CalicoKat Posted January 22, 2008 Share Posted January 22, 2008 Yup, my hormones are in a bottle. I really wanted to get the hive mind's input prior to getting them out, not that I really had a choice. Can you believe the hosp. didn't have wireless?!!! And not that I had much time inbetween those lovely IV pain meds. :D Sooo . . . it's not supplemental hormone therapy. It's replacement (they removed both of ovaries). According to my dr.'s it's a moot point, just trading the "organic" hormones for pill form. Please tell me I'm not the only 38 yo out here chugging pills so my life isn't plunged swiftly into the Siberian Steppes of Menopause. Also, if you could include your dh's take on this. This isn't only affecting me. :( What can I expect, what should I be aware of, what aren't my dr.'s telling me, what am I loosing because of this change. Thanks for sharing. Please send me a private message if this is way too personal. I'm still hung over on vicodin to be embarassed just yet. :) I'm recovering. I'm sleeping a lot and I'm still waiting for the "plumbing" to sort itself out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liz CA Posted January 22, 2008 Share Posted January 22, 2008 CalicoKat, here is what I did: As soon as I knew everything would have to come out, I inquired about Bio-identical hormone replacement therapy before surgery. After surgery, I already had the phone number handy and had already talked to someone there and filled out a questionnaire which I completed after about 2-3 weeks after surgery - only then could I accurately respond to the "symptoms" questions. If this is the route you want to take, make sure your doc is agreeable on the bio-idential replacements rather then the standard chemical stuff. I had to find a different doctor. My situation is probably different from yours but I am currently only taking adrenal support (herbal) for estrogen but a bio-identical Progesterone cream which seems to work rather well. E-mail or contact me anytime if you have more questions by whatever fancy means we have now at our disposal on this new forum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CalicoKat Posted January 22, 2008 Author Share Posted January 22, 2008 i'm not sure if my dr. would be amendable to that as he was more than willing to keep putting me off prior to the apt. that lead to me running to the hosp. for surgery. Do they have to be able to analyze my old ovaries? I have to go see him and the surgeon this next week and I'd love to show him that I'm not the willy nilly housewife he thinks I am. My medical history is quite complicated but basically it's that I take coumadin to prevent blood clots from forming on my artificial heart valve. My ovaries were victims of the coumadin therapy. The left one was doing what it was supposed to but because my blood doesn't clot well instead of just healing after/during ovulation a cyst formed and kept filling with blood. Dr.'s felt that the right one had to go too because of the tremendous risk of internal bleeding each cycle. I can't ever stop taking the coumadin. My ob/gyn is firm that he explained this all me to 10 yrs ago -- not! My cardio. dr. says that it's something no one could have anticipated as it's mostly geriatric patients taking coumadin for yrs, not young people like me. Either way. It doesn't matter now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anna Posted January 22, 2008 Share Posted January 22, 2008 Yup, my hormones are in a bottle. Sooo . . . it's not supplemental hormone therapy. It's replacement (they removed both of ovaries). According to my dr.'s it's a moot point, just trading the "organic" hormones for pill form. Please tell me I'm not the only 38 yo out here chugging pills so my life isn't plunged swiftly into the Siberian Steppes of Menopause. Also, if you could include your dh's take on this. This isn't only affecting me. :( My hormones are also in a bottle. I'm currently 51yo and in 1997 at age 40 my complete hyster (w/both ovaries removed) ended up being emergency surgery (long story). Before the hyster my quality of life was very much limited to the bathroom and staying home a lot--- Short 3-week cycles consisting of 1 good week, 1 bad PMS week and 1 horrible period week with mega cramps and nonstop bleeding. Life has been good now that I'm on the "other side". After surgery, doc put me on 0.6mg Premarin and it did a wonderful job of relieving me from hot flashes. However, I worried about the drug being in my system so I made several attempts to use only natural creams and such. I tried several of the very best creams that are recommended by Dr. Lee but none of them made a dent in giving me relief. At 51yo, I would still get frequent hot flashes without Premarin. A wise, trusted doc finally told me, "Why keep fighting this if Premarin gives you a better quality of life?" I asked him if he'd want his dw to take Premarin and he said that he would as long as she needed it. Soooo..... for the last couple of years I've been on a very low dose of 0.3mg of Premarin and feel great. If I had known I could feel this good, I would have elected to have my hyster even sooner. Many here will disagree with me but I think that some of the *research* against Premarin is scare tactics. I know several ladies in their 80's who have been taking 0.6mg of Premarin for years and they are still going strong... and I mean in every way... even being physically intimate with their dh's. For me, physical intimacy was difficult at best before surgery and before Premarin. This may interest your dh;) ---- I'm happy to say that those difficulties are all behind me and my dh and I are both very happy about it. And that's my story:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cin Posted January 22, 2008 Share Posted January 22, 2008 My cycles are alot like Anna's. I have 4 wk cycles, which include 7-10 days of PMS and 4-5 days of migraines, cramps and all the other fun stuff. My options were a complete or take the pill without a break. Since I have 2 littles I opted for the pill without a break. At some point in the near future I will probably opt for the surgery. All that to say that quality of life IS important, and if it causes something in 30-40 yrs, well, by then I'll probably