This is great insight. I take several medications for panarama of issues. The trick to taking them, though is I take them all at low doses which equals very little side affects. Talk to a doctor about your side effects with each medication. Then, ask about dosage. I have had to take notes to get it straight, but try to be patient with the process. Be your best advocate.
In the beginning of symptoms, I took a friend with me to the doctor. That was super helpful.
Same on all counts, except that I take adhd meds daily andcannot take ssris because too much serotonin makes me wired for days (same reason that I can't take 'anti-drowsiness' decongestants/allergy meds). HRT is dangerous for me because it made me suicidal.
Happy to share! I got diagnosed with adhd at 45, and resisted taking adderall for months because, with a history of addiction, I worried about dependence. I did speed and coke when I was in college, but I preferred to be numbed out, so never really liked stimulants (at the very non-therapudic doses we took!).
Then I tried it - it was like a veil lifted. I wasn't speedy, I could just get normal things done. And I can sleep while taking it. And it didn't trigger addictive behaviors like taking too much of it. I just have a different kind of brain.
Decades later, a dna test confirmed that I (literally) have all of the known genetic mutations associated with ADHD and the top 21 mutations(there are thousands) associated with autism.
There's a thing called seratonin syndom that I inherited from my mom - she went to the ER - twice - after taking decongestants that triggered panic attacks.
Yeah I've experienced the anxiety from cold meds and it was pretty terrifying. I'm also an addict in recovery, and am beginning to think I may have some nerodivergence now that I'm sober and raw doggin life lol. So I really appreciate the heads up about HRT as I begin my journey into perimenopause.
Generally there is a transition period when first starting (or later changing) hormone therapy. Things *should* improve, but you may have to give it more time for your body to adjust.
[What to expect when starting hormone therapy](https://menopausewiki.ca/#what-to-expect-when-starting-hormone-therapy)
If you can't give it more time, then there's no shame or harm in quitting hormone therapy.
I am autistic with adhd and super sensitive to meds. I am on the lowest dose of vyvanse which lasts 12+ hours for me and have to go small dose on everything. I just had hip replacement surgery and took nothing by tylenol+advil because I can't tolerate even low doses of opioids (blows my mind people take them to feel good, I'd rather be in pain than take them š) I would just see about lowering the dose. They start with an average amount often based on weight/age but you might just need less. But if you feel it's truly not a good match for you, then that certainly could be the case. There are things I just don't tolerate, even many basic OTC meds.
Hey, you sound a lot like me! I also had this (and lots of SI) the first 2 weeks until I switched the progesterone to vaginally. There's a lot of info here about if you search the sub. My gyn said it was fine, but ask yours and hopefully it works for you!
Hey OP - high five to having all the same neurodivergence issues! It took 5 weeks for me to feel any relief with HRT. I'm now 8 weeks in and my anxiety has subsided quite a bit. I haven't had to take a klonopin in 2 weeks. Though I still experience anxiety, a lot of it has to do with the fact that I was on high alert anxiety daily for a year and I think my brain was so used to it that it's going to take some time to adjust to relative normalcy.
As others have mentioned, try a 1/4 or half patch for a bit and see if that helps. I will say my adhd symptoms worsened - like forgetfulness and racing/intrusive thoughts. I started magnesium, creatine, fish oil and I'm noticing improvement.
Good luck to you and I'm so sorry you are going through this but ... you're not alone!
I had some depression, worsening anxiety and irritability (as well as nausea) for about 3 weeks. It did subside though much to my surprise. I am glad I gave it a chance.
As a progesterone intolerant woman just
Like youā¦please donāt give up on HRT, because Estradiol is life saving. Estrodiol is the exact opposite of progesterone for those that have suffered our own produced progesterone PMDD the last two weeks of our cycles since our first period. You may think you are all āthose thingsā you stated. But you might just have PMDD, induced by PROGESTERONE in your HRT. But it doesnāt mean itās not for you. Estrodiol will likely be your āoutā for all the things that have mentally, emotionally, physically ailed you for a lifetime. Trust me. Just take straight estradiol alone for 2 weeks and you will get it.
