Health practitioner familiar with Hormone Replacement Therapy
Hi, I wish to go on HRT and would like to see a practitioner ( preferably in the East Bay) who is well informed about this therapy. I have a Blue Shield PPO coverage. If you like your practitioner , please share their contact info. Also, if possible, tell me about how the therapy has helped you with your menopausal symptoms. I am aware of the controversy surrounding the possible side effects of the therapy ( increased risk of stroke, heart attack, ...), and am also well read regarding the newer research that has found for recently menopausal women the therapy can be helpful and without bad side effects. Therefore, I hope to get answers about who to see and your own personal experience (before and after the therapy). Thank you.
Jan 16, 2018
Parent Replies
I took HRT for several years and I don't think you will have any trouble finding an Ob/Gyn who can support you in this. My experience with several local Ob/Gyn practices is they do keep up to date with the research. Just pick a practice you like. I got my original prescription at one of the big practices in Berkeley. Sorry I don't remember which doc, but she was very well versed and explained that the research findings were based on POST-menopausal women who were looking to HRT as a way to protect heart health. At the time, that was a trend. The study with the scary results was not about perimenopausal women like me trying to get through a few years of hot flashes. My doc told me the risk was small, even though I have high blood pressure (controlled by meds). I went on HRT because my symptoms were interfering with my job. I would be sitting in a meeting (with a bunch of men bc I work in a male-dominated industry) and suddenly I'd be on fire, gasping for air, pulling off my jacket, my face bright red, sweat breaking out, etc. It was awful. Sometimes my male boss would ask me "Everything OK?" which was embarrassing, since I really didn't want to discuss it with him, but I'm sure he must have been alarmed. I also stopped sleeping well at night because of all the hot flashes. The HRT totally removed these horrible events. It really was a miracle. I stayed on HRT for 4 years or so, during which time I switched to Kaiser, where I also found my ObGyn there to be very supportive and reassuring. Ask your doctor!