have a bunch of other things too. Until then, I want to HAVE FUN!!!! hugs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Katherine Posted January 22, 2008 Share Posted January 22, 2008 ... you don't just "trade" your own hormones for the pill form. At least, it didn't work that way for my thyroid hormones. My thyroid was completely destroyed after radiation treatment for Grave's Disease, and they put me on Synthroid. The doctor swears it is the exact hormone that my body no longer produces. But it does NOT work as well. Ten years later, I STILL don't feel the same. I would imagine that other synthetic hormones would also not be an exact match. However, in both cases, hormones in a bottle are far better than no hormones at all. And I'm very thankful to be living in a day where I can actually get them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tammy Posted January 22, 2008 Share Posted January 22, 2008 She was VERY young when she received her heart valve (I think 18)....then not long after that....she had her ovaries and uterus removed. I wonder if it was the same issue with the Coumadin? She didn't say it was because of the Coumadin....she just said her periods had gotten so bad....that they had to admit her to the hospital...and that was when she had everything removed..... I will ask her how long after taking the Coumadin did she get her uterus and ovaries removed. She has been on replacement therapy for a very long time (probably since she was 21...I think). She is 40 now. Tammy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dayle in Guatemala Posted January 22, 2008 Share Posted January 22, 2008 Calico Kat! I'm so glad you're okay!!! I've been praying for you and with the switch in boards, I didn't catch what had happened. I'll be praying for you now that all goes well with you and all will sort itself out for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kate in Arabia Posted January 22, 2008 Share Posted January 22, 2008 My mom had a complete hyst when she was abt my age (I'm 38) and started Premarin. She had nightmare periods before then as well, clots, blow-outs (not pretty), etc. it was very very bad. I don't know about the dosage level of her Premarin, but she has been taking it now for almost 30 yrs (she's 66) without mishap. Around when the controversy first broke about the replacement drugs her dr tried to take her off the Premarin, and she was miserable. The dr refused to prescribe it, so she switched drs to one who would. And other than, I believe, slightly more frequent mammograms, there has been no long-term fallout from that, so far. I have been thinking about these issues a lot recently, because she started a lot of the drug therapy she takes at my age, not just because of the surgery, but because her own mother had very very bad osteoporosis (think disintegrating vertebrae) and she credits her comparatively better health to early intervention. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KidsHappen Posted January 22, 2008 Share Posted January 22, 2008 This is a book that discusses the differences between bio-identical hormones and the chemical ones. It's a big book but lots of very important information. You can probably get it at your library. I know if I needed hormones that is the way that I would go. Good luck with this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donna T. Posted January 22, 2008 Share Posted January 22, 2008 I can't comment about hormone replacement therapy. Well, I did have an ovary removed when I was 18. I was never informed how this would effect me later on. I have experienced 20 years of chronic pain, a struggle with my weight, mood swings during PMS, sleep problems, all kinds of other stuff. I was recently in the ER due to back pain. My pain management specialist released me and said there was nothing she could do for me. Nothing we had ever tried before helped. I finally concluded that no doctor is ever going to help me. So, I began to research natural remedies for inflammation and found out that there are anti-inflammation diets that one can follow to help with all kinds of symptoms. I found out that chronic inflammation results in all the symptoms that I have experienced. I found this website: http://www.womentowomen.com.'>http://www.womentowomen.com.'>http://www.womentowomen.com.'>http://www.womentowomen.com. I immediately went on their two week Quick Cleanse Diet (very gentle, not harsh at all) and began some supplements (vitamin E, fish oils, B-12, ginger, bromelain, Royal Jelly) in order to detox from caffeine, sugar, and known inflammatory causing foods, such as wheat and corn. Now, about three weeks later, I am waking up pain free for the first time in many years. My mood has stabilized. I have more energy and I'm sleeping better. Check the web site out. It is truly an answer to many prayers for me. They have tons of info. there about hormone replacement therapy. They are not anti-conventional medicine but do stress that changes in nutrition and appropriate supplementation can be a great help. http://www.womentowomen.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liz CA Posted January 22, 2008 Share Posted January 22, 2008 If you'd like a better picture of what hormones you need, you can have a saliva test done - it's more accurate and much easier than a blood test. The results of such a test will tell a compound pharmacist and your doctor what is needed in terms of amounts. I would encourage you to look for a doctor who is willing to do what's best for you. My first doctor wanted to hand me some synthetic hormones and could not quite understand why I wanted the bio-identical form. I have also been informed that in taking the bio-identical form you don't need nearly as high a dose as when taking the synthetics, the study that was done and scared people was done based on Premarin and Provera - and not on bio-identical hormones. If you are too tired to research, have your dh or a friend get some articles together - lots online about this, so you can be informed when you see your doctor at your next appointment. Hope you feel better soon, go easy and let yourself heal! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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