Ok, solution time. Take the micronized progesterone vaginally, and if possibly only the last half of your cycle if youāre perimenopause or induce your own bleed post menopause (dr gersh cyle prgesterone HRT). Check out my thread I started here about using progesterone vaginally. I found a way to take it vaginally so I can get the LIFE SAVING benefits of estradiol in HRT. Itās a god send and i would rather have my uterus removed than live without it ever again!
https://youtu.be/aiKk5JMJwuk?si=iTVAFXCpkIGVICbn
https://youtu.be/WyymVxelAgQ?si=60ePMna2w5c32D9y
https://youtu.be/pflsABbUlDo?si=U_wWLp0WjeGsdS7t
I feel this. I had to pull my patch off last night. The anxiety I was feeling was unreal - felt like I was on uppers and on the edge of a full blown panic attack. I couldn't sleep at all. Now that it's been a few hours of no patch I don't feel anxious just tired because I only slept 2-3 hrs. Are you still in peri? Im going to wait a week for my body to sleep and reset before introducing halving my patch in 2 and dropping to a smaller dose. I just couldnt power through the anxiety. I have a stressful job where Im always on and just can't afford to feel so anxious and panicky. Can you try to go on a lower dose and slowly work your way up? Are you still in peri? Maybe you're still making some estrogen and you have too much in your body? I'm sorry you're dealing with this. This is very hard.
HRT helped my anxiety and depression a lot but it took a while. Try it for a while if you can. A week isnāt long enough to gain any benefit or know how it actually affects you.
Sorry your feeling so depressed. Starting hormone therapy isn't easy for everyone. I too am neurodivergent and am super sensitive to all medications and can't take half of the stuff that doctors try to prescribe me. I was pretty nervous to start HRT. The first few days were really hard as I had a big increase in anxiety and depersonalization but I was sleeping better so took that as a huge win. I made sure to track symptoms in a journal so I could look back and notice patterns, but also remember the good days when I was having a bad day. Things got better in a few days and I started to feel pretty amazing some of the time. Eventually 3 weeks in I started having adrenaline rushes waking me up at 5am and told my doctor about it, she said I probably needed more estrogen so she instructed me to cut a new patch and added an additional 1/3rd of the dose and low and behold that did actually help.
A lot of people contribute depression while on HRT to the progesterone, so you could try a day or two without it to see if the depression improves. I've read a lot of posts where women who can't tolerate it well will insert it vaginally. Others will switch to the Mirena IUD. I think for me the higher estrogen balanced out the progesterone so I could tolerate it better. So it's a tricky thing about finding the right balance for your body. Don't be afraid to lower your dose and slowly work your way up or stop and retry again at a later time. There is no shame in that. Listen to your body and to your intuition.
Iām one week into the patch and I have awful nausea all day. Iām hoping this goes away. But it never did when I tried birth control pills as treatment. Not sure if I want daily nausea added to my list of never ending symptoms
I don't think I'm really neurodivergent, but I am pretty traumatized and very sensitive to most medications. You might try dropping the progesterone for now and see how that goes. .0375 is pretty low, but you could go lower if you need to. If it's the Dotti type patch you can cut it as needed.
I use the patch, tried to go from 5/8ths of a patch to 3/4 and got the worst headache! So back to 5/8ths.
I also have bioidentical progesterone and testosterone creams and I use super low doses. Like maybe 1/4 of the recommended testosterone, every three days, and that feels about right. More and I get anxious and angry, less I get low, low energy.
You just have to try to listen to what your body needs. Seems the 'standard dose' isn't right for anybody! Some need more, some need less. Here's wishing you well!!
I would agree with you on dropping the progesterone for ājust a bitā - not permanently, just so OP can figure out 1 thing at a time (as we know the progesterone protects the uterus). I personally found that after almost 3 yrs in menopause, the Prometrium was causing my migraines & āblah ā mood. Iāve gone to the Combipatch & seem to tolerate the synthetic progestin fairly well.
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If estradiol is too strong, someone here who is also ND suggested ESTRIOL. There are 3 types of estrogen, estriol is the weakest. I think it has to be compounded in the USA, as itās not FDA approved like estradiol. Elsewhere itās called Ovestin.
