Alternatives to HRT

[sueyh]

I am unable to take HRT due to being a BRCA2 gene carrier, can anyone suggest any safe alternatives to assist with the mid-life power surges (hot flushes) I am experiencing?  These have been brought on by the removal of my ovaries!  I'd had no symptoms before.

Thank you in sweaty anticipation.

Suey

[Loire]

Hi Sueyh

I have used Ymea menopause et Silhoutte for a few years and seems to have helped me.There are other Ymea products but that seems to suit me best.

Hope it works for you.

Kind regards

 

Loire

[cooperlola]

A decent fan and lots of cold flannels!

I never bothered with anything (being one of those people who thinks that alternative therapies and medicines are bunkum and not wanting to take anything I don't actually need) and they did pass. 

It's just a bit of sweat after all [:D] and happily, unlike the alterative, not life threatening. Did you take a look at Jenny Murray's book?

Courage.[:)]

[sueyh]

Hi Deb,

I have Jenny Murray's book, bought it last year and now for the life of me I cannot find the b****y thing.  OH in UK today so have some time to have a good look.

Suey x

[Judith]

This won't be very encouraging I know, but the only thing I found really worked for all the symptoms for me was HRT.

The hot flushes certainly reduced over time, even when I stopped using it, but even now, I get very quick, but still flushes, usually once or twice a day .... I have been using MACA  tablets, which are now hard to come by since the European directive on herbal supplements came in, and that has certainly helped.

But - and again this is no comfort - I did read in a Saga Magazine that sometimes, after the menopause, the temperature control never goes back quite to normal - and I am sue that this is what has happened with me.

BUT - 15 years after it started, and 4 years since I finally stopped HRT, the  flushes are now livable with and certainly less than before, but always worse in the hot weather which we do get rather a lot of here!  [I've just had to wipe my forehead whilst I've been typing this - but I've not yet got the fan on... it is a little less sticky today as yet!)

AND - some people suffer more than others, so Deb, it seems you were lucky to get back to normal (at least in this respect!!!!)

[cooperlola]

Judith, is the prologed hot flush symptomatic of your having been on HRT?  I only ask because after six months or so during menopause, I've never had them again in any shape or form.  Neither have the couple of women I know who, like me, didn't "treat" (makes it sound like some sort of illness, doesn't it?) it.

[cooperlola]

[quote user="Judith"]you were lucky to get back to normal (at least in this respect!!!!)
[/quote]Oh, ta![:D][:P]

[Patf]

Herbal remedies: lady's mantle (alchemilla mollis) and sea buckthorn capsules (omega 7.)

I can't comment on their efficacy though.

[cooperlola]

The women in this thread have a few suggestions, Sue.  The cheapo one which one woman used which I think sounds great is the travel pillow, kept in the fridge between bouts!

[Judith]

[quote user="cooperlola"]Judith, is the prologed hot flush symptomatic of your having been on HRT?  I only ask because after six months or so during menopause, I've never had them again in any shape or form.  Neither have the couple of women I know who, like me, didn't "treat" (makes it sound like some sort of illness, doesn't it?) it.[/quote]

That is a possibilty, Debs, - but I also think that I got all the nasties going round with the menopause, as I did with periods etc, and found it impossible to cope without - I am just one of the unlucky ones who gets all the symptoms and not just one or two.  I had to go onto HRT -  I could not do my job without - flooding, fainting in the middle of the office, and such stuff - not nice.  When I got onto HRT my life got back to normal, and I only stopped it because I thought that at some point I should do, as I do not like taking medicines either (says she on blood pressure and asthma medication these days), but unlike you, I am a convert to homeopathic medicine, but that did not work for me for the menopause, I think because I had so many of the symptons, not just  hot flushes.   After what I did go through, living with the flushes I now have is acceptable, even if a nuisance.

[LAiffricaine]

I had my ovaries removed and was put on HRT some 15 or so years ago. I had to stop the HRT within 6 months as my body bloated from a regular size 14 to an unmanageable size 20 [:(] Finger joints were also quite painful almost as if riddled with arthritis. Hot flushes galore. Light sleep to the point of insomnia.

Since then I've had to cope with a strict diet with no milk products, very little red meat, lots of fish, fruits and vegs, pulses, brown bread, very little alcohol ... all that saintly stuff [Www] 

Finger joints no longer painful, hot flushes occasionnally, still a light sleeper (as you can see) weight and dress size (still a 20 [:(]) under control ... It is quite a bore at times as I'd love to tuck into a tub of ice-cream when watching a stupid weepie film, stuff myself silly with a plate of chips and lashings of mayo or get into 'the spirit' when out on an evening with friends.

