Any 5 weekers not on HRT and how are you doing?

Tina346 I have not really had any trouble with not sleeping at night other than waking up from the hot flashes!I take 25-50mg.of diphenhydramine which is benadryl an antihistamine which can cause drowsiness and it helps me so you might try it!I also am reading a very good book that my pharmacist friend suggested called the Sexy years by suzanne sommers all about bio identical hormones that is very good!I know we will make it thru this it just takes time I guess!Take Care and I hope you get some well deserved SLEEP!! Debbie!

I guess I am not typical! I am 50, my dr. did not recommend hormones for me, and I am doing OK! I did go through the pre-menopausal stuff for many years prior to surgery ...had a TAH (nothing left!)...I am only taking multi vitamins, calcium w/vitamin D, and Healthy Woman (OTC, soy supplement) and I am doing great! I'm just waiting for the other shoe to drop! I did experience the hot flashes and night sweats, but after taking the Healthy Woman, the night sweats stopped after my first 3 wks., and the hot flashes are minimal.

Good luck to all of you. I keep waiting for something bad to happen, but so far so good. I hope you find the "happy medium" and things work out for you!

I'm skimming through a really good book, Screaming to be Heard , that is really good in explaining hormones. Before finding this book, I didn't really think I wanted to do the hormone replacement thing but now I've changed my mind and am going to talk to my doctor about it. The author makes a very good point about hormone testing--"If you have clinical symptoms that suggest low thyroid function, we measure the level of thyroid hormones in your blood...If you need thyroid medication, we then prescribe a low dose and gradually increase it. Then we check a follow-up blood level to see if the dose is right for you and if not, make further adjustments in the amount you take. This process is done routinely with diabetics on insulin by monitoring the blood levels of fasting glucose. By monitoring blood levels of hormones or medications, doctors are able to use the right amount for you body and minimize the possibility of unwanted side effects. So why isn't this same standard of medical practice used in helping postmenopausal women find the right dose of estrogen therapy?" If someone is on the wrong dose of estrogen therapy, they are probably going to have problems and may stop the therapy.

I also liked what she said about taking supplements or alternative therapies thinking they will preserve bone, only to find out a few years later that they did not and osteoporosis has developed. I don't see anything wrong with taking soy or whatever to stop some of the menopause problems but we need to think about the possibility of bone loss, too.

I plan on talking to my doctor about the bioidentical and the compounded hormones. Sounds like I would like to do the compounded hormones but I need more info on those. Sure hope my doctor knows something about those since I don't want to go doctor shoppine!

I had my surgery june 22 and I asked my doctor about hrt while still in the hospital. he replied that if I start to have symptoms then he'll prescribe something. well thankfully so far so good. i haven't had hot flashes or mood swings, I don't sleep at night but that is primarily due to having a teenage driver who is home for the summer. I don't really sleep until I hear the car door slam. (usually 3AM!) so I'm thankful that so far everything has gone well.

I'm 5 weeks tomorrow, had 1 ovary removed and the other appears to be dozing. I'm having headaches, mini hot flashes and lots of night sweats. I'm going to avoid HRT like the plague if I can help it. I think I'll be ok as soon as my ovary perks up. *fingers crossed*

39 yo, TAH + LSO 6/24/05
4 years of uncontrollable bleeding/clotting & one cyst-infested ovary.

I'll be at 7 weeks tomorrow, and I was having the exact same problems you are. No sleeping, crying, irritable, HOT, it was awful. I went BACK to the doctor, and he put me on Premarin and Zoloft (having "bad thoughts" as well) and now I have no more problems. He said my ovaries are "sleeping" so I'm not getting any estrogen. I'm really feeling so much better. Sleep is a wonderful thing, especially when you don't sweat!!!

My TAH/BSO was June 30. No HRT, no hot flashes, no night sweats. Long live Avlimil !!!!

Long live Avlimil
What is Avlimil ?? Also I just talked with a gal whom I have known for years I wanted to pick her brain about HRT since I know she had quite the time trying to find what would work for her she mentioned "plant " hormones and compounded hormones WHAT are these ??
TIA

Avlimil is a pill supplement that I take daily. The two main ingredients are soy isoflavones and black cohosh, which are the 2 items recommended to combat hot flashes and night sweats. You can read about it at www.avlimil.com. I will personal message more details to you because I don't want to sound like I'm advertising on this site. You should ALWAYS consult your doctor before taking supplements as soy is not usually recommended for people who have had endo. As for your hormone question, someone else will have to answer that. I'm not on HRT, so I haven't studied up on it. Good luck!

Rene