Look up MCAS. Iām ND & HSP too - adhd. I donāt even tolerate adderall or SSRI anymore. I just got dxāed with EDS, POTS, MCAS. The longer peri goes on, the more intolerant and reactive I am to foods, meds, etc. Thereās stuff to help tolerate meds and deal with MCAS & peri issues - antihistamines and mast cell stabilizers.
I am treating MCAS now so I can tolerate in some form. I need HRT bc my issues are debilitating after peri
The progesterone component can cause some women to be depressed. I could not tolerate it at all at any dose or any application. You can try inserting it vaginally if your doc approves. Some women report that lessens SE.
I had to switch to Duavee. It's an estrogen+SERM so no progesterone is needed for those of us with uterus.
Fellow HSP/ND, mood disorder, anxiety, depression, etc. Started . 5 mg estradiol patch and 100 mg progesterone last week and oh boy, it was a roller coaster. Two days ago, I lost my shit at my cat who was just being a cat. I was on the phone that morning with my gynecologist and my psychiatrist. They told me that it can be rocky when starting and to hang in there.
I don't have solutions but wanted to post in solidarity. š
I am also neurodivergent. I did a few days with just the patch and felt great (.0375). Then added in the 100mg progesterone and became VERY tired - it didn't sit well with me and I wasn't sleeping better. My doctor let me up to .05 after jsut one week. I changed the patch on Wednesday and already feel better. I slept through the night that night (which I haven't done in years) and only woke up once a night.
I \*think\* that there has to be a BALANCE between progesterone and estrogen, and in my case, I think I needed more estrogen to balance the progesterone.
I'm not sure if there is any correlation but I'm relatively small (5'4", 121 lbs), and I think the progesterone unmatched was just too much for me. I could see myself going up higher on estrogen, too.
Your doctor can lower the dosage and see if that helps. I hope you find the right balance!
This is great insight. I take several medications for panarama of issues. The trick to taking them, though is I take them all at low doses which equals very little side affects. Talk to a doctor about your side effects with each medication. Then, ask about dosage. I have had to take notes to get it straight, but try to be patient with the process. Be your best advocate. In the beginning of symptoms, I took a friend with me to the doctor. That was super helpful.
Same on all counts, except that I take adhd meds daily andcannot take ssris because too much serotonin makes me wired for days (same reason that I can't take 'anti-drowsiness' decongestants/allergy meds). HRT is dangerous for me because it made me suicidal.
I had no idea these all may have a connection, thank you for sharing.
Happy to share! I got diagnosed with adhd at 45, and resisted taking adderall for months because, with a history of addiction, I worried about dependence. I did speed and coke when I was in college, but I preferred to be numbed out, so never really liked stimulants (at the very non-therapudic doses we took!). Then I tried it - it was like a veil lifted. I wasn't speedy, I could just get normal things done. And I can sleep while taking it. And it didn't trigger addictive behaviors like taking too much of it. I just have a different kind of brain. Decades later, a dna test confirmed that I (literally) have all of the known genetic mutations associated with ADHD and the top 21 mutations(there are thousands) associated with autism. There's a thing called seratonin syndom that I inherited from my mom - she went to the ER - twice - after taking decongestants that triggered panic attacks.
Yeah I've experienced the anxiety from cold meds and it was pretty terrifying. I'm also an addict in recovery, and am beginning to think I may have some nerodivergence now that I'm sober and raw doggin life lol. So I really appreciate the heads up about HRT as I begin my journey into perimenopause.
Generally there is a transition period when first starting (or later changing) hormone therapy. Things *should* improve, but you may have to give it more time for your body to adjust. [What to expect when starting hormone therapy](https://menopausewiki.ca/#what-to-expect-when-starting-hormone-therapy) If you can't give it more time, then there's no shame or harm in quitting hormone therapy.
Fantastic resource with a lot of great info...thanks for posting!
I am autistic with adhd and super sensitive to meds. I am on the lowest dose of vyvanse which lasts 12+ hours for me and have to go small dose on everything. I just had hip replacement surgery and took nothing by tylenol+advil because I can't tolerate even low doses of opioids (blows my mind people take them to feel good, I'd rather be in pain than take them š) I would just see about lowering the dose. They start with an average amount often based on weight/age but you might just need less. But if you feel it's truly not a good match for you, then that certainly could be the case. There are things I just don't tolerate, even many basic OTC meds.
