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Endocrine Withdrawal Syndrome after stopping HRT
Hello,
I am wondering if anyone has experienced endocrine withdrawal syndrome after stopping hormone replacement therapy? I am 54 years old. Last June, I was prescribed Premarin .45 and 100 mg progesterone daily to combat hot flashes. I felt great the first month, then felt horrible by September, like I was overmedicated. I then stopped cold turkey. Two days later, I was awoken in the middle of the night by a heart rate of 155 and high blood pressure that lasted a few minutes. I went to ER and they couldn't find anything. A month later, I started having tachycardia episodes, high and low blood pressure episodes, shaking, extreme insomnia, feeling like I was wired, anxiety and dread, etc, all day and night. After 3 paramedic visits, 2 ER visits, an endocrinologist, rheumatologist, cardiologist, gynecologist and a PCP, all giving me a full workup and blood tests, they didn't find anything wrong with me. I felt like I was going to die. I ended up couch bound for 7 weeks. The endocrinologist thinks I may have had endocrine withdrawal syndrome that mimicked opioid withdrawal syndrome. Apparently this can be a thing after discontinuing estrogen. He put me on .25 divigel and no progesterone. I am slowly stabilizing, but still have occasional symptoms that are or mimic POTS (postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome). I can function somewhat but am nowhere near my original energetic self and it is destroying my life. Has this happened to anyone else? How did you fix it? Thank you.
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I am so glad I came across this group. I've been on HRT since March and experiencing ALL of these symptoms mentioned anxiety, insomnia, stomach issues and racing heart. Not to mention extreme fatigue, always cold with chills and achiness.
@smr25 Are you saying that you stopped HRT and you are experiencing all these symptoms? Or are you saying that you are still on HRT and you are experiencing these symptoms?
A lot of your symptoms sound like hypothyroidism.
Do you have a recent copy of your *complete* blood test for your sex hormones and blood tests for *complete* thyroid panel?
@smr25
Wow! This is not what I want to hear. I just started HRT to combat sudden onset of anxiety disorder.
Same here. I was vomiting in the middle of the night. I could barely eat. Also had morning sickness and that is getting better as I have stopped taking the HRT however my mental health has deteriorated to a degree that I've never felt before it's really scary to me I hope it goes away
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1 ReactionYes, yes and yes. I've been to emergency room many times shaking, hot and vomiting. I started weaning in May 2025. Been totally off since September. I am very distressed, my sleep is bad I scream all night. I am hot cold hot cold and this cold thing is new. The hot flashes last all day depending on my stress level that day. I have no get up and go. This is not me. I am an achiever. I amscheduled to see my gyno soon.
When I started bhrt I was told very that if at some point I wanted to stop that the protocol is to slowly over time reduce current doses.
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1 Reaction@miriza I am going through the same thing. I had to go off of estrogen and progesterone because I was suffering from deep depression and paralyzing anxiety. I took the patch off last Thursday so today is day 5 without estrogen and progesterone. I feel only slightly better. I have dizziness, depression, anxiety, heart palpitations, interrupted sleep, and I don't know how much longer I can work like this.
@californiacarol15
My provider told me that if I ever decided to stop bhrt I needed to do it gradually to avoid these kind of issues. Are you working with your physician to stop hormones?
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1 Reaction@gravity3 no, I did not consult w my doctor. I just knew my depression/anxiety were so bad, I needed to stop whatever was causing it ASAP. I’m not going into work today to try and get in w my doctor. This is a nightmare.
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1 ReactionI found out the hard way that stopping cold turkey is a bad idea while on HRT. I was on Climera for about three months when I was removed abruptly because I still had my uterus. Soon after I was getting these bad migraines that lasted three days at a time I had to stay in bed during these episodes. I couldn't see any lights. I was totally incapacitated. And any pain killers didn't help. Being on Climera did help with the hot flashes but now I refuse to go on any HRT'S. I am now 73 and my menopause symptoms are more manageable. I found exercises, meditation have help me to greatly.
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