Sue - I take Soy Isoflavones that I buy over the counter at Cosco. The capsules were recommended by a friend - she told me all her friends took them instead of traditional HRT. I've noticed a big reduction in the number and intensity of my hot flashes - I have no more night sweats or those anxious middle-of-the-night heebie jeebies that used to wake me up. I talke two capsules in the morning and two before bed. Hope this helps.

I'm having day and night hot flashes regularly now, but have just started Premphase. Only 2 days so far, so can't tell anything. I tried soy first with no improvement.

Ruby

Premphase has been a Godscend for me for over a year but now with this PremPro scare (and it's been suggested that Premphase is in the same category)that I'm going to try a different one called Activella which is supposed to be more natural form. Before I had started HRT I also relied on soy supplements for a year. They did help during that time but then the symptoms got really bad and it wasn't helping anymore so that's when I broke down and started on Premphase. I am hoping in another year or so when my life gets a little less hectic I will try to go back to the soy suppements or some other natural supplement..Being a woman is certainly not easy......Linda

No, it's not easy Linda. I guess we thought we had it bad in the days when we had to deal with periods and cramps, but now it's hot flashes and worries about what HRT to take.
Always something. Like my mom says,"Getting old is the pits".
I haven't tried any of the meds that you spoke of, but I believe that I will go back to the Evista which is is usually prescribed to people who have a family history of breast cancer etc. Thankfully, I don't have that, but it may be safer.

Linda,
Did you have any trouble with the second half of the month with PremPhase - the progestin part? I've heard others say the did fine with the Estrogen, but the Progestin caused all kinds of problems. This wasn't said specifically about PremPhase though. Also, how long before you noticed a decline in the hot flashes? I'm on my 5th day and no decrease so far, but I'm sure it must be too soon.
Ruby

Hi Ruby, it was probably a couple of weeks when the hot flashes/sweats and my other symptoms all seemed to disappear. It hasn't helped my forgetfulness though..LOL! I did have a problem with breast tenderness when I first started and then occasionally after I had been on it a while but other than that it's worked great for me. feel free to email me if you have any other questions.....Linda

Sue,
I would not stop taking the HRT all at once. Dr. Lee suggested to taper it off for two to three months. To me, the best way to conque hot flashes is to use progesterone cream (Pro-Gest) at the same time use estrogen cream. They make my hot flashes gone totally. Please read my thread "Success story - ..." on this forum. Also you may want to read some books before you decide what to do. The following books helped me a lot in my decision-making.
Dr. John Lee "What Your doc may not tell you about menopause"
Laux & Conrad "Natural women, natural menopause"
Wish you the best.

I use the hormone patch which doesn't go thru your digestive trac, but I could not imagine going off my hrt. alot of people are taking different thing that people suggest and how do you know in 5 yrs. from now they are not going to come out w/ info that those things are unsafe? my thoughts on all of this is, we worry about what the lastest researchers say but are we overweight, do we drink or smoke, do we really take care of our bodies, if we did alot of these things then unless you have a high rate of breast cancer in your family, do what makes you feel the best in your life. we could get run over by a mac truck tommorrow so at least go down w/ out hotflashes or any other strange feelings. I talked w/ my Dr. and I will continue to use my patch.

Hi Sue,
I think our bodies become "habituated" to higher levels of estrogen. Whenever we try to stop using HRT, we feel horrible. I would say if you are determined to be off it, to try to tough it out. I think after several months, your body might stabilize. I don't have hot flashes, but I have much craziness, emotionally and physically, that happens whenever I try to "withdraw" from my patch. It's a bummer. It makes me wish I had never started the damn stuff 5 years ago. But......withdraw slowly. Many women think they can treat HRT like tylenol, but you can't. It takes at least 2 months after an HRT adjustment, to even begin to stabilize. I have heard that Black Cohosh is great for hot flashes. Good luck to you!

Hi Sue...I haven't taken HRT at all. I am having just about every peri/menopausal symptom there is EXCEPT hot flashes - I've had perhaps a dozen in the last couple of years. I have always eaten lots of vegetables & have been drinking soy milk & eating soy in various forms (because I like it) for years. Perhaps that's why? I have read more than once that Asian women don't tend to have the panoply of meno symptoms that Western women do - whether diet or self reporting is unclear.

Yesterday, for the first time, I had two hot flashes. And it occured to me that I've been eating terribly for the last couple of weeks, too much junk food, not nearly enough fruits & veggies, etc. Coincidence? I don't know. But eating more soy/veggies/fruit can't hurt & might be worth a try.

Hi Sue :o)

I have been off HRT now going on four months and have never felt better. I found a great product called Feminine Balance Plus with Natural Progesterone. It is a bit pricey ($26.00 for 2 oz.) but even using it twice a day (once in the morning and once at night) it lasts about 30 days. It has taken care of my hot flashes very nicely. I also take Black Cohash.

