2 week post-op. Hormones, no hormones, hmmmmmm..

Hi I have been a member here for about a year now. I became a member when I had a TAH January 3, 2003. Almost 1 year ago. I had major fibroids and endo. March of 2003 I began having cyclical pain and went to a Dr. in May and was told in June that it was only a hematoma. Finally in October I returned to the Dr. and asked how long does it take for one of those to heal. She said it should have been healed by now so I returned to the gyn who did my surgery originally. I just had surgery December 17 2003. I had a BSO and had cycsts on the ovaries and some more endo.

Before the surgery I had told the doc that I did not want to take HRT, I wanted to try going without. He said no that I needed to take them because the risks of not taking were higher than the risks of taking. He also said that if it turned out that I did have endo again that I would not be able to tale estrogen. So after surgery he tells me yes there was endo but he is still going to prescribe Prempro. I get the prescription and read the info that comes with it and decide that I can't take it. The info reads that if your uterus has been removed Prempro is not for you. If you are taking Prempro only for menopausal symptons it is not for you. You are not to take it for a prolonged period. Whew!!!! So what is a girl to do???? Of course when I have my post-op visit with him I'll have to let him know that I am not taking the meds he prescribed for me. Yes this is a confusing jungle...
I really don't know what is best for me. However with the warnings that came with the Prempro Ifelt it was best that I not take them.
Oh and I am 35 years old.

Thanks for listenign and all of your support.
Mechelle

you are your best judgement. some drs just try to force their patients to take stuff without really listening to the patient.(this i know for a fact) if you are not comfortable with HRT then maybe you could see a herbalist or even talk to a compounding pharmacy.I have never talked to the c.pharmacist but alot of ladies really love them.jmho.

Well,

You've got a lot going on here Mechelle,

--Many docs prefer not to prescribe estrogen for patients with endo, although some do, and some others prescribe estrogen in combination with progesterone.

--Technically speaking, women without a uterus do not "need" progesterone - progesterone is added to regimes to avoid endometrial cancer. HOWEVER, many women using estrogen feel better with some progesterone on board.

--Prempro is the most commonly prescribed estrogen-progesterone combination. Both hormones in prempro are synthetic. Some women feel bio-identical hormones are better.

--Plenty of women with a hyst do well on prempro. It really is a choice for you to make with your doc - whether to use HRT, and if so what formulation works best for you.

Dorrie