Menopause/Hormonal Support

[[va...]]

Suzy when you say you don't know how we carry on, for me the faith board is helping me tremendously with that. I know it's not for everyone and I respect it but I just wanted to tell you that's where I find my strength these days. Hugs to you. I'm going to pick up daughter and going for a walk in the park of forest 🏞️

[[De...]]

Thanks Janice,

I didnt know there was a faith board. I will check.it out! Have a nice day with your daughter!

[[va...]]

Yes Suzy, you have to ask to join that board, otherwise it doesn't open for you. If you want to join but don't manage please tell me and I will find out. I don't remember.

[[va...]]

Oh yes. I think you go to your profile, then click modify profile, and then click group membership and select what groups you want to join.

[[Bl...]]

Hello ladies

I’ve been off benzo for 2 months now

My biggest concern are my estrogen and progesterone levels... they were low thanks to the benzo,

Does anyone know if it’s possible fpr them to return to normal after quitting?

Or Am I cursed for life?

Any help appreciated

(I am 33 years old)

 

Opinions welcome

Blossom

[[Do...]]

Gosh, I don’t know Blossom but I suspect a few ladies here do and will weigh in.

 

I am realizing this week that I am really mourning the years I’ve lost to these meds. I’ve been in a medicated fog for so long. My children have grown up and I have grown old without realizing the years were slipping away. I am perimenopausal and my skin feels so dry (and it’s not just because it’s winter) and wrinkled. I feel like I have aged so much in the last 2 years. Makes me sad.

[[Bl...]]

Gosh, I don’t know Blossom but I suspect a few ladies here do and will weigh in.

 

I am realizing this week that I am really mourning the years I’ve lost to these meds. I’ve been in a medicated fog for so long. My children have grown up and I have grown old without realizing the years were slipping away. I am perimenopausal and my skin feels so dry (and it’s not just because it’s winter) and wrinkled. I feel like I have aged so much in the last 2 years. Makes me sad.

I was always very hormonal and now I have low levels, makes me very sad too.

I can’t believe what this meds have done to my body. i understand what you say about the years slipping away...I try to stay positive but depression hits me hard+ I wish to have children in the next 2 years

Blossom

[[Do...]]

LOVE your profile pic Blossom! Good for you on getting off these meds now so you WILL be present for your children’s growing years. Sorry for the Debbie downer post. I try to not do that cause the negativity breeds on itself if I do. Heading out on a hike today with a g/f. It is a beautiful day here in South Jersey and I aim to enjoy it!! Hope you can do the same! Hugs!

[[Bl...]]

LOVE your profile pic Blossom! Good for you on getting off these meds now so you WILL be present for your children’s growing years. Sorry for the Debbie downer post. I try to not do that cause the negativity breeds on itself if I do. Heading out on a hike today with a g/f. It is a beautiful day here in South Jersey and I aim to enjoy it!! Hope you can do the same! Hugs!

Thank you! We are here to support each other and it’s healthy to get it out of our chest sometimes. I struggle mainly with depression and negative thoughts so no worries, I totally understand

Great for you going on a hike!  I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoy going outdoors

Greetings from California!

Hugs and heaing vibes <3

[[Pa...]]

Thanks Janice,

I didnt know there was a faith board. I will check.it out! Have a nice day with your daughter!

 

Here is a link to the instructions. 

 

http://www.benzobuddies.org/forum/index.php?topic=97364.0

[[Do...]]

LOVE your profile pic Blossom! Good for you on getting off these meds now so you WILL be present for your children’s growing years. Sorry for the Debbie downer post. I try to not do that cause the negativity breeds on itself if I do. Heading out on a hike today with a g/f. It is a beautiful day here in South Jersey and I aim to enjoy it!! Hope you can do the same! Hugs!

Thank you! We are here to support each other and it’s healthy to get it out of our chest sometimes. I struggle mainly with depression and negative thoughts so no worries, I totally understand

Great for you going on a hike!  I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoy going outdoors

Greetings from California!

 

Right back at ya Cali girl! Today was an AMAZING 70 degree day here. Such crazy weather. I hiked in a tank top! I am getting closer and closer to my old self with each hike. I started the 52hikechallenge for the New Year and am going to try my hardest to stick to it.

 

Happy Sunday eve,

J

Hugs and heaing vibes <3

[[va...]]

 

I didnt know there was a faith board. I will check.it out! Have a nice day with your daughter!

 

Here is a link to the instructions. 

 

http://www.benzobuddies.org/forum/index.php?topic=97364.0

 

💕🐢

[[Vi...]]

