Help

Join Date: Apr 2006
Hysterectomy: May 7th, 2005


1 year in may post op
Hi there ladies
Well Im not even sure if Im where I should be but if not hopefully someone will let me know
Introducing myself
I had a complete hysterectomy a year ago in may of this year due to endro.
Boy Im not sure if it was the right thing to do or not but, the Dr really did not seem to give me much options except the pill and due to my age(38) then he was not really happy with it.
So enough of that now I have had the whole thing done and suffer from hotflashes, night sweats, weight gain, thinning of my hair and the list goes on. What a nightmare it has been.
My moods seem to be on a ride of there own.
Im hoping somebody out there can maybe reply to what there experience has been like cause right now I just dont know what is normal.
I am on no hormone replacement and have tried some natural herbs but not not much help.( Black Cohash)
I would like to know what I can do to help my hair or more so what others have tried. Im a hairstylist myself but this is just one thing they did not teach us in school.(LOL)
anyways the reason for no hormone replacement is due to family history of breast cancer plus my Dr really does not agree with it... He is more for the all natural thing...But hes a man! LOL
Good luck to all you ladies out there that are fighting the lovely battle of the M!!! word.. Take care

I'm sorry you've had such an awful time. Most of it seems to be related to the ovaries, and you might want to speak to an oncologist about your true breast cancer risk vs. the potential benefits of HRT. A slightly increased risk from HRT might be worth it if it means a huge increase in quality of life, but that's a decision only you can make, after consulting with someone who understands what it's like to go through surgical menopause. A male doctor who believes in the 'natural thing' may not be the best advisor for you right now, because there's nothing natural about surgical menopause to start with.

And if you really are at a hugely increased risk of cancer from HRT, black cohosh is absolutely NO safer than bioidentical hormones. Herbs are just as risky, if not riskier, than drugs. If it acts like a hormone and helps your symptoms, it's also having all the other effects of hormones. The problem with herbs is that they're completely unregulated, so you have no idea what you're actually taking. If they work for you, great, but don't let anyone try to convince you that they're somehow safe and drugs are risky.

Good luck!

Hi sweat2006
Welcome to Hystersisters. You might want to do some reading and posting in the No-Hormone Desert Oasis. There are many women there who are dealing with not being able to take hrt or choosing not to. They talk about many of the alternatives and what has worked for them. There is also the Hormone Article List that has a lot of information in articles you can read.
I hope you will find some of the answers you are looking for. I'm glad you have joined us.
's, Rita

Hi (((sweat2006))) and welcome! I'm glad you found us. Sorry you are dealing with so many menopausal symptoms since your surgery. Unfortunately, there don't exist a combination of herbs or prescription medicines that can completely compensate for the loss of our own hormones that occurs with a BSO -- I see by your profile that you had your ovaries removed as well.

While I really don't think the sex of the DR has much to do with whether or not they can be helpful after a hysterectomy -- compassionate DRs of both sexes exist, as do insensitive and uninformed ones, especially where it comes to hormones and hormone replacement -- it does sound like you might do well to find yourself a new partner in your health care decisions. Many women find that the brilliant surgeon or OB/GYN who performed their hysterectomy is not the most knowledgeable or cooperative partner in decisions about hormones and hormone replacement or medications for menopausal symptom management. After all, no one DR can be all things to all patients.

I would encourage you to discuss your personal and family medical history with a new DR who is more familiar with the concerns of menopausal women. Frankly, I suspect that the fact that you had endometriosis will weigh more heavily than the fact that there may be breast cancer in your family. There are many factors that enter into your overall risk of breast cancer, and family history is but one of them. In fact, most of us who have been diagnosed with breast cancer never had any family history; I didn't, but now I have my very own history. Yet I am on HRT, because the risks of other serious problems outweigh (for me) the slightly increased risk of a recurrence, which may not be any additional risk at all, because I am on bio-identical HRT's. There is more information about HRT and breast cancer risk in our Resources directory; just click on the Resources tab at the left to go there. Scroll down and check out the Breast Health and Hormone Jungle sections.

Endo, however, is another animal altogether. Estrogen tends to encourage endo to re-grow... and if there is enough endo, it can even produce its own estrogen, fueling its own growth. That's why some DRs will put women who had hysts for endo on progesterone or synthetic progestin only, or birth control pills containing a high dose of progestin, rather than on estrogen. These do not necessarily do much for the menopausal symptoms; the purpose is more to keep the endo from re-growing.

Another thing you might check out is your thyroid function... thyroid is another issue that is common after ovary removal and can cause problems with thinning or breaking hair. My DR runs TSH, T3, T4 and thyroid antibodies for me every year to keep tabs on how I'm doing there (so far so good ).

Please feel free to join us in the Hormone Jungle forum if you're interested in finding out more about hormone replacement, or check out the No-Hormone Desert Oasis forum if you want more information about non-hormonal solutions for menopausal symptoms. For your general health and wellness concerns, the Hysteritaville forum is a great place to start.

I hope this helps!
s,
-Linda