Hormone Replacement starting at 75yrs old

@celia16
Hi. It is hard to answer the questions about lupus symptoms, because there were so many. The thing is, after learning more and reading more about lupus since I was diagnosed, I am convinced I had lupus as early as in my 30s, or for sure, in my 40s. All that time I thought it was "just" fibromyalgia and low thyroid and hypoglycemia. and asthma, all of which started or were diagnosed in my 40s. And guess what? I had to diagnose myself with all of those and then convince my doctors that I needed to be tested for all those. Well, of course, there are no tests for fibro, but I did ask my family doctor to refer me to a rheumatologist. He did, but the rheumatologis was not too concerned about it. He said I had mild fibromyalgia. He based that diagnosis on the fact that, he said, his other fibro patients screamed if he touched them on the places he gently pressed on me. I thought that the reason I was not in a lot of pain that day was because I had just finished a round of prednisone and it helped the pain a lot. But I told my new rheumatologist here in Indiana about that and she said prednisone does not affect fibromyalgia pain because fibro is not inflammation. She said, "You had lupus". And after she questioned me and examined me and looked at my medical history, she said, "You have lupus. And probably Sjogren's Disease, also." Then she ordered a pile of labwork which confirmed that I have both. I hate to make this so long. But long story short, I think at some time I have had most of the symptoms of lupus since I was in my 40s. But I never had the malar/butterfly rash, which I thought was a definite sign. I had read a lot about lupus when I was reading about fibromyalgia. I thought maybe I had lupus, because I had so many symptoms,, but then I thought, no, because I don't have the rash on my nose and cheeks. I did for while have a rash like on my face, more red skin than rash, and I decided it was rosacea. I had to see a dermatologist to have a skin tag removed. I asked him if he thought I had rosacea. He looked at my face, and said yes, and prescribed a cream to use which soon cleared it up and it never came back, so it had to have been rosacea. So, anyway, I never asked a doctor to test me for lupus because I didn't have the rash. I know now that only 50% of lupus patients have the rash! And here is something else that bothers me. I only saw this new rheumatologist last year because I was tired of having pain and being tired and having brain fog and memory problems and losing things all the time. I plan to live to at least 102 and I don't want to feel that way the rest of my life. I want to feel like having fun and like keeping my house clean and having more energy and being able to focus. I had gotten to the point that a couple of times when I was driving I found myself not knowing where I was, and they were places I had driven through many times, one right here in the town I had lived in for 10 years. So I asked my PCP to refer me to a rheumatologist for help with the fibro, because none of the PCPs I have seen in the last many years has ever even asked my how I am feeling, is my fibro worse or better or what can I do to help you feel better? I would tell them my symptoms, and they never had answers. So anyway, he refered me to Dr. Trinh Tran and Allcare Rheumatology in Westfield, Indiana, which is just north of Indianapolis, and about 25 miles from where I live. She is just great. She didn't push the hydroxychloroquine on me, she asked if I would let her prescribe it for me. She is not just about prescription medicine, she believes in natural treatments, healthy eating, supplements, etc., and gives you the information you need about all that. I apologize for the very long answer. I have undiagnosed ADHD, also, and instead of talking too much, as ADHDers are wont to do, I type too much, lol. I just hope I answered you questions In other words, I can't really tell you what caused my lupus, but my theory is that when I had mono when I was 31, the Epstein Barre Virus stayed with me, as it does everyone, and I think I already had fibromyalgia, and I think the toll that pregnancy takes on your body helped the EBV to work overtime, and after my daughter was born, the stress of having a baby, and with no help from anyone except my husband helping a little when he was not working, as well as my not eating as healthy as I should, triggered lupus, and less that two years later my son was born, so I had two little ones as well as other personal problems I won't go into. So I think that is when the lupus took hold, because my appearance even changed during all that time. I was convinced for awhile I was a cretin, and I will get you Google that. Anyway, so, as I said I think after thatn I had a w hole lot of lupus symptoms but did not know it, with the low thyroid, asthma, hypoglycemia, trigeminal neuralgia (OMG!!), etc. And I advise anyone who begins in their 30s or 40s or 50s who starts having any of those conditions, especially more than one of them, to ask to be tested for lupus. If I had done that, or if at least one of my doctors had taken the time to figure out why I had all those conditions and done testing and found lupus, I would not now have heart failure and kidney failure and maybe other organ damage. And especially if you have another autoimmune illness, or a family history of it. And don't let doctors intimidate you and brush you off when you want to discuss the possiblity of lupus.

I am wondering about this. I went through menopause without any of my doctors mentioning HRT. Now at 74 , I find my body has changed. I had some health issues starting with a dislocated shoulder and fractured humerus in 2020, then hip replacement in 2023, fractured wrist in 2024. All of those injuries sidelined my exercising and my eating habits. In the last 6 months I have notice my weight gain is not just in the abdomen- my chest, torso, and upper body are also bigger. Before when I gained weight it was limited to the abdominal area. I am back to regular exercise and eating healthier so I am hoping for improvement. Just wondering if hormones would help.

@walk4life

I started bhrt at 76. On them for about 1 1/2 yr.
I will not be without them now. I have an estradiol and testosterone pellet inserted every 12 weeks. I also take progesterone and use an estradiol vaginal cream 2x per week.
Do you have Osteoporosis?

@gravity3 I have osteopenia. I take a calcium/magnesium supplement.

@walk4life Using a systemic estradiol patch .05 helps with osteopenia by 'maintaining' the bone density you have now. The .05 patch should bring your blood serum levels of estradiol to 60 to 70. With higher estradiol levels 70> there can be 'increases' in bone density. With an additional systemic low dose (5mg) of testosterone and the estradiol patch it's possible to get even better results. For myself I'm not keen on calcium supplements due to the heart health controversy. You have an estrogen window to prevent osteoporosis. It will close when you are at the osteoporosis stage. I was diagnosed with osteopenia at 74yo. I did a risk assessment before starting on hormone replacement. I started slowly with lower doses of estradiol since I hadn't taken hormones before and worked up to .05. I had a DEXA scan right before I started estradiol. I'm due this June for my 2-year DEXA. I plan on posting the before and after result for the osteopenia group. For helping with body shape and weight (muscle and distribution of fat) I think estrogen and testosterone can help...adding weight exercise too. In fact, hormone replacement can help your whole body even at 74.

@kisu Thanks for the detailed information. i look forward to hearing the results of your scan in June.

I've been on a 1.25mg Estradiol gel for close to three months now. I rub it behind my knees and on my wrists. It seems like it's helping more than the .100 patch did because my joint pain was awful before the gel. I still have joint pain but now it's more similar to my life pre-hysterectomy wherein it just affects one wrist. I go back in a week or so to test my Estradiol level. My gyn has called in a compounded Testosterone that I'll rub on a few times a week.