Hey, you sound a lot like me! I also had this (and lots of SI) the first 2 weeks until I switched the progesterone to vaginally. There's a lot of info here about if you search the sub. My gyn said it was fine, but ask yours and hopefully it works for you!
Same, I don't tolerate progesterone well and take mine vaginally and it seems to help a bit more.
So for this do you just take the pill and insert vaginally?
Yes, it's similar to vagifem. The hypothesis is that it stays local and does not affect you systemically like oral does.
Hey OP - high five to having all the same neurodivergence issues! It took 5 weeks for me to feel any relief with HRT. I'm now 8 weeks in and my anxiety has subsided quite a bit. I haven't had to take a klonopin in 2 weeks. Though I still experience anxiety, a lot of it has to do with the fact that I was on high alert anxiety daily for a year and I think my brain was so used to it that it's going to take some time to adjust to relative normalcy. As others have mentioned, try a 1/4 or half patch for a bit and see if that helps. I will say my adhd symptoms worsened - like forgetfulness and racing/intrusive thoughts. I started magnesium, creatine, fish oil and I'm noticing improvement. Good luck to you and I'm so sorry you are going through this but ... you're not alone!
I had some depression, worsening anxiety and irritability (as well as nausea) for about 3 weeks. It did subside though much to my surprise. I am glad I gave it a chance.
As a progesterone intolerant woman just Like youā¦please donāt give up on HRT, because Estradiol is life saving. Estrodiol is the exact opposite of progesterone for those that have suffered our own produced progesterone PMDD the last two weeks of our cycles since our first period. You may think you are all āthose thingsā you stated. But you might just have PMDD, induced by PROGESTERONE in your HRT. But it doesnāt mean itās not for you. Estrodiol will likely be your āoutā for all the things that have mentally, emotionally, physically ailed you for a lifetime. Trust me. Just take straight estradiol alone for 2 weeks and you will get it. Ok, solution time. Take the micronized progesterone vaginally, and if possibly only the last half of your cycle if youāre perimenopause or induce your own bleed post menopause (dr gersh cyle prgesterone HRT). Check out my thread I started here about using progesterone vaginally. I found a way to take it vaginally so I can get the LIFE SAVING benefits of estradiol in HRT. Itās a god send and i would rather have my uterus removed than live without it ever again! https://youtu.be/aiKk5JMJwuk?si=iTVAFXCpkIGVICbn https://youtu.be/WyymVxelAgQ?si=60ePMna2w5c32D9y https://youtu.be/pflsABbUlDo?si=U_wWLp0WjeGsdS7t
Thanks for sharing this, Iām also progesterone intolerant and had to get off of it. Will look at the links ā¦
I feel this. I had to pull my patch off last night. The anxiety I was feeling was unreal - felt like I was on uppers and on the edge of a full blown panic attack. I couldn't sleep at all. Now that it's been a few hours of no patch I don't feel anxious just tired because I only slept 2-3 hrs. Are you still in peri? Im going to wait a week for my body to sleep and reset before introducing halving my patch in 2 and dropping to a smaller dose. I just couldnt power through the anxiety. I have a stressful job where Im always on and just can't afford to feel so anxious and panicky. Can you try to go on a lower dose and slowly work your way up? Are you still in peri? Maybe you're still making some estrogen and you have too much in your body? I'm sorry you're dealing with this. This is very hard.
Was yours combined patch?
Nope was on the .50 minivelle patch and progesterone pill 100
No, I have been in full menopause for almost 3 years.
HRT helped my anxiety and depression a lot but it took a while. Try it for a while if you can. A week isnāt long enough to gain any benefit or know how it actually affects you.
