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Adding Oral Estrogen on Post menopause woman

Posted by sandy0257 @sandy0257, Jul 12, 2023

I’m 66 years old with no breast cancer. Do any of you have experience adding a low dosage oral estrogen to maintain or encourage bone growth?

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jbrooks | @jbrooks | Jun 3, 2025
In reply to @teb "I was on Forteo for 2 years and followed my treatment with bioidentical hormones to maintain..." + (show)
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I was on Forteo for 2 years and followed my treatment with bioidentical hormones to maintain the gains. I was about 62 at the time I went on hormones. Oral estrogen has the most risk so it is best to use a transdermal patch which bypasses the liver. If you still have a uterus, you will need to go on oral progesterone in addition to the transdermal estrogen. The common dose prescribed is 100 mg progesterone. There are greater risks going on hormones outside of the 10 year window post menopause but there are risks with any medication you take. I chose hormones as the most natural approach to maintaining my bones even though I was just outside that safer window of time. I wish I went on them sooner. I've been on them 5 years now and my bones have somewhat stabilized. If you are considering hormones, it is best to have a practitioner who is knowledgeable in this area (few are). You can find a practitioner on the North American Menopause Society website.

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just curious where your bone density was when you started Forteo and where it was when you went off Forteo initially compared to now?

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teb | @teb | Jun 3, 2025

My T-score was -3.2 when I started Forteo. It went to -2.8 the first year, then dropped to -2.9 the second, unfortunately. My current T-score is -2.5. I've been on HRT for 7 years now but that is a big change from my prior Dexas which have held at about -2.9. I don't know if it's the increase in weights I'm lifting as that is the major change I've made over the last couple of years. It could also be due to arthritic changes in the spine as that can show up as increased density. Unfortunately, we just can't tell which it is with a Dexa.

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