Just started Estrogen, do I need Progesterone?

Hi Ladies ~

I saw my NP and told her my myriad of symptoms, sudden weight gain (November 166 to today 192), mood swings, constant crying for no reason, sex drive...whats that, anxiety, heart palps, hot flashes, and the list goes on.

And she said, you just turned 40 - Welcome to Womenhood - Your in premenopause!!

Yeah...Lucky me. I had a partial hysterectomy in Feb 2000 (left the ovaries) so she explained that "Surgical Menopause" hits you harder and stronger... so you feel intense symptoms.

Thats sounds about right, I was two steps away from nutting up like a fruit cake and checking myself into the looney bin....

So, she prescribed a bio-identical Estrogen called ENJUVIA and told me it would help. It's been 6 days and I can;t tell one way or another (just spent the last 45 minutes crying)

The million dollar question is - Should I be taking Progesterone also????

I read some of the posts and many speak of progesterone, plus reading about it - it states it helps metabolize fat (bingo!!!!)

But I was under the impresion (uneducated impression) that you do not need the progesterone if you due not have a uterus... that the progesterone was to help reduce symptoms and CA risk within the uterus.

Can you all please share your thoughts with PROGESTERONE - with no uterus

ENJUVIA if anyone has taken it and estrogen - How do yu all like it???  Did it cause any symptoms or more weihgt gain???

And lastly - how do we get RID of this weight??????

Thank you !

[sick and tired 47]

Hi! Did your dr. check you to make sure you are low in estrogen??? My first dr. gave me premarin ( not bioidentical-synthetic) and I thought I would go crazy. She never checked my levels prior. New dr. checked me, I am estrogen dominant, so that is why I felt so bad. and extremely low in progesterone. I am now on low dose of bioidentical progesterone, feeling somewhat better. I just had my levels rechecked after 6 months due to change in symtoms (symptoms) ( lots of hot flashes). Awaiting resutls, but I am sure my progestrone is low again because of terrible, insomnia. My dr. says you need to balance progesterone with estrogen..... this is just an opinion... but do make sure she checked your levels before she gave you horomones.. not just assumed.
Great books are by  Christine Northrop? titlle on menopause and Suzanne Sommers, Ageless. Good luck .

[Mary 53]

Check out my profile (in a journal) on Bioidentical hormones... also check out some of my more recent posts. I have a ton of info on the bioidentical hormones (I just did a check on Enjuvia and from what I can tell, it is a conjugated synthetic estrogen in a pill form). I also have some more recent posts on the weight gain issue, which I have done a ton of research on myself. I am not almost 9 years post surgical menopause (ovaries removed along with everything else).

There is some controversy into the whole "estrogen dominance" theory and some studies suggest that it is the progesterone that causes the symptoms you don't want ****and the LACK of Optimal Estradiol****... a bioidentical hormones...(in a non-pill form if supplementing) that causes the problems of perimenopause... along with the fluctuation of the ovarian hormones.

I recommended the author whose work has been most beneficial to me, although I do have great regard for Christianne Northrup, MD and Dr. Erika Schwartz,... it is Dr. Elizabeth Lee Vliet whose work has helped me beyond belief. Check out her website or her books on Amazon for more info.

Best of luck to all... this is one interesting journey!!!

Mary