Good luck to you. Please let us know things go.

Hugs,
Sarah

Here is a link that might be useful: Feminine Balance

I have found that cutting way back on coffee and caffeine in general and also less wine and alcohol helps a lot with having less hot flashes...

I still have my morning coffee (2 or 3) but nothing with caffeine the rest of the day... and I drink a lot of water...

My hot flashes are not getting any better. After visiting my doctor last week he recommended Paxil. Apparently, they have used antidepressants to help breast cancer survivors who can't take estrogen and have found it has helped reduce hot flashes. I started taking my first pill yesterday, will let you know if it helps or doesn't in about a month.

These days, soy is actually not good for you. It's been genetically modified and has been proven to wreak havoc with female hormones, unfortunately.

There ARE natural progesterone and estrogen products available. Find a good nutritionist.

xoxo JoJo

Hi,
I stopped taking HRT after more than 10 years (gradually)early this summer, and did not start having hot flashes until September. They are no where near as bad as they were before, but I know about them. I am just hoping that they will go away soon!
I'll be in touch,
Elly

Estroven helped me with the hot flashes when I went off HRT. I get it at Costco or the health food store.

Gosh.....I really think HRT is bad news. As I said before, I really think we get addicted to it.....and have to pay for it later. I'm still on my patch, and I really would like to get off it. The last time I tried, life was unliveable. I have fibromyalgia, and that disease seems to be really interconnected with hormones. I have since started several other drugs which help me feel better (Toprol and Wellbutrin), so I may get brave and try to "detox" from my HRT again......but gosh, I'm really scared. Life was incredibly horrendous for me the last time I tried to quit. Truly, women, I think they should get rid of HRT.......and let us just live as we were meant to.

I am 55, had hysterectomy at age 43, and have tried all types of HRT. Finally I found the right one for me. I was taking ESTRATEST, combination of estrogen and testosterone and was doing great. I came off of it because I got scared from the media hype with regard to recent study - cancer. I told my doctor 2 weeks ago I was going off. Most of the time he had discouraged me from doing that but this time he did not. That worried me. However he did inform me that the study that got all that media attention involved Prempro and not my pill. I am miserable, hot flashes several times a day and at night. I am freezing my husband every night in effort to keep cool. Soy tablets do not work for me. I am now seriously considering going back on estratest. Worse side effect for me is that it makes me want to have sex more often and my husband is older and going in the opposite direction!!! You can't win for losing....

I'm on Activella. I was on the higher dosage for a year, and my hot flashes disappeared. I'm now on a lower dosage, and after 3 months, they're back with a vengance! I also feel like I'm gaining more weight, but I'm not necessarily blaming the lower dosage for it.

My GYN said if the hot flashes came back, she would put me on the former dosage. I'm debating this.

Soy can work for some women; however, for the vast majority, soy is ineffective. Also, it is important to realize that soy contains plant-derived estrogens called phytoestrogens. These plant-derived estrogens may be just as unsafe as the prescription hormones... we just don't know.

If you need hot flash or night sweat relief and don't want to take hormones, learn the truth about effective non-hormonal hot flash treatments at MenopauseUpdate.com. Learning the truth means learning the results of well-designed medical research studies. This is what you will learn on MenopauseUpdate.com. You will also learn the truth about the serious risks of taking hormones, including "bioidentical hormones". Currently there are 2 effective non-hormonal hot flash treatments that have been shown to provide long-term relief; they are gabapentin and oxybutynin. Go to MenopauseUpdate.com to learn how you can get started on one of these treatments and start experiencing relief.

Still getting the hot flashes on the lower dose. Also have lots of anxiety and weight gain.

Am going to ask my GYN next month about this. I've been on it almost 5 years, and don't know if there's a time when I need to stop taking it.

Hi Cheerful 1
I had the same problem as you on Activella and after 2 years of hell just decided to stop, it hasn't been easy but I've been off 4 months now and have another 2 months before my doc says things will start to improve, can't wait! Let me know how things are going with you?

roxane123: In December, my doctor told me to start taking the Activella every other day. The hot flashes are starting to come back, but they're managable.

What's interesting is, I'm presently on antibiotics for bronchitis, and my hot flashes and night sweats are almost unbearable.

Hi just posted a message to you on your new thread about antibiotics! Well after 4 months off Activella I now almost never have hot flushes but the first 3 months off were very hard. It really takes time for your body to readjust to not having those chemicals. You have to support your body with excellent nutrition when you go off and no smoking, caffeine or alcohol that's helping me, also exercise like 30-40 minutes brisk walk every other day and try to keep busy but I feel way better off Activella, only trying to sort out insomnia still but it is improving. My doc reckons another 2 months & the worst will be over! Hope so, get better soon!