I’m off benzo almost 4 years and I’m in full blown menapouse 2 years now.

My symptoms never get better, feels like I’m still in acute withdrawal for 4 years now.

Still dealing with severe anxiety, cortisone rush, terrible night sweats, can’t sleep, acidic taste in my mouth, body pain and very bad headache 24/7.

Take only natural thyroid medication.

Anybody has some advice how to come down my body with this anxiety and insomnia or cortisone rush?

 

[[Bl...]]

LOVE your profile pic Blossom! Good for you on getting off these meds now so you WILL be present for your children’s growing years. Sorry for the Debbie downer post. I try to not do that cause the negativity breeds on itself if I do. Heading out on a hike today with a g/f. It is a beautiful day here in South Jersey and I aim to enjoy it!! Hope you can do the same! Hugs!

Thank you! We are here to support each other and it’s healthy to get it out of our chest sometimes. I struggle mainly with depression and negative thoughts so no worries, I totally understand

Great for you going on a hike!  I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoy going outdoors

Greetings from California!

 

Right back at ya Cali girl! Today was an AMAZING 70 degree day here. Such crazy weather. I hiked in a tank top! I am getting closer and closer to my old self with each hike. I started the 52hikechallenge for the New Year and am going to try my hardest to stick to it.

 

Happy Sunday eve,

J

Hugs and heaing vibes <3

 

Wow! I am so happy for you! Sounds like you are enjoying life, don’t stop the hike!

We are still cold here in California (58-60)can’t wait to wear my shorts again!

Today I’ll try juicing for the first time (carrot, celery and beet)

Hopefully it will help me with my stomach issues... Fingers crossed

Hugs back at ya !

Blossom

 

[[NJ...]]

I’m off benzo almost 4 years and I’m in full blown menapouse 2 years now.

My symptoms never get better, feels like I’m still in acute withdrawal for 4 years now.

Still dealing with severe anxiety, cortisone rush, terrible night sweats, can’t sleep, acidic taste in my mouth, body pain and very bad headache 24/7.

Take only natural thyroid medication.

Anybody has some advice how to come down my body with this anxiety and insomnia or cortisone rush?

 

I am not tapering at the moment but really struggling with the lack of sleep and digestive issues. Have no advice for you just wanted to let you know you are not alone. I am so tired ... I have been up since 1:30 this morning.

[[va...]]

NJStrength I'm sorry you're having such bad insomnia. Do you think it's due to the menopause? You were finally feeling more stable on the K after that long hold.

[[NJ...]]

NJStrength I'm sorry you're having such bad insomnia. Do you think it's due to the menopause? You were finally feeling more stable on the K after that long hold.

 

I do think it is menopause ... have not had my period since September. I was up all night again last night and I am so tired and nauseous this morning.

 

I also am still just freaking out about my life in general. Son still not medically stable and we are now almost two years into this. I just want to put my head down and cry all the time, this is breaking my heart. I actually am going back to therapy this week, have not been since November. My other son is hiking the Appalachian Trail in a few months and I am starting to have major anxiety about that. The one who is sick is starting to look at colleges and I am beginning to wonder how we are going to get him through without massive debt (which we will take out, I don't want my kids to be in debt). I am constantly irritated at my husband as he has no idea of how much time I spend coordinating our son's medical care, and I am barely talking to either of my sisters as I am also the one who is handling the majority of my mom's health needs, and I have been doing this now for 10 years, starting with my father's cancer diagnosis, then subsequent illnesses until he passed, and now I am the one shouldering more of the burden for my mom with Parkinson's. These years are so damn hard, I am sitting here crying writing this, I know it's just because I had another bad night but there are just too many bad nights. And now I begin another day at work, at 6:30 in the morning. Ugh. We all need a break.

[[no...]]

seeing that this thread is 137 pages long, and hoping to find an answer in quicker time than i can read through all of this, i'm throwing my question out, hoping for a lucky catch...

 

hopefully one of you ladies has the answer. (fingers crossed)

 

so initially about 2? years ago, when i started taking oral progesterone alongside my estradiol transdermal patch,

the progesterone was a godsend in sleep aid, calming, and of course helps prevent osteoporosis and helps with hot flashes too.

 

however it has gone paradoxical on me.

 

i now take it at 10pm, and within 20 minutes like clockwork it makes me feel worse

...the interdose wd sxs i get from my other meds

(mainly the clonazepam)

that usually kick in 1 1/2-2 hours before each next dose now worsen 20 minutes after taking the progesterone

...migraine headache and jaw clenching and stomach gnawing, just like the benzo ID WD sxs but worse.

