Worried about taking HRT....

I had a TAH back over 6 weeks ago. I have been on Vivelle Dot (0.05) since the surgery. I was doing fine up until a week ago. My right calf has started aching and I was feeling pressure in my leg. It was not really that painful, just bothersome and achey. I informed my doctor at my 5 week post op appointment, and she told me to monitor it. My leg continued to hurt so my doc had me go and do a sonogram on my leg this past week.

There were no signs of blood clots or anything else abnormal. My doc suggested for me to get off the V dot and use estrogen cream instead. She recommended that and to monitor my leg to see if the symptoms clear up. My leg symptoms have subsided after a couple days off V dot. I still have some tenderness and soreness but do not have the pressure or achiness in my leg.

I am concerned and frustrated about what to do.... Worried about side effects of taking HRT.

I am very sensitive to taking medication and have had some bad experiences with other medications and side effects for other medical issues.

I worry about HRT due to my age and risk factors. I'm taking other meds to reduce my risk factors(not for the sake of the HRT, but to treat the other issues) and without HRT I was having trouble functioning. So I feel I've made an acceptable decision for now. I looked at my personal risk factors, my personal reasons for HRT, and decided if I could reduce my risk factors I'd be better off taking it. So I suggest you do a similar thing. What are your risk factors, Age, stroke risks, cholesterol, etc? Then look at the reasons you would take HRT---what symptoms you have or are trying to prevent. Could you minimize your risks, or could you treat the problems another way? And would those be better or not. (Calcium, antidepressants, acupuncture, whatever). You may decide to go another route or stay with the HRT but discussing the whole picture with your Dr might help you feel better about your decision. Good luck finding what's right for you.