Oh also, my friend at work was put on Effexor (anti-depressant) to treat her hotflashes/night sweats that were keeping her awake, rather than HRT. It worked for her, but after 2 or 3 years, she figured she probably could go it alone, and get off of the Effexor. Well, she failed at that - quitting the Effexor caused her to have crying jags, so she went back on it. I've read about other unpleasant symptoms people have had when they try to get off of Effexor. (Joel Graedon, newspaper column "The People's Pharmacy"). Weird stuff! Tokie I too will be "weaned" off of my estradiol when I turn 56. (yea!) I tried to cut back to quit on my own a year ago (every other day dosing, then every third day,etc) HOT FLASHES! Next time I do it, Doc says I'll cut back to 3/4 pill for a few months, then to 1/2 pill for a few months, etc. I don't take progesterone (no uterus to protect from cancer). by the way, the woman I see slathering on her bioidentical hormones after her shower at the gym is now complaining of middle aged belly fat, just like many ordinary menopausal women. (and she is staying just as active as ever!) (and I saw the belly fat too, it's not just her) So it's not necessarily the fountain of youth that I believe Suzanne Sommers promotes with the "Wiley Protocol". ( kind of scary that a breast cancer survivor takes hormone replacement anyways, even if her cancer wasn't estrogen receptor positive, which I don't know, but doesn't it just seem like not a great idea?) Tokie