 

i have been in tolerance for gosh at least since i started taking clonazepam it was just a few months to less than a year when tolerance set in.

and i just kept taking it regular for years, until the interdose withdrawals got really uncomfortable, in the last 2 years.

 

when the ID WD sxs got janky, i began splitting my doses apart so i wouldn't feel it so much, went from 2 dose to 3 to now 4 doses a day. i did that with everything else as well. settled in and felt better initially but as usual the ID WD SXS just came back.

 

there's nothing for it but to put my nose to the grindstone so i am...

 

but the progesterone has the opposite effect that it used to, and i don't know how to go about tapering it

...since my 100 and 200 mg capsulettes are football shaped gelatin pills with a liquid oil soybean oil base inside.

 

am i gonna have to get a real syringe with a fine needle to extract out tiny amounts at a time to wean off the progesterone? or is there a better way?

(i'm pretty proficient with tapering benzos and antipsychotics and gabapentin, but never tried the oil inside the gelatin thick gelcap things.)

 

much thanks in advance to anyone with a lead on this.

[[Sa...]]

I think the body adjusts much faster from progesterone withdrawal, I had a similar issue and just stopped taking the progesterone.  It might be good to taper but I don’t think there’s any need to get perfect amounts like we do with a klonopin taper.  I’m sorry you’re dealing with this.  Benzo withdrawal plus hormone issues are such a double whammy but it sounds like you have a great determined attitude and I’m sure that will see you through this. 

[[no...]]

I think the body adjusts much faster from progesterone withdrawal, I had a similar issue and just stopped taking the progesterone.  It might be good to taper but I don’t think there’s any need to get perfect amounts like we do with a klonopin taper.  I’m sorry you’re dealing with this.  Benzo withdrawal plus hormone issues are such a double whammy but it sounds like you have a great determined attitude and I’m sure that will see you through this.

 

thanks Saige. i appreciate your vote of confidence. 

i found this voted #1 on amazon: (cheaper than compounded at pharmacy) https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EB0AQA4/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=A9TEGJYWPFXLA&psc=1

so maybe it would work for tapering?

 

someone on twitter said 300mg a day is really high for post surgical menopausal...in the UK she said they do 100mg daily for post menopausal.

[[Sa...]]

Yes that’s a really high amount. I would just start taking 200 and if you feel okay after a week try lowering to 100.  That high dosage will definitely alter your estrogen too.  I would try to let  your body adjust and balance things out.  Progesterone can continue to downregulate GABA.

[[no...]]

Yes that’s a really high amount. I would just start taking 200 and if you feel okay after a week try lowering to 100.  That high dosage will definitely alter your estrogen too.  I would try to let  your body adjust and balance things out.  Progesterone can continue to downregulate GABA.

 

well i've been on 300mg for over a year.. that's oral progesterone.

i'm worried about making a 33% cut all in one go...

maybe i'll put the equivalent in progestrone cream on and adjust to that first..

then gradually decrease it to where the sxs go away and eventually off it completely?

 

i read on this site: https://www.winchesterhospital.org/health-library/article?id=21813

Therapeutic Dosages

The usual dose of progesterone in cream form is 20 mg daily. Although this dose might decrease menopausal hot flashes (see below), most studies found that even doses as high as 64 mg daily do not provide enough progesterone to protect the uterus from the effects of estrogen. 2,20,21 However, one study found that use of micronized progesterone cream at 80 mg daily produced similar progesterone levels in the body as an oral dose of 200 mg daily;  oral micronized progesterone taken at a dose of 200 to 400 mg daily is approximately as effective as the standard dosage of the more commonly used progestins

 

 

the progesterone cream on amazon says

ELITE FORMULATION: Contains 2000 mg of Bio-Identical, Micronized Progesterone (Certified USP) in a 4-ounce pump; ~21mg of Progesterone USP per serving.

 

so i guess the conversion would be: 

4 servings = 1 teaspoon, so

(84mg progesterone cream = 200mg oral progesterone)

 

but since i'm trying to taper down from 300mg, i could start out with:

6 servings = 1 1/2 teaspoons, so

(126mg progesterone cream = 300mg oral progesterone)

 

and spread it on 4 x a day just like i take my other meds, to get less fluctuations/dips?

 

i sure wish i'd known about the GABAaergic effect before i added it to my hrt!

hopefully the wd sxs from tapering off it won't be as bad as ladies are saying...

 

one thing that might be a factor in how i react to it is i found out the hard way i'm a fast metabolizer.

