u/CelebrateToday25

From another menopause board here, thank you! I am here!!! We can hopefully speak freely about how HRT doesn’t work for everyone.

I am 55 and 4 years post meno. I had terrible hot flashes for many many years. In the past few years they have calmed down tremendously. I still have problems sleeping but sleeping meds help me.

I have tried HRT 3 times and each time, the estrogen really hurts my bladder ( I also have Interstitial cystitis). I simply cannot stand the pain.

Anyway, I feel like the vast majority of women on these boards all rave about HRT. But what about those that can’t take it for whatever reason?

Is there anyone out there? I mean my hot flashes are soooo much better. My sleep is pretty good with sleep aids. I wanted to be in HRT for bone strength, etc. but I lift weights and have for years.

I feel like everyone is saying if you don’t take HRT, it’s not good health wise, dementia, etc.

I just feel like I’m so alone in not being able to take it.

I took progesterone for three nights and had zero problems with it. I put 1/2 of a pump of estrogen on this morning and within two hours my bladder was very very angry. It just makes me so mad because I tried using the estrogen patch last year for three days and it did the exact same thing to me.

Does anyone else have this reaction to estrogen?

I am 55 and post menopausal by four years

I am new to using an aeropress. I’ve been using a French Press for years. My cholesterol has been going up in recent years and I was researching ways to lower it.

I read that the oils and residue that you drink with a FP increases your cholesterol.

That’s when I purchased the AP. I have a metal filter and paper ones. Is there still a worry of ingesting the oils while using a metal filter?

I have read some people use 2 paper filters to make sure no oils get through.

Thoughts?

Let me clarify a few things:

1. I eat very healthy, high fiber etc
2. I exercise daily
3. My over all cholesterol is 240 but my good cholesterol is so high that my ratio is ok per my Dr.

Just looking for different ways to lower it in general.

I had my powder brows done 19 months ago. They turned out great. I loved them.

I have noticed that they are not only fading recently, but disappearing. I see a lot of pics of people’s brows turning bluish or gray. Mine is just disappearing in certain spots, more as time goes on.

I am a 55 year old F with kind of oily skin and large pores. Could this be why it’s disappearing instead of turning gray/blue?

I have tried using PEA (palmitoylethanolamide) as a supplement for IC.

I have tried taking it 3 different times now with 2 different brands and every time, after about day 3, I get upper left quadrant pain. It’s like a gnawing ache that is quite bothersome. Once I stop taking the PEA, it lasts another week or so then fades away.

I tried taking a lower dose too but the same thing happened.

I’ve researched it and it does mention GI issues as a possible side effect.

Anyone else try this and have issues?

I just saw my doctor about starting HRT. She is putting me on the .25 estrogen patch and 100 mg micronized progesterone orally at night. She said another option was to do the progesterone vaginally or rectally and that it was up to me but she recommended doing it orally. She said if I did it vaginally or rectally , I would be inserting it right next to my bladder, which might aggravate it more.

But when I read online, it says the opposite. It says that the oral progesterone is more likely to cause problems with interstitial cystitis than the vaginal or rectal route.

Has anyone tried both and found one to be better than the other?

So I know that each case is individual and there is no way to know exactly what’s going on inside his body, but I do have a few questions for those who might know the answer.

Back in summer of 2023, my mother-in-law was dying in Hospice and my father-in-law (90 then) was having some blood in his urine, but never said anything because he was too busy taking care of her.

He eventually told us after she passed that summer and by the time he got to the doctor, we found out he had bladder cancer. He had a large mass in his bladder, which was scraped out later in 2023.

Unfortunately, an early 2024, he started having major problems bleeding. Tons of clots, causing retention. The tumor had grown back quickly. He ended up back in the ER where they flushed him thoroughly, which was horrible for him. He was sent home with a huge catheter for a week, and it was determined that his next best step would be palliative radiation, 10 sessions.

We did that and it seems to have worked great! He is 93 now and has never had any more bleeding. When we ask him if he has pain, he usually says no.

He did have a pretty bad stroke last year that really sent him back and since January he has been on hospice, still living at home. Starting in March, family members have been living with him to take care of him because he can’t cook anymore or get around very well.

He comes from a generation that does not talk about pain and weakness, they just march on, he’s the strongest person I’ve ever known. However, I have heard him tell the hospice nurse the last few times that the only time he has pain is when he goes to the bathroom. He has diabetes and has been taken off all of his medicine so his sugar is out of control, but I’m just wondering how much the bladder cancer could be playing into this. I have checked the toilet multiple times and have not seen any blood, but could the cancer be growing and causing problems without their being bleeding?

Obviously, we are not going to do anything about anything. However, I am just curious about the cancer and what might be going on inside three years past his diagnosis at age 93.

Thank you

I am on vacation and can’t see a dr until tomorrow of necessary.

I felt the itching coming on this morning and now this afternoon I have extreme burning pain down there. I’ve had plenty of yeast infections in my life and have had a few doozies like this.

Fortunately I have my cream from my dr and also a diflucan pill which I’ve already taken.

But the burning is really bad at the entrance and internally. I don’t have access to a tub to sit in or is already be doing that.

Can someone give me any ideas to stop the burn?

Would any pain killers help?

It’s really uncomfortable.

Thank you in advance

My father-in-law is in Hospice for bladder, cancer and stroke, he is 94 years old and is slowly declining although, he is holding his own.

