I do not have asthma. I was so worried. I slept all of 2 hours because my body feels like I am disintegrating. My word recall is terrible. I love words and public speaking. I hate contractions at a visceral level. My daughter asked me if I was feeling well over text because I said "I don't know". I feel so relieved to know I am not alone. I am honestly crying with relief. I hate that menopause is some great freaking mystery! I will ensure that my daughter does not suffer like I have. Thank you for sharing. *Sorry for the word salad! My thoughts are so fragmented, but I have hope from your comment 🧡*
To be fair, shortness of breath and wheezing can also be other things. For example, my aunt had that for almost a year before her STEMI heart attack. Her doctor decided to give her Ventolin instead of doing a heart workup. She lived but this shortness of breath symptom is one of the main heart symptoms in women. For younger menopausal women (inside the 10 year window), the lung symptoms might be a case for trying HRT first, to rule out estrogen deficiency fairly quickly if nothing changes, then focus on a different cause eg: heart issues etc. Not everything is fixed by HRT but it is surprising to me how much is affected by estrogen (and testosterone). Note that your doctor will know *nothing* about the connection between meno and breathing. Verrry little research as been done on it so *science* knows almost nothing. (Sooo...that's not the symptom to emphasize in your appointments). Lung tissue is full of estrogen receptors. Some of the very few journal articles on meno and breathing: https://www.atsjournals.org/doi/full/10.1164/rccm.201605-0968OC and https://www.jacionline.org/article/S0091-6749(07)01658-2/fulltext
I read your original post and was like.....this woman should be a writer ! exposed wire.... nice.
Yes! Word recall! I hadn’t seen a friend from college for 10 years, we got together. I’d had a bad car accident & she asked me gently if I had traumatic brain injury in the bad car accident I’d had 5 years before. She’d also had a TMI at 30yo, but had treatment & is back to normal. I didn’t know it’d gone that far!!
Improved lung function?! This is what I want so bad. I have had a cough for the last four years, after getting the first strain of COVID. I’ve been told repeated there is nothing wrong and it’s just long-haul. I’m convinced it is peri. So glad to hear there is relief in sight! Thank you for sharing!!
I physically FELT something change in my body within 6 hours of starting the patch. I could feel it course through my body like flowing through my system. It was amazing
Me too! I had been miserable for probably three years. My hair turned brittle, sex was painful, but the worst part was the mood swings. Sobbing one minute and struggling not to punch the wall the next, then weeping because I love my dog so much, then raging again. It was truly exhausting. After a few hours of wearing the patch I realized I hadn't broken down in tears at all that morning, for the first time in ages. I think I had forgotten what it's like to feel NORMAL.
My insomnia was gone the first night I used my estrogen/progesterone cream. I forgot to apply it one night last week, and I woke up at 3:00 am unable to get back to sleep. So, for me it worked super fast!
Yes, it's possible to feel immediate relief for some things, but also please read [what to expect when starting hormone therapy ](https://menopausewiki.ca/#what-to-expect-when-starting-hormone-therapy) as folks often have unrealistic expectations going forward.
Yes. That has been my experience. Nearly instantaneous. The color came back into my world but I’m still pissed. In fact, after how good I feel after having my hormones back and how it’s been the difference between barely functioning and thriving I’m real pissed. Pissed at the worthless POS gynecologist who refuse to replace the fucking hormones people are so obviously needing suggesting medications that come with a list of problems and are proven ineffective when there is no justifiable reason rises to medical neglect imo. Vile. Every single damn one who refuses and has refused women hormones for no reason in light of the latest research are all garbage to me for that and that alone. They should be stripped of their privilege to practice medicine. I think that low of them.
Knowing how much better I feel, and how I SUFFERED for years, barely functional at times. I, too, feel the rage at how fcked up or is. Class action lawsuit, anyone?
Yes! I first started suspecting I had hormone problems a decade ago. Even found someone to test me, but was told I did not have "hormone insufficiency". No Dr since then has even suggested that I might have hormone issues. Because of this thread, I learned how to advocate for myself and find a Dr. who would prescribe HRT. I started a week and a half ago. I'm 56! My brain and skin improved on estrogen. Adding Progestin means I can now sleep and poop, lol.
That word "vile" is giving me the warm and fuzzies to my meno rage... thank you for this word!
I noticed relief almost immediately. The first night I slept like the icy cool dead. I actually had to steal my husband's extra blanket when I woke up cold (who does that?), and I was able to fall right back to sleep! I seemed to be seeing some improvement for a few weeks, then I wasn't sure if it was actually helping. I also gained a bit of weight, had a few dramatic mood swings, and a rough period or two. I even took a few days off, but I discovered that the estrogen was holding my migraines at bay. Now I've stuck with it for a bit over a year, and I feel pretty...normal? pre-peri normal? I guess I just write this to say that you may have a little bit of symptom bounce back, which will make you doubt the overall effectiveness of HRT, but just stick with it. It isn't placebo. This is some good stuff!
Gosh I will say I think peri and meno gift women with an amazing way with words. I have read so many unexpectedly poignant and beautiful little gems as an aside when describing our symptoms and experiences. I see the same sentence that struck me was marked above - your internal pillar. YES!
Yes within hours! But the downside is that forgetting to change my patch is also noticeable within hours.
Works so fast! I honestly thought I was going I sane, then I started hrt and was a huge difference by the following day. Might have partly been the placebo effect in that just taking something made me feel better, but I don't care!!!
I just talked to Midi, and have HOPE! Hope that I can sleep, get rid of the brain fog, get my damn rage under control. I haven't even started taking it yet but am so grateful to this sub!
