Menopause

[TM]

I am a 48 year old mother of two children, ages 19 and 20.  I have been experiencing night sweats for a couple of years.  Last month I had my annual physical with my gynocologist and complained about these night sweats.  He did a hormone test and it came back positive.  The nurse told me that my level was at 80.  My doctor wants to put me on HRT.  I am very confused after researching this on the internet and discussing the pros and cons with my doctor.  I am an extremely fitness woman, I teach aerobics 3 - 5 times a week and have been doing so for 19 years.  I also play tennis 5 - 6 times a week and weight train a couple of times a week.  I do not smoke, I eat pretty healthy meal, my cholosterol levels are excellent as well as my bone density.  However, my father died of a massive heart attack at age 58 (he was a heavy smoker, did not exercise).  Do you think that HRT is the best treatment for me?   Should I put up with these flashes?  Last night I awoke from one and couldn't go back to sleep for 3 1/2 hours.

[Roger Gould, M.D.]

Sorry I can not give you direct advice about this because it is truly a complex and highly personal decision at this point in your life. I would suggest you do a trial to see how quickly you can get symptom relief and at what dose.

I would guess that the interpretation of what this means to you is what is confounding the pure medical decision. Since you are so fit and healthy and that is so big a part of your life, the estrogen decrease seems to be such a big let down and surprise, as if your body is letting you down, or forcing you prematurely into a new age transition. If you  could get through this and see it as one physiological system operating off of some built in time table, it may be easier to make this decision.

[Susan]

You poor lady; I've been through this also and you simply cannot live a happy existence without sufficient rest! For every single website you produce that claims HRT causes cancer , I can show one that insists it prevents heart attacks. And heart attacks is the number one cause of death in women, not cancer.
I make you this promise: get a prescription for Premarin or Estratest HS and after one pill the night sweats will cease.
I have taken HRT for fifteen years. Every couple of years I give it a break. If I start with the night sweats I go back on it.
So far, I still need it. Actually, I'm much more at risk of heart attack than you are; I don't exercise and my blood pressure isn't that low. My mother took Premarin for TWENTY YEARS and never had a heart attack. She did die at 83 from a massive stroke; she had high blood pressure all her life. I notice you're looking at your parent's heart history; in my opinion heavy smoking is deadly. My sister smoked 3 packs a day and died at 36. She had had scarlet fever as a kid and I've heard that that weakens the heart.
  I'm just saying I could not and would not go through that every night. Nada. Can't do it. Susan