Estradiol....

Hi Ladies
Just a few quick questions....I was put on Estradiol about 3 and a half weeks ago. I seem to be doing pretty good except for a few hot flashes here and there. I was told to take one pill a day ( I take mine with dinner) and I was wondering if I could increase the dose (2 pills daily) to maybe get rid of the flashes. Would that be too much? Should I just leave well enough alone? Also, is Estradiol the generic for Estrace? My doctor said that sometimes the generic drug isn't as good as the name brand so he gave me a script for Estrace when I need a refill. I don't mean to sound like a complete idiot :confuse: when it comes to this, but I guess I
am!!! Your opinions would be appreciated Thanks!

Carol

Carol,
I see your surgery was on Jan 7th so you are just at about 5 weeks post op. Your body is still recovering from the surgery and using up its stored reserves of hormones. The hot flashes could be from a fluctuation in your levels as your body adjusts.

JMHO if you aren't having any other symptoms you may want to wait a bit to start tinkering. You may want to start keeping a journal of your symptoms. This can give you and your doctor a clearer picture of what is going on.

As always, don't hesitate to give the doctor a call and let him know what is going on.

I'm not positive but I think that estradiol is the generic for estrace.

What strength? I have been on as high as 2 mg and am currently
on .5. My Dr would like me to take 1 mg or more, but I get breast pain on more and the .5 wards off the dreaded hot flash, but I am 53 and 2 years post op, I think the younger gals need more
or when you're not very far post op.

Kim M & Nancy,
Thanks for your input. I think I will wait a while longer before doing anything different than I'm doing. Like I said, the Estradiol is doing a pretty good job so I'll just wait and see. Nancy, I'm taking 1 mg. a day. Kim, a journal is a good Thanks ladies!
Carol

Carol - I have nearly the same question!

I'm a month post-op and on Estradiol 1 mg. per day. I take it at 8:00 every morning and every night about 7:30 I start with very slight hot flashes. I talked to my doctor and he said to expect some hot flashes not matter what hrt I take.

He also said that seeing I'm luckily not experiencing any other side effects at this point (headaches, joint pain, night sweats, etc.) and as long as the hot flashes are not too bad it's probably too early to tinker with the hrt. He thought maybe changing to a patch might help but I don't want the patch due to skin issues with my psoriasis.

But I was wondering if I couldn't take .5 mg in the evening to compensate for the fact that the morning dose is pretty much depleted from my system by early evening. I was wondering if this worked for anybody else.

Leslie

Hello! Im glad I came to this area and find someone taking the same type medicine. Today Im 4 weeks post op, went for check up today, start my hrt. Doc put me on estradiol 2mg. He said that dose because Im 38 yrs old. Im really nervous about all this, so it helps when someone else is taking the same medicine, and you can talk about it. I was having terrible night sweats, no sleep, a little bit of everything. I hope this medicine helps! I hope we can stay in touch and see how it works for us. Thank You! Take care!

Hi foureyed,

It is a good idea to split up your estradiol amount if you are having symptoms by nighttime. If you are still having low points, you might want to increase the amount - with your Dr.'s advice of course. I ultimately switched to the Vivelle Patch and it has worked amazingly well for me, and I've had no reactions with rashes etc. like I did with diff. patches. You really shouldn't be experiencing ANY hotflashes at all- at least that is my Dr.'s stand, and her main concern as well is that if you are hotflashing, it's also a sign that your brain is probably not getting enough estrogen which can show up eventually in forgetfulness, not sleeping, etc., after awhile. Good luck with all! Kristy

Hi Bubblegum!
You said your doctor put you on 2mg. Estradiol because of your age. Is it because he considers this to be a young age to be on a lesser dose? I'm asking this because I'm trying to find out exactly
how much hrt I should be on. There's so many different ones to
take and like you, I'm a little nervous and want to find the right hrt and the right amount I guess I'm going to wait a while longer before I start to tinker with the amount I'm taking and then I'll call my doc and ask his advice. The only thing I've really been suffering from lately is headaches. I think I might have a sinus infection and nothing to do with the Estradiol Any
of you fine ladies get sinus headaches? Yikes!!! I think I might have to go the docs for that 'cause it's been going on for a while now. Anyway, I hope we can all get our " hormones" straightened
out. Let's all keep in touch about all this fun stuff!
s Carol

Carol,
Do keep in mind that HRT is not a one size fits all. While I may require 1mg to feel good, someone else may need 2mg. It's all about balance and how you feel.

I hope you feel better soon.

Hi Everyone.
So happy to find this site with other ladies having the same problems as I am. I have been on Estradiol for 3 weeks and was doing fine until this last Sunday. Now I am having hot flashes, nausea, loss of appetite, tender breasts, headaches and muscle and joint pain (although I already have fibromyalgia so the muscle and joint pain is not new). I am taking 1 mg every morning. My question is: is it too soon to call the doc and start tweeking the meds or should I give this a longer trial? Any help would be appreciated.