We have been with the same Hospice company for the last six months and they have always been providing pull-up diapers as well as bladder pad inserts. They have come on her new management and are not allowed to order both anymore. Do these rules apply to all Hospice companies or should I call around to find out what others supply?

My right elbow has been popping/snapping pretty hard whenever I use skull crushers or standing tricep extensions. It doesn’t hurt, but it feels very strange and uncomfortable. This has been happening for at least a month. I decided to look it up and I found out that it can be called snapping elbow syndrome.

Has anyone had this and what did you do about it?

I have been using Xdemvy for 3.5 weeks. My eyes kind of look the same but I have not gotten any styes while using it, and I was getting about one small one per week.

Anyway, I am wondering why we put Xdemvy drops in our eye when the problem is on the follicle/eyelashes. Seems to me it should be rubbed in the eyelashes??

I am staring at my FIL’s house taking care of him for a while and I need a new book!

I read pretty frequently and just had to abandon a book mid way and I never do that! It was All the Way to the River from Elizabeth Gilbert. I just didn’t like it AT ALL.

I’m looking for book suggestions that are

1. Fiction
2. Written well
3. Redeeming (for example suffering that comes full circle in the end)
4. Not too much descriptive writing. I enjoy more dialogue.

My favorite read was The Light Between Oceans for example.

I am open to other suggestions though. Just please keep it to fiction.

Thank you!!

Anyway, maybe you can give me some ideas.

I am a woman in my 50s. I have been a social drinker for the last 15 years or so.

I usually drink straight vodka on ice with lemon. Usually only a few in the wkds.

I haven’t been drinking hardly anything for the past month. We went out to eat Saturday and I drank too much on an empty stomach. I didn’t eat much at dinner either. It hit me hard that night. I ended up vomiting several times. It was awful!!

I was sick the whole next day, anxiety, fatigue, nausea. Then the next day I still had nausea most of the day. Yesterday I felt sick in the morning but pretty good most of the day.

This morning (day 4), I am still nauseous in the morning and am having a hard time drinking coffee.

I think menopause combined with not drinking much lately really messed me up this past Saturday. I didn’t drink THAT much more than I would have before but it hit me like a freight train.

I guess my question is, is it normal for me to feel nauseous the morning of day 4? I’ve never had this before!

I am struggling a bit with my Christian faith.

I am a woman in my 50s. I was raised in a Catholic household. Switched over to a Protestant faith in my 20’s when I met my husband.

We raised our kids in the church. I have had some very low times in my life and I feel God has always got me through.

Even though I read the Bible a lot, every morning, I feel like I’m struggling to believe what I read. I’ve always been extremely skeptical by nature, and long for proof. I know that’s not what faith is, but that’s still how I feel.

For example, this morning I was reading the last chapter of Matthew. I found myself thinking that when the angel appeared and Jesus was gone from the tomb, that it could have been easily staged and often find myself thinking that the Bible could have been written as folklore. I hate feeling this way! I want to believe everything so badly. I feel in my heart that Jesus is the son of God. I often plead with God to open my heart to believing more.

I don’t know what to do about these feelings. I fight them. I feel like it’s the Devil planting them in my mind.

I will never give up on my Christian faith. I just need to know if I’m the only one who struggles with this.

I have had blepharitis for at least 10 years but since menopause 3 years ago, it’s gotten worse. I have a lot of crusty mild up, inflammation, ocular rosacea and eyelash loss. I also get many styes, as many as a few per week some weeks. They are not deep and go away within a few days but they hurt and are annoying!

I have been doing a new routine per my eye dr and it seems to be working!

1. Started Xdemvy. I’m on day 11 and am already noticing improvement with the crust. No side effects except a very mild burning for 5 min after using it.

2. Washing my eyelids every night AND MORNING with We Love Eyes tea tree foaming cleanser. I used to only do it at night and use the tea tree wipes in the morning. I think it’s best to do this cleanser in the morning as well.

3. After washing my eyes morning and night,I spray Pure Hypochlorous Acid on both eyes. I let that dry for 10 min or so. Then I use the Xdemvy drops.

4. At night after the Xdemvy (I wait at least 20 min), I use We Love Eyes Natural Eyelid Cleansing Oil with Tea Tree. I just put some of it on my finger then wipe it on each eye.

5. Every night after the last step, I heat up my Bruder Mask and go to bed with it on. I use the disposable protection barriers but my Dr said I could just use a tissue.

Anyway it’s day 11 and things are looking much better. No styes, eye lashes are slowly growing back , although some are still growing in a little strange (pointing down), redness is less.

I should also mention I have not hardly worn any make up lately. If I go out, I use powder eyeliner and shadow with a touch of mascara. Most days I use nothing.

I am hopeful and will report back.

Hoping to help others!

Did it help or hurt your bladder?

Since menopause, I started getting styes a lot. That’s been 3 years now. They don’t get huge, just small, red painful ones that go away in about 3 days. I can go a few months without one but then I get several in a row.

I saw an ophthalmologist and he said I had blepharitis, ocular rosacea and wanted me to take doxycycline low dose the rest of my life.

I am NOT going to do that. Antibiotics mess with me in lots of ways, even low dose.

1. Does anyone take doxycycline for a week or so just to get things under control when I go through a bad phase?

2. Can stress play a part? I seem to notice a link between these styes and stress.

3. I use We Love Eyes scrub with tea tree oil. I also use castor oil at night on them. It seemed to work great for a while but now I’m having styes again. I have a small tube of antibiotic ointment that I use on my styes that seems to help. Any other recommendations for keeping them away?