‘The Big M’

‘The Big M’

Hello again!

I am meeting women every day now that have read my previous articles and often in my general conversations, the big M comes up, so if writing about it only helps people talk about it more, then my job here is done!

I am feeling a lot more like myself these days and that is not just my opinion! My hubby thinks so too and someone I do not see very often says that I am a lot calmer and look less tired. A good side effect of the gel I’m using is that I am sleeping much better. I still wake up every now and again but certainly a lot less than this time last year.

Our French lessons and Knitty Nora groups that meet in our bar, all end up as a bit of a therapy session, it’s good for me as I am still very much learning. It’s also good that others feel they have someone safe to discuss their most crazy

moments with and to share information on what works for them. We all seem to have a different set of symptoms; some are rare and not always seen as being part of what we see as the effects of the ‘Big M’.

My current investigations have led me to look at testosterone, ‘a male hormone’ I hear you say. Well, just because men can buy this over the counter in little blue pill form, does not mean it is exclusively for them! We women have it in our system from birth too. For men, it is required in order to produce sperm and in women it helps with our bones and reproductive system as well as libido for both. So my next step is to go to the doctors and ask for a blood test, as testing your levels prior to taking it is important, as it is with oestrogen.

Getting both hormone levels tested is very important, as you need to ensure that your oestrogen levels are ok. This is because any testosterone added, if your levels are too low, is turned into oestrogen, making it not as effective as it could be. I feel that I could benefit from this for all of the above reasons, my aunt suffered from osteoporosis, so this is a big concern for me. She had both her hips replaced, one twice

and numerous breaks, not what I want to be suffering from if I can do something about it. You can take it several ways; it is available as a gel, topical solution, patch, or pellet (to be implanted), or as an injection or oral capsule, so plenty of options. Only take prescribed medication, buying something like this, without blood tests and from possibly unreliable sources can cause more harm than good. Delving into HRT options without blood testing can also do a lot of harm, so ensure you get tested before accepting any form of HRT.

A close friend of mine was given HRT by her doctor, without any tests being carried out. After being on it for about a year and to be honest, feeling better, calmer. She started to bleed and not just a little. So she returned to the doctor and was referred to the hospital. They did an echogram and could see shadows on her ovaries, having had problems with endometriosis in the past, the first thought was something sinister, so further tests and a possible operation was scheduled.

Her blood was tested too and it was found that she had extremely high levels of oestrogen in her body. The HRT was stopped immediately (her husband was very concerned as he had finally got his wife back and was worried how she would be without

it). She went back to the doctors in between times and was found to be suffering from a blood clot, so it was decided that they would aspirate the clot first and were hoping to operate on her other issue, at the same time.

Clot sorted (thank goodness), another echogram was performed only to find that the shadows had disappeared. This may or may not be because the HRT had been stopped? An appointment in April, with another echogram has been scheduled. They are expecting (we are hoping) to find that the shadows have not returned. Which would lead them to believe that the shadows were due to the oestrogen overload (will keep you guys posted once my girl-pal has been back to the hospital). Once they get this resolved they will relook at what she needs on the HRT front (her husband sighs with relief).

So, seek out help, do not just go out there and buy something, anything, off the internet. Remember, your doctor has seen and dealt with much worse, they are there to help, so let them.

Big hugs K xx