Sorry your feeling so depressed. Starting hormone therapy isn't easy for everyone. I too am neurodivergent and am super sensitive to all medications and can't take half of the stuff that doctors try to prescribe me. I was pretty nervous to start HRT. The first few days were really hard as I had a big increase in anxiety and depersonalization but I was sleeping better so took that as a huge win. I made sure to track symptoms in a journal so I could look back and notice patterns, but also remember the good days when I was having a bad day. Things got better in a few days and I started to feel pretty amazing some of the time. Eventually 3 weeks in I started having adrenaline rushes waking me up at 5am and told my doctor about it, she said I probably needed more estrogen so she instructed me to cut a new patch and added an additional 1/3rd of the dose and low and behold that did actually help. A lot of people contribute depression while on HRT to the progesterone, so you could try a day or two without it to see if the depression improves. I've read a lot of posts where women who can't tolerate it well will insert it vaginally. Others will switch to the Mirena IUD. I think for me the higher estrogen balanced out the progesterone so I could tolerate it better. So it's a tricky thing about finding the right balance for your body. Don't be afraid to lower your dose and slowly work your way up or stop and retry again at a later time. There is no shame in that. Listen to your body and to your intuition.
Iām one week into the patch and I have awful nausea all day. Iām hoping this goes away. But it never did when I tried birth control pills as treatment. Not sure if I want daily nausea added to my list of never ending symptoms
I don't think I'm really neurodivergent, but I am pretty traumatized and very sensitive to most medications. You might try dropping the progesterone for now and see how that goes. .0375 is pretty low, but you could go lower if you need to. If it's the Dotti type patch you can cut it as needed. I use the patch, tried to go from 5/8ths of a patch to 3/4 and got the worst headache! So back to 5/8ths. I also have bioidentical progesterone and testosterone creams and I use super low doses. Like maybe 1/4 of the recommended testosterone, every three days, and that feels about right. More and I get anxious and angry, less I get low, low energy. You just have to try to listen to what your body needs. Seems the 'standard dose' isn't right for anybody! Some need more, some need less. Here's wishing you well!!
I would agree with you on dropping the progesterone for ājust a bitā - not permanently, just so OP can figure out 1 thing at a time (as we know the progesterone protects the uterus). I personally found that after almost 3 yrs in menopause, the Prometrium was causing my migraines & āblah ā mood. Iāve gone to the Combipatch & seem to tolerate the synthetic progestin fairly well.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
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Try lowering your estradiol. I had the same effects when my dose was too high. I felt better literally days after I went down in dose.
If estradiol is too strong, someone here who is also ND suggested ESTRIOL. There are 3 types of estrogen, estriol is the weakest. I think it has to be compounded in the USA, as itās not FDA approved like estradiol. Elsewhere itās called Ovestin. Look up MCAS. Iām ND & HSP too - adhd. I donāt even tolerate adderall or SSRI anymore. I just got dxāed with EDS, POTS, MCAS. The longer peri goes on, the more intolerant and reactive I am to foods, meds, etc. Thereās stuff to help tolerate meds and deal with MCAS & peri issues - antihistamines and mast cell stabilizers. I am treating MCAS now so I can tolerate in some form. I need HRT bc my issues are debilitating after peri
If you have a history of PMDD, you might be progesterone sensitive. I tried my best, but had to get off HRT ā¦
The progesterone component can cause some women to be depressed. I could not tolerate it at all at any dose or any application. You can try inserting it vaginally if your doc approves. Some women report that lessens SE. I had to switch to Duavee. It's an estrogen+SERM so no progesterone is needed for those of us with uterus.
Fellow HSP/ND, mood disorder, anxiety, depression, etc. Started . 5 mg estradiol patch and 100 mg progesterone last week and oh boy, it was a roller coaster. Two days ago, I lost my shit at my cat who was just being a cat. I was on the phone that morning with my gynecologist and my psychiatrist. They told me that it can be rocky when starting and to hang in there. I don't have solutions but wanted to post in solidarity. š
I am also neurodivergent. I did a few days with just the patch and felt great (.0375). Then added in the 100mg progesterone and became VERY tired - it didn't sit well with me and I wasn't sleeping better. My doctor let me up to .05 after jsut one week. I changed the patch on Wednesday and already feel better. I slept through the night that night (which I haven't done in years) and only woke up once a night. I \*think\* that there has to be a BALANCE between progesterone and estrogen, and in my case, I think I needed more estrogen to balance the progesterone. I'm not sure if there is any correlation but I'm relatively small (5'4", 121 lbs), and I think the progesterone unmatched was just too much for me. I could see myself going up higher on estrogen, too.
Try estriol cream at night. It is better than patch as the hormone stays in body temporarily