HRT ques.-kinda long

I'm going in for the removal of my uterus and ovaries and tummy tuck, (part is repair, in which he tells me my muscles have to be sewn back together.)

(sorry, don't know the abbrevs)

I'm really worried over the prolonged use of hormones.
My female family members usually live well into their 80's and up to 100.
Does HRT affect your life greatly over time? I'm 37 and it's now bothering me enough I'm a wreck.
I have terrible bleeding, cysts that get worst every bout, and cramping, nausea, dizzy spells, clotting and anemia. It's effecting my life to the point I had to quit my job and stay home for almost a week every month and sometimes can't drive or go out alone. (I feel like a kid, it is humiliating!)

Is it a matter of your over all health and excercising, etc., or is it just bad overall as time goes on? I've heard pros and cons and just find myself more confused. How do you decide?? I'm re-thinking keeping one ovary.

Linda - I had tah/bso (removal of uterus, tubes, both ovaries and cervix) 3/22. I'm 45...had estrogen patch put on the day after surgery and opted to take daily estrogen pill once I got home. So far, I haven't had any problems at all...my moods are stable (probably more so than they've ever been)...no vaginal dryness..no hot flashes..no crying spells... etc. I'm not sure what the long term effects are...but will cross that bridge when I get there. I had cysts on both ovaries...and my gyn. and I discussed it at length before making the decision to have them both removed. I think that's probably one of the hardest decisions women have to make when faced with a hyst...but for me it was the right decision.

Linda,
This is such a tough decision and the situation is different for every woman. I experienced premature menopause a couple of years before my TAH/BSO, so have been grappling with the hormone replacement therapy (HRT) question for a while, even though my surgery was only a month ago. For me, HRT was a good choice. I have no family history of breast cancer, so wasn't too concerned about the possibility of a small increase in breast cancer risk. I do have a family history of osteoporosis and was found to already have the early stages of osteoporosis in my spine. HRT is a great tool in fighting bone loss, so for me it's essential. (So is weight-bearing exercise. So I added a routine of walking and weight lifting to my daily life.) HRT also eliminated symptoms of menopause that were really disruptive, like hot flashes, night sweats, mood swings and difficulty concentrating. I originally used the combipatch (both estrogen and progesterone). My doc switched me to Premarin post-op (took my first dose a few hours after surgery). We upped the dose at my 2 week check-up because I was having night sweats. Since then it's been fine. If I could have kept an ovary, I would have, but for me that wasn't an option.

Good luck. There are lots of good books on HRT on the market now. You might want to do some reading and go to see your doc armed with a list of questions.

Ladies,
Thank you, I feel a lot better! I'm wishing surgery was tomorrow!
I think I'll ask more questions, but I'm failry certain the ovaries must go.
I'll go find more books and make the list. Thank you!