Well ... I do sometime go wayward on the path [6]   but ... oh boy!... do I know I have strayed [:$]

[nectarine]

I've managed without HRT but the hot flushes can seriously sap your energy. I have soya milk with my cereal, drink only one or two cups of coffee a day and drink far more water. Alcohol seems to be a trigger - one glass of wine can trigger a hot flush, so that has to be limited. My tips: throw away all your synthetic materials and buy only cotton or linen. Don't wear a bra ... that is wonderfully cooling (you just have to manage the jiggly nipple situation by other means!). Don't use underarm deodorant, so that you can naturally sweat. Stock up with bottles of facial mist that you can buy from supermarkets and chemists, and spray amply. And buy plenty of swish-fans, very attractive and feminine.

Five years on the hot flushes aren't as bad. They still come at inconvenient times but not with the same dizzying intensity. My temperature control has never gone back to normal, it's constantly on 'hot' so I am wearing a Tshirt while others wear jumpers and coats.

Bonne chance - we've all gone through - or will be going through - it!

[Catalpa]

This is natural, inexpensive and worth trying... though I have to say that over the number of times I've recommended it, I know very few women who've tried it - they've always wanted something they can ingest instead of trying...

... temperature-raising exercise. [:-))]

I had an early, natural menopause and I happened to be very fit at the time, swimming, gymming, cycling, etc. I did this early morning before work and I did notice that on the 3 or 4 days per week that I exercised to a level of hot and sweatiness I didn't get much / anything in the way of hot flushes... or if I did, it was more a warm blush which no one tended to notice. On the days I didn't exercise, I'd notice I might have more difficulty in sleeping, might have a night sweat, etc.

For those that are physically able, it might be worth trying 30 - 40 minutes of mild, sweat-inducing exercise for a few weeks to see if it does help with daytime temperature regulation. And since this thread...

...it would be interesting to know how people then affected are doing now.

Anyway - if someone is physically able - I'd always suggest trying an exercise program, ideally early morning, to see if that causes some of the worst symptoms to abate, though it won't be instantaneous of course. And since I originally started saying "try exercise, it's free..." I have read of some studies that suggest my experience is more general. But it takes motivation - which also isn't available in pill form. If it was, I'd be taking it now. [6]

Exercise benefits 1

Exercise benefits 2

[sueyh]

I am restarting gym in our village this week and in the local town twice a week from next week.  So that should get the pulse going and the temperature up.

Thanks all you are so kind.  Also I loved the 2007 messages re: the meanie pause.  So funny but with such good advice.

Suey

[cooperlola]

I love your post, Catalpa.  My mother is a physio and is always going on about former patients who thought of her profession as something akin to a masseur who worked up a sweat of their own whilst the patient lay there and thought of England.  She reckons that those who got better were usually those who were prepared to invest some of their own sweat into the process.  There are few conditions, imho, unless one is advised specifically otherwise, which aren't improved by a bit of exercise - just so long as it's appropriate to the person and their problems.

Have fun, Suey, but don't forget to modify what you do according to what your surgeon advised you post op.[:)]

[Catalpa]

Simple brisk walking is very effective, I find. Okay, it's easy for me because whichever way I walk from home is downhill... but that just means I get a good workout when I make my way back... uphill. It doesn't have to be strenuous, ie, gym / weights style workouts though, of course, weights have their place because they maintain muscles and I believe have a beneficial effect on bone density post-menopause.

 

[Judith]

Exercise helps lots of conditions - so an eminently sensible suggestion - don't know why I didn't also say that - along with avoiding too much alcohol (I know - difficult in France!)

[sueyh]

Went to see my doctor this morning re: losing my prescription for my clarityn, we were chatting about my op and asked if I was experiencing menopause symptoms, he then told me that HRT for me is interdit.  However, he did give me calcium and vitamin D for my bones to stop the osteoporosis.

Suey

[Gardengirl]

Like everyone else I tried lots of  things, some of which have been mentioned above. Soya products and a spray mister helped, and I also tried the menopause cake, which may or may not have helped: http://www.naturalmenopause.net/menopause-cake.html ; my recipe was similar but had no dates or ginger, but lots of linseeds etc. There are various recipes available - I think you could actually buy them commercially too.

One thing I know worked for me was a magnet, small and smooth, worn discreetly inside the panties: http://www.ladycare-uk.com/ladycare-p-28.html?osCsid=if57n4vvevd3uc3mi1naj0iva5

I don't know how it worked, but symptoms were much less noticable, and it was good not to have to actually take anything. The one (very minor) drawback was when I occasionally leaned over the conveyor belt in M&S and Waitrose and it clunked and stuck on to the metal side!  [:D]