 

just means i burn thru medication fast.

well at least that explains why i am having such intense interdose withdrawals on all my meds, and have always needed high doses of stuff in the past.

wish they would've told me!

 

funny the things we learn on our own or thru others who go thru the same thing, instead of from the prescribers.

 

thx again Saige

[[Sa...]]

I guess I just wouldn’t want to add another progesterone to the mix. I know it’s basically the same thing, but as we see even between klonopin brands, it can cause issues.  I didn’t even go from 1mg to .05 mg while tapering because I was afraid there would be some difference.  I get what your trying to do to be more precise though.  But if your body is used to that type of progesterone and you switch, it might feel a withdrawal.  But, you know what’s best for you and that’s most important.

[[Li...]]

nomoredrugsforme...I agree with Saige in sticking with the oral and not switching to creams.  I've been on both.  Still on oral P but only 100 mgs.  Not surprised to hear it's turning on you either.  I had cold turkeyed off it and it wasn't much fun but very tolerable.  but I had cold turkeyed off all hormones so hard to say what was causing what but I was miserable.  But nothing like a benzo WD.  I would recommend going down by 50 mgs....getting it compounded.  I recently had to go up on mine by 50 but then had tummy issues and bloating so had to back off.  Taking it orally creates more metabolites that hit on the GABA harder than a cream due to its first pass through the liver which is why changing over to a cream may cause some WD..maybe.  Just something I wouldn't want to chance...plus creams are very iffy with how they absorb, etc. 

 

Just my opinion and what others have said in my hormone groups.  I wish I wasn't on it but I have a uterus so have to be.  I used to go up and down on my dosages...from  100 to 200 and back...have done it a few times already but don't feel much from that drop.  Just don't C/T it!  50 mgs decrements should be fine. 

[[no...]]

nomoredrugsforme...I agree with Saige in sticking with the oral and not switching to creams.  I've been on both.  Still on oral P but only 100 mgs.  Not surprised to hear it's turning on you either.  I had cold turkeyed off it and it wasn't much fun but very tolerable.  but I had cold turkeyed off all hormones so hard to say what was causing what but I was miserable.  But nothing like a benzo WD.  I would recommend going down by 50 mgs....getting it compounded.  I recently had to go up on mine by 50 but then had tummy issues and bloating so had to back off.  Taking it orally creates more metabolites that hit on the GABA harder than a cream due to its first pass through the liver which is why changing over to a cream may cause some WD..maybe.  Just something I wouldn't want to chance...plus creams are very iffy with how they absorb, etc. 

 

Just my opinion and what others have said in my hormone groups.  I wish I wasn't on it but I have a uterus so have to be.  I used to go up and down on my dosages...from  100 to 200 and back...have done it a few times already but don't feel much from that drop.  Just don't C/T it!  50 mgs decrements should be fine.

 

hi Lib18 thx for your advice 

 

this morning this came to my door: (it was $19 free shipping thru prime.)

 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EB0AQA4/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

so tonite, just now actually, i took a 200mg oral progesterone football

and at 2pm tomorrow i will apply the cream to my inner thighs to hopefully get as close to the total of 300mg progesterone daily that i've been taking all orally so far.

 

i read about the GABA affecting in progesterone the same as a benzo and many women having as hard a time coming off progesterone as they did with benzo wd, but i hope to be lucky not to be in the same group. especially since i'm already tapering 3 other psc meds, one is clonazepam.

 

the reason i'm using cream and pill is so that i still take the majority in the same form orally as i always have, and only am changing the portion that i'm tapering to a cream.

i gues it's a crapshoot but trying to pick the lesser of 2 evils.

 

if the progesterone oral came in smaller doses i would use that to taper, however it comes in 100mg and 200mg size footballs.

and since it went paradoxical on me, and also i was rx'd 3 x the amount they normall y give women w/out a uterus post menopausal in the UK at least...i think it's past time to taper off.

 

the pharmacy compounded cream is not covered by my insurance and it is cheaper on amazon anyways.

i was surprised to find so many online without a prescription!

 

hopefully i can get accustomed to switching the 100mg part over to cream version in a short time, that would be nice.

when i adjust to the 1/3 of it being cream, i'll begin reducing the amount of cream i apply slowly.

 

i need to do everything real slow because i am polytapering 3 psych meds and progesterone now too...at the same time.

 

back in 2010 or 2011 i fast tapered all my meds including estradiol patch (no progesterone back then) over a 3-4 month period and was in hell.

and like you i went back on to stabilize.

 

thx again