total hyterectomy at 40- dont we need some hormone help?

I ve found this site really helpful and have also done lots of research... but of course along with all the info out there, confusion about what course to take reigns as well... I am still on the fence about taking estrogen and nearly 3 months post op am only on vitamin supplements.. i m only 40 and from what I see while lots of people are only concentrating on finding supplements to fight hot flashes etc... dont we need some estrogen for general body welfare? am I wrong or dont we really need the estrogen even in a smaller dose, a patch maybe, I am so confused, if I dont take estrogen, wont I age really fast and maybe develop other problems? I also had a bone density scan done and I have osteopenia in the spine, so I have the option of taking something like raloxifene or estrogen, I m reluctant to take estrogen because of a family history of breast cancer... ( mothers sister- and mother had ovarian cancer) but am leaning towards taking estroge in the form of a patch or ge. ( nothing orally) as they seem the least harmful... anything helpful anyone?

I'm 43 and 9 days after surgery (TAH), I am having no hot flashes but I am very, very moody. I still don't know if I'm gonna start HRT. I'm taking it day by day right now. I just want to recover and then I can start working on my mood. But if I start getting hot flashes or anyworse than how I feel now, I"m calling the Doc. right away to start something.

Miskyloo.

I had my TAH with removal of both ovaries and fallopian tubes. I didn't experience any hot flashes until my fifth week into recovery. My doctor does not like to prescribe hormones so she recommended, Remifem its a multi-vitamin with Black Cohosh she also suggested a soy supplement, she also said to start taking Caltrate for woman. I still have flashes but they are not intense like some have experienced, but at this point I don't know if its because the pills help, or if its because they just never got worse than in the beginning. I am also confused, my mother was on HRT for almost 30 years with no problems, now her doctor doesn't want her to take it anymore.

Hi All,

3 weeks post op tomorrow and still no menopausal symptons. I really don't want to take anything either. Most herbal supplements give me gastic distress in some form or another. (Very sensitive stomach). No desire for homones. Had enough of those already before the hysterectomy. My period made me crazy and everyone else around me too.

I'll find a way to deal. Might have to strap an a/c unit to my chest but I'll find a way. There's always sticking your head in the freezer or turning the air on in the car in the middle of January. I don't care. No hormones. Nada!

ok, so here is what I was told by an obgyn nurse. We need the hormones.
We are too young not to take them. Forget the hot flashes, I would just like to feel like I am 37 again. I have been off the hormones for well over a year. I feel like an 87 year old woman. My body aches, my hair is thinning, I am totally forgetful, I am disinterested in sex, I don't want to do anything that a normal 37 yr old does. I go to work, that's it for me. I am moody, hell, I can deal with the hot flashes, but I am afraid that if I don't get on some hormones soon that I will either die, or kill someone else. I have been begging the doctor and they want to wait til i have my baseline mammogram, which I might add I should have had at 35. Anyway, that is what I was told. We need them, or we will age, we will fall apart. I would even be willing to try the bio identical hormones at this point. You know that I have heard that women have actually gotten away with murder from not having an adequate amount of hormones. But it is your body, so you will know or find what works for you and what doesn't. It is still best in the end to not take them unless they are really necessary. Good luck

I am as confused as everyone else. I had a total hysterectomy almost 8 years ago. I was on the hormones for a short time but had pains in my abdomen and a growth that was feeding off of the hormones. Of course my male gyne wanted me to stay on the hormones. The surgeon suggested going off of them and see if the growth went away, which it did. Now about 7 years later I can no longer stand the hot flashes. I have sweat dripping down my forehead during the day (at work). How embarassing! I wake up constantly during the night. I am 43 years young and can't take the hot flashes ANYMORE!

I would think 43 is too young to be without hormones, and youve been without them for several years... I have decided to go on ert for awhile, so what I am doing is taking some everyday just for about a mont, ( I only started a week ago) then I ll really lower the dosage to maybe o.o25 patch or something .... were you on a very high dosage before? do YOu think you might want to try a lower dosage now? I hope I wont have problems with the ert!! fingers crossed! i wanted to be without the hormones, but after 3 months did nt feel so good and thats why I decided to give them a try,, I m nervous as well as there is a cancer history with my family, but felt so lousy even with taking all the extra vitamins that I didnt feel I had any other option at age 41...

	Quote:
Originally Posted by miskyloo I ve found this site really helpful and have also done lots of research... but of course along with all the info out there, confusion about what course to take reigns as well... I am still on the fence about taking estrogen and nearly 3 months post op am only on vitamin supplements.. i m only 40 and from what I see while lots of people are only concentrating on finding supplements to fight hot flashes etc... dont we need some estrogen for general body welfare? am I wrong or dont we really need the estrogen even in a smaller dose, a patch maybe, I am so confused, if I dont take estrogen, wont I age really fast and maybe develop other problems? I also had a bone density scan done and I have osteopenia in the spine, so I have the option of taking something like raloxifene or estrogen, I m reluctant to take estrogen because of a family history of breast cancer... ( mothers sister- and mother had ovarian cancer) but am leaning towards taking estroge in the form of a patch or ge. ( nothing orally) as they seem the least harmful... anything helpful anyone?

