Janet - Interview 46- Menopause

Age at interview: 77
Brief Outline:

Tiredness, irritability and hot flushes in her fifties led Janet to take HRT. Symptoms returned after discontinuing HRT 12 years later. Resumed HRT for a few years but stopped after heavy bleed. At 77, no longer on HRT but still gets hot flushes.

Background:

Janet is a retired probation officer. She is widowed with four adult children. She started the menopause at age 55 and was a long-term user of HRT until four years ago. Ethnic background/nationality - White British.

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Janet told her doctor that she did not want to still be having periods when she was 80 so he...

Janet told her doctor that she did not want to still be having periods when she was 80 so he...

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 So I went back to him to talk about it, the GP, and I said, “The only thing that puts me off, I don’t really want to be having periods if I get to 80 and I’m still on it and I don’t want to be having periods. That’s ridiculous.” So he said, “Well, I could put you on another one where you don’t have the oestrogen.” And he said, “Most.” I remember him saying something like, “Most of the ladies that I’ve prescribed this find it much better and they don’t really have bleeding. Occasionally, you might get a bit of spotting.” So I said, “Fine.” So he prescribed this so I started taking that and I suppose I was taking it, I don’t know how many years, perhaps two three years, which was, on top of the previous year’s I’d been taking the combination one.