I've tried them - bio-identicals that are compounded as well as patches & creams. It's been awhile - like about a year. They made me fat & crabby but took away some of my hot flashes. I imagine if I kept up with them, I would have eventually had better relief. But I kept feeling premenstrual - no matter what I used. I used to have horrible PMS & literally planned vacations around my period.

Fast forward - hot flashes are no better & actually getting worse. Sleep is really bad - like waking up at 3AM for the day. Night sweats are awful in spite of an overhead fan & another fan next to my bed. Hot flashes - I get a good 3-4/day where my whole body sweats. Didn't know I had sweat glands in my knees. Had a bone density test & I think I flunked, judging from the phone calls I'm getting from my doc.

I've tried herbs. I drink & eat soy. I've tried maca, estroven, you name it. Nothing helps. Summer has just started & I don't know how I'm going to make it through.

So, I'm appealing to the collective wisdom of the group. If you tried HRT, did you get side effects? If so, did they eventually go away? What did you use?