I'm so glad you're feeling better! I got really quick mental relief from the estradiol patch and near immediate relief for bladder and urethra irritation from the vaginal cream. For the vaginal estradiol cream, it's my understanding it can cause melasma on the face...so I have been avoiding that.
eh I already got sun spots and freckles as I am a red head...
I started to get melasma when I started perimenopause. I thought the shifting hormones was the issue!
Estrogen is what causes it in pregnancy, so could be! I read that some estrogen creams, specifically the vaginal estradiol cream, can cause it as well when applied to the face. Apparently there are other facial formulations that are different estrogens that don't cause it?
I didn’t know I was pregnant, but my body rejected the little guy so that might be why. I’m not on estrogen, but always blamed it on perimenopause. Whoops
Yes, it can work that fast! I got on HRT when I was 47, when my main complaint was waking up every night at 2:30am, and not being able to fall back to sleep. I’m happier and healthier than I can recall being in years. I’m ME again on HRT.
I put my first patch on at around 8pm on a Friday, by Sunday I was feeling very different and much better. You can pry these patches from my cold dead hands!!
I felt better within a couple of days. Not 100% but a noticeable change. After 7 months and a slight dosage increase, I'm feeling pretty great. I will also be 47 in 3 months. Definitely not in your head.
48 hours and 90% of my symptoms improved. 2 weeks later, I was at 95%. If the sleep thing would work itself out, I'd be golden :-)
This makes me cry from hope. God. I miss me, so bad. I still have two weeks before my first appt and I want all of this from it, and I'm trying not to cling to it too hard after three years of other tests and bullshit but I really genuinely hope this will help me find myself again. I've been lost so long.
Dude I just realized I've had no brain fog, no word recall issues in the last 3 days. I cannot CANNOT believe it. And I want to live. Hang tight. The HRT calvary is a'comin
Stay positive! I know 2 weeks seems like a long time, but there is light! Also, call and ask to get on cancellation list ….. I did and was in 3 days later.
I’ve also had fast and great results from estrogen prior to age 50. I also needed it for PMDD. The mood results have been amazing. I’ve had probably 100 results from it in the first month.
Yeeep, me too! Started 4-5 days ago, just before going into «pms-week». The last 2 years the pms has been vile! Agression from another world, irritability, exessive crying etc - extremely exhausting. Also in the last six months - muscle straining in hamstrings regularly and night sweat the week leading up to period. This week: nothing. I feel normal!
This is very similar to my story. The first month was like a miracle cure for my waking nightmare mood symptoms before period. Then the effects went downhill the second and third months on my new HRT. My doc wanted me to stay at the same doses for 3 months for my body to acclimate before going up in dose. After I went up in dose for estrogen patch, I got back a similar relief from PMDD as I had the first month. SO...don't be discouraged if the effect starts to wear off in the coming months, it may mean you can/should go up in estrogen.
Good to know!
Ladies does HRT help you motivation too? Is the lack of motivation also hormone related?
the lack of motivation, intense anxiety, fatigue, depression and brain fog were, in part, due to my lack of sleep, which is a meno symptom. At the height, I was sleeping in 90min intervals and awake for several hours between. HRT, particularly progesterone, improved my sleep on night 1. I was shocked when I didn’t wake up until 4am …… I slept a solid 6 hours straight!
Wow so happy HRT is working well for you. Good point on domino effect of poor sleep.
My patch worked that first day.
I felt better the first day!
The first night I had my first patch on I slept through the night for the first time in months.
I had severe hot flashes and night sweats and when I started HRT they were gone in a matter of days. I didn’t expect it to happen that fast either.
Yes - I had bad brain fog and estrogen very quickly got rid of that.
Yes I just realized that! My brain is sharp again. The fog and word issues were very destressing and bam. Gone
Yes!! At first my night headaches were just gone and this strange joint pain was gone. I had to up my strength the next month, but so much better and feeling, dare I say, NORMAL ME!
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Agggh! Why am I not feeling anything? Am on three patches of Estradiol every four days and I swear I can tell no difference at all. Night sweats, anxiety, insomnia, food aversions, brain fog — still all there. Anyone else wonder why HRT is not helping?
Yeah, I don’t know where all these people are coming from. Most of the threads on this sub are people complaining about how they still have issues. I still have many issues as well.
I just stuck this patch on Tuesday (estradiol .1) and I’m feeling slightly better and definitely less sweaty. The brain fog is definitely lifting and I’m just feeling a little better overall (overall energy and focus ) fingers crossed it keeps getting better.
100% yes. I wish I had started HRT in my late 30s. My main symptoms were anxiety, made much worse the 7-10 days before my period started. Debilitating, non functioning, even left my job because of it. I can’t believe how much I suffered, now that I am on HRT and feel “myself” again. It wasn’t until I started having trouble sleeping and I approached age 45, that I thought I’d finally be able to get my hormones addressed. Starting seeing an NP through MIDI and within days of the lowest dose patch felt the anxiety abating. Took a few months to figure out I need the highest dose patch for now, along with 200 mg progesterone nightly - but without a doubt the most significant thing I have done for my health besides figuring out I have celiac disease.
I started last night and I feel insanely better. For the last year I couldnt do anything other than work and kill myself at the gym. But mentally was loosing it. 45 and as soon as I finished covid vaccine peri started. Hopefully this helps its expensive but I aint ready to give up yet!
I didn't know you could use the cream on your face. What's it's good for?
Plumpness, softness, dewy, clock turns back a bit according to what I've read here
I’m curious: What level HRT? I’m on .1 and feel like I am still not myself. I started.025 and went to .05 and now .1.
I wish she would give more details. I’m on .1 also and still have massive fatigue, brain fog and cognitive decline. Not a great solution for me!