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  • Is the Pill a Smart Choice for a Conscientious Young Woman?

    I’m 17, have regular periods, want to have children one day, and don’t want to do anything that would risk my future health. I am sexually active but haven’t yet found a life partner. Do you think I should use the Pill?

  • Is the use of non-natural medroxyprogesterone what makes HRT bad?

    I don’t think there is any problem with use of HRT as long as the natural estrogen (E2) is balanced with natural progesterone. What do you think? My feeling has always been that the “bad” things reported, supposedly because of HRT, even when E2 is used, are caused by the use of progestin. One can obtain progesterone easily enough, so that shouldn’t be a problem.

  • Lost Periods Due to Stress

    I am 28 years old and I haven’t menstruated for 3.5 years… I believe due to stress. Chinese herbs haven’t worked, nor vitamin supplements. I haven’t tried hormone replacements. My doctor has measured pituitary hormones, my CT scan of the pituitary is normal and my ovaries haven’t gone into menopause. What should I do?

  • Menstrual Clots

    Um, I feel rather silly asking this, but I honestly don’t know, and I can’t find any information on the net giving me the answer. How do I know if what I’m experiencing is blood clotting? I only just learned of the endometrium being the uterine lining and that it actually sheds each month. I always thought it was blood clots that I’m experiencing, but now I don’t know if it’s that or membrane or whatever it might be called with the shedding. I don’t know where to turn to find out. It’s an embarrassing subject to broach, and even more so being so incredibly ignorant. If there’s any chance you can help me or point me in the right direction, I’d greatly appreciate it.

  • Menstrual Suppression (Manipulating Menstruation with Hormonal Contraception)

    I’ve been reading and hearing about it—I wonder if you think I should try to get rid of my period by taking the Pill every day? Does it work? Is it safe?

  • Perimenopause and night sweats

    I am 49 years old, very healthy, and starting to feel better as I’m skipping periods in perimenopause. But I’m just dying with night sweats twice or three times a night—I wake up soaked and barely get back to sleep before the next one hits. What’s odd is that they tend to be very bad for a while and then get better. I’ve never had any during the day. I’m having a bad patch right now. I went to my doctor about it a couple of weeks ago and she told me to take a low dose birth control pill. I don’t even need contraception. But so far I’ve seen no benefit for my night sweats. Do I need to take it longer? The flushes just keep waking me. But now I got a period in the middle of the pack, my breasts are sore and swollen and I’ve had a wicked headache for three days. Help! What can I do?

  • Progesterone (not Estrogen) is Optimal Therapy for Hot Flushes

    I’m having really bad night sweats waking me at least once every night and sometimes three or four times. I was given estrogen therapy for them when I was still having periods and it not only didn’t help, it made my flooding and breast tenderness worse. I’m now about two years since my last period and just dying for a good night’s sleep! I tried one of those new anti-depressants and it helped a bit but didn’t take the night sweats away. In fact, I think it made my sleep worse! My doctor says estrogen is what Canadian and USA experts recommend for hot flushes. I have seen so much conflicting stuff that I don’t know what to think. All I know is that I’m scared of estrogen. Are there any other good options?

  • Progesterone Adds to the Positive Bone Effects of Estrogen/Etidronate

    I saw you on Shaw TV last September and want to say “thanks” for such an informative and helpful presentation. I have been a fan of yours for a number of years, ever since I heard you at a seminar at Royal Columbian, when I was beginning perimenopause. I found your symptoms “diary” most helpful and have shared it with many of my friends over the years.

    Being a nurse I always seem to end up checking the pathophysiology of things before I accept them as beneficial to me, and of course menopause was no exception. I heard Dr. John Lee speak about the time I was considering hormone therapy. In 1998 I chose to start on a cream of natural progesterone (50 mg a day). I had to first convince my GP I did not want synthetics if a hormone identical to what I had made for 40 years was available! The reason for hormone therapy was to hopefully ward off osteoporosis because of a strong family history, a congenital abnormality of my back, and BMD showing osteopenia with osteoporosis of one vertebra. I have never looked back. But I did not get a rise in BD as I hoped; after 2 years it stayed much the same. So for the last year I have had estrogen added (as a cream, TriEst 2.5 mg, a natural combination of estrogens).

    My bargain with my GP was that if I had no increase after one year I would agree to start a bisphosphonate. My quandary is that at age 58, three years post last period, should I need to go there? I would rather not take Didrocal® because it doesn’t cause a BMD increase, or Fosamax®.

    Are there any better, safer alternatives coming along? Is a year long enough to evaluate the benefit of being on a combination of estrogen and progesterone?

  • Should I stop checking my own breasts?

    I’m confused and more than a bit bothered! I’m a menopausal woman with a family history of breast cancer. For years I’ve been told (ordered would be more accurate!) to check my breasts each month. Recently, however, I heard some cancer specialist on the news saying I shouldn’t bother. What’s going on? Why the change in recommendations? And most of all: do you think I should stop checking my breasts?

  • Spotting Before Periods

    I’m a 36-year old woman and basically healthy but I keep having spotting before my flow. I’ve been to several doctors about it and never gotten a good answer. The only option I’ve been given for treatment is the Pill. What’s going on?

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