Hi ladies, I am 54 and had a complete hysterectomy in 1987 when I was in my 30’s. I managed my menopause symptoms with different estrogen pills. But no one ever told me I would lose most of my libido, nor did any one ask or offer an option. Then came the estrogen scare several years ago. I tried to get off of the estrogen and couldn’t. The night sweats were the worse. After moving to Arizona and changing gynecologists, I found that my new doctor does bioidentical hormone pellets after reading one of her newsletters. One of the symptoms of low testosterone is thinning/loss of pubic hair. That was me! I also felt like my name was after every symptom. There was a ray of hope! I talked to my dr about the pellets. She does thousands of women and has them herself. I found out that a friend also has the pellets and loved them. These are implanted in my hip every 3-4 months. I get 50 mgs of estrogen and 75 mgs of testosterone. The pellets are good because the release a steady amount of hormone and only what your body needs. I have to say they changed my life. First of all the menopause symptoms went away. But the absolute best was the increase in sex drive. Desire, lubrication and orgasm went through the roof. We were like kids on a honeymoon! My whole self-image has increased. Now after 4 years, we’ve “calmed” down somewhat but really my libido is still strong. I guess I’m trying to make up for all those lost years. I believe that women deserve to feel great and have great sex lives. We deserve to have all the information out there to make informed decisions about our bodies. Regards, NJWhite

Thanks for sharing your story! It's interesting to hear that these pellets have worked so well for you, especially after the "HRT scare"; I'm still trying to decipher all the information. My mom used to be on HRT, and has stopped taking estrogen. I'll see if I can gingerly bring up this topic with her, and tell her about these pellets.

Are there any negative side effects? I assume these are still under the category of "hormone replacement"?

oh! and congrats on an exciting and great sex life! I agree that women deserve this, and to have overall feel great!

Hi Alison,

Here is a quote from a Dr. Rebecca Glaser that is extremely knowledgeable of the pellets. It's a long paper, easy to read and I would be glad to post the whole thing if you want. I have never had anything more that a slight bruised feeling on the insert site. Anyway, here is what she says about the side effects:

Complications from the insertion of pellets include minor bleeding, bruising, discoloration of the skin, infection, and possible extrusion of the pellet. Other than slight bruising, or discoloration of the skin these complications are very rare. Vigorous physical activity is avoided for 48 hours in women and up to 5 to 7 days in men. Antibiotics may be given if a patient is diabetic or has had a joint replaced.

When a patient first starts hormone therapy there may be mild, temporary breast tenderness which gets better on its own. Hormone receptors may be very sensitive and take time to adjust. There may be a temporary water weight gain which will also resolve on its own. The body will tone up, as bone density and muscle mass increase and fatty tissue decreases.

I'll be glad to share more information.

Regards,
Nancy