Afraid You’ll Never Feel Normal Again After Menopause? Hormone Therapy Can Help

You don’t know how to dress anymore. Even when it’s chilly, you suddenly feel like your body’s on fire. If you have layers, you peel them off as quickly as you can. If you don’t, you suffer, or head for the fridge for an ice pack.

But your hot flashes and night sweats are only part of the story. You can’t sleep anymore. You feel groggy and fuzzy throughout the entire day. You fall asleep in strange places at strange times.

And, don’t even think about sex! Not only doesn’t it appeal to you anymore (much to your partner’s chagrin), but if you do manage to indulge, it hurts. Your vagina is as dry as the Sahara.

You’ve heard that hormone replacement therapy (HRT) can help, but you’re afraid. You know that — once upon a time — HRT had a bad rep. Have things really changed that much? And how can you know if HRT is the magic “pill” that’ll make you feel normal again?

At Enrich Family Practice, our medical experts, Kelly Burrows, APRN FNP-C, and Lee Ann Garza, FNP, offer hormone replacement therapy (HRT) as part of our women’s health services. We evaluate your health and determine if HRT is right for you at our office in Odessa, Texas.

Can HRT help you feel normal again? The following are some signs that it might.

Your temperature is as unpredictable as the weather

The most well-known side effect of low estrogen in women is sudden rises in body temperature. These “hot flashes” can be both embarrassing and uncomfortable. You may need to dress in layers, carry a portable fan, and have easy access to ice to help keep cool.

Hot flashes are particularly troublesome at night, when you’re trying to get a good sleep. Hot flashes at night are known as “night sweats” because you may wake up to sopping sheets and nightclothes.

You can’t go to sleep or wake up fully

Whether you have night sweats or not, you may still have trouble either falling asleep or staying asleep. You might wake up multiple times a night and have trouble falling back asleep. Or you wake up too early every day.

The result is, even after a “good night’s” sleep, you feel like you haven’t rested at all. And you may not have. Unless you enter into deep sleep cycles throughout the night, your body can’t repair and rejuvenate itself.

Both sleeplessness at night and sleepiness during the day could be signs that your estrogen is too low. After HRT, you should find yourself drifting off more easily, sleeping more restfully, and feeling brighter and more alert during the day.

You think kissing is icky

If your attitude toward sex and romance is more like your 7-year-old self than your 27-year-old self, low estrogen and testosterone may be to blame. Just as the surge of hormones in adolescence ramped up your sex drive, the plummet you’ve experienced recently has done the opposite.

You may have another, more physical reason to avoid sex, too. Maybe the last few times you’ve tried to have an intimate tryst, you’ve recoiled in pain. Your vagina is so dry that no amount of lube makes intercourse comfortable.

If you always had easy orgasms, they may be harder to come by, too. Or completely elusive. Therapy with HRT restores your hormones so that your sex drive actually drives you. It also helps your vagina secrete lubricant again and restores sensitivity to your clitoris.

Everything sags or falls out

You’re losing hair by the brushful. Your skin sags on your face, neck, elbows, and knees. Your muscles aren’t as strong and defined as they used to be.

You may have also developed osteopenia or osteoporosis. Loss of tissue, including bone tissue, is related to a reduction in hormones. You can restore some of what you’ve lost with HRT.

You’re in good health

If you’re in good health, at a healthy weight, and don’t have elevated risk factors for cardiovascular disease, stroke, or cancer, you may be an excellent candidate for HRT. Even though the official recommendation is to begin HRT within 10 years of menopause, don’t despair if you’re past that marker.

The Menopause Society conducted a retrospective analysis of women up to more than 80 years of age who used HRT. The most common side effect was postmenopausal bleeding. However, none of the women experienced a stroke, a heart attack, or uterine cancer.

Depending on your risk factors and general health, you may benefit from HRT, no matter what your age. In addition to helping you feel better, HRT may also protect your bones, preserve your cognitive abilities, and convey other health benefits. 

Is HRT the answer you’ve been searching for? The only way to know for sure is to contact us for an evaluation. Find out if hormone therapy can help you. Call us at 432-200-9052 or use our online appointment form.