Any reason I shouldn't try vaginal estrogen cream?
I'm 51 and based on what every single woman around me says and the internet, I'm perimenopause and I should get hormones or hormonal vag cream asap before my vagina dries up and dies.
I feel like while their issues are very real, I don't think I have symptoms.
However, their tales of dry, shrinking vaginas has me feeling anxious and like I should do something preemptively. I love my vag, ladies, and I'd like it to last!
I've had a very healthy life with very minimal health care interventions and very minimal prescription drug use, so I'm uncertain and totally uneducated about taking a hormonal cream or insert.
I've generally shied away from all things medical, I had 3 normal healthy happy pregnancies and easy childbirths at home. 2 births were so fast our midwives couldn't even get here!
My periods have been regular (for me) since I was a teen, and they are usually about a 25 day cycle. The symptoms of ovulation and menstruation have been the same for me since I was a teen, mild changes so I knew what was coming, but no cramps, very mild mood changes, occasionally some fluid retention. My flow is light and easy to manage and has always been.
My sleep patterns and cycles have been the same since I was a child (I generally only sleep for 6 hours a night) and I don't feel tired unless I've been over exerting myself or I'm stressed, or I get less than 6 hours. I am in bed longer than 6 hours, but of those 8 hours, at least two are spent reading. As a kid it was library books reading by lamp light, now it's online books without the need for a night light.
Same for brain fog type things. I've been considered spacy and distracted since I was a kid. It's generally been due to me not caring about the current circumstances (I'm bored and not paying attention to the stuff around me) or it's 100% stress related. If I'm in a stressful life situation, my ability to multitask and my mental acuity is less. My fully functional mental state comes back when I've dealt with the stressor.
Sex is great! I love it, my vag is not dry, nor has it ever been. That said, if I'm distracted or stressed, sex is NOT forefront in my mind. For example, I'm happy to have sex once or more a day on vacation, but that is not the case at home when there is work, and kids within earshot. I can easily go a week or more until the circumstances allow my mind to participate with my body.
I don't feel moody or hormonal. I have no idea what a hot flash feels like, but I've seen friends and family have them and they look awful! I don't have UTI's, I don't think I've ever had one.
My waistline increased a few years ago, but much of that was due to retiring from farming and my activity level changed significantly. I've been working hard at portioning and not gulping my food down like I only have 2 minutes to eat, which has also been something I've done since I was a kid. I've reduced my waistline over the last few months.
But, I'm in my 52 year and everyone and every internet quiz says I'm perimenopause and my vagina is thinning out this very moment.
Is it worth looking into estrogen creams?