I am going to have my ovaries removed on Nov. 1st. I have a very strong history of breast cancer in my family and I am BRCA1 carrier. I talked with an onocolgist and it is his suggestion I have this surgery, BUT he did tell me I can go on lose dose estrogen therapy for 5 years (until I am 50). It helps that I am already going into menopause already hot flashes, vaginal dryness, moody, etc), but still it is scary going into full menopause overnight

Since I am having my uterus removed as well as my ovaries, I can possibly consider taking raloxifene over HRT, since the risk of uterine cancer will be removed, but both have risks involved ... as you said it can be so confusing. For me talking to an oncologist was very helpful since he is the one who sees cancer all the time and I felt more confident in trying HRT first , and see how that goes, if it doesn't work then look into other alternatives.

It is helpful to look into other alternative ways of treating symptoms of menopause, BUT if there is a history of cancer in your family, you still need to beware as some of these turn into estrogen in your body and can cause the same problems that HRT can My onologist said black cohosh is Ok 9butno in large quantities) , but soy has to be taken in small amounts only.

My Mom never had a problem with menopause, my sister went into menopause because of chemo, had terrible hot flashes, had her ovaries removed and has had no problems. She too has osteiopenia (?), but she has been taking some kind of suppliments and it has begun to reverse. She is 41 now and was 36 when she had cancer and her surgeries and she looks great and feels great.

I am not sure if I was of any help.

Wishing you the best ,

Barri

thanks for your post. barri, but I am rather surprised that you have opted to go for this surgery when you are quite well at the moment... did you not want to hang onto your bits and just keep a very close eye on them, by which I mean regular check ups... it just seems a radical move... let me tell you that once they are out you cant get them back again and while every woman is not the same believe me your life is never the same again... unfortunately for me I had endometriosis and while that in itself did nt give me much trouble and was inactive for quite a long time an existing cyst was pressing against my uterus and that made me want to pee all the time... so I had to have the surgery unfortunately to clear the cyst and the cyst was so enveloped in the ovaries etc I had to have the total hysterectomy... believe me there were days these past 3 months that I wished I had my ovaries back, cysts and all!!! my family history is really strong as well, I considered having the marker test... but then what... even if you carry the marker its not a given that you will get cancer, lots of women with the marker never get cancer and lots of women with no marker get cancer... I just started ert and even though its been just over a week I feel better... I ll have to tweak my dose though once my hormone levels go up a bit... I had nt taken anything for 3 months, so as you said, I too had decided to take low dosage estrogen for a few years.... hopefully as low as 0.025... in the patch form and I hope that will be sufficient... I wanted to stay off ert but while I only had about 8 -10 hot flushes a day they started intensifying and apart from that I had this really foggy feeling in my head that intensified when I concentrated on something ... so I decided that at 40.. well nearly 41 I d better take a bit of estrogen and pray real hard!!! Good luck with whatever you decide to do!!!

[quote=miskyloo]thanks for your post. barri, but I am rather surprised that you have opted to go for this surgery when you are quite well at the moment... did you not want to hang onto your bits and just keep a very close eye on them, by which I mean regular check ups... it just seems a radical move... my family history is really strong as well, I considered having the marker test... but then what... even if you carry the marker its not a given that you will get cancer, lots of women with the marker never get cancer and lots of women with no marker get cancer... QUOTE]

I understand where you are coming from and for the last 5 years I didn't want to do any surgery, although I have had a lot of pressure to do so. I understand that even with the gene I may not get cancer. That is why I have refuse to get a mastectomy for cancer prevention. I went to see an onocologist and after I talked with him I made the choice to go ahead with this surgery. It was not an easy decision nor one I made lightly, I have researched this in great depth, I am aware of the risks and possible repercussions of this surgery. With breast cancer early detection is much easier than with ovarian cancer. Even with all the testing I am doing now (CA-125 2x a year, vaginal ultra-sound 2x a year, clinical breast exams 2x a year, mammogram and breast MRIs,along with my regular exams) finding ovarian cancer early (before stage 3)is very rare. I am already going into menopause so I feel I made the right decision for me. I lost an aunt to breast cancer and watched my sister go through her battle with cancer (sheis now a 5 year survivor), I really this right for me. Not to say that I have my share of concerns about what happens afterwards and I am very nervous. I don't know if menopause sympoms are heritary(?), but I am hoping so. My Mom breezed through it, with no problems. My younger sister (also BRCA1+)at 36 had chemo (for breast cancer) and went into menopause, she had bad hot flashes then, but after they removed her ovaries she has not had any problems.

Barri