Ethics, horses & mood swings — some trouble with HRTs

Well, the good news is that I’m not losing my mind.

The unpleasant news is that, at just shy of 48, I’m in menopause.

Well. Damn.

So those unprovoked fits of tears, and bouts of anger, just my body’s way of telling me I’m woefully low on estrogen, and, most likely, also on progestrone and testosterone as well (yes, women have testosterone.)

Labs still have to tell us how much, but other indicators are already there, such as not having had a cycle for more than a year and a half. (My doc says that, at my age, not having a period for more than six months indicates that you’re at the end of your cycle.)

So when she suggested that we try me out for a month on estrogen replacement therapy to see if there’s an immediate improvement in my mood, I agreed. She said, however, that we would be just “starting” the process, and we would “finesse” it later — meaning decide on exactly which hormone replacement therapy is right for me, and which delivery system (cream, patch, pill, et, al).

When she mentioned the drug “Premarin,” it sounded vaguely familiar, but I couldn’t readily place it, and we just went on talking, her saying she was going to start me out on a very low dose and see what effect it would have.

But when I got home, I went back to the Sacramento News & Review archives and remembered: Premarin is a drug manufactured by Wyeth Laboratories and produced by making mares stay tethered up in their stalls, day and night, with no room to turn around, and KEPT PREGNANT, nearly year-round, to produce urine, to make the drug.

Can you say, “ugh.”

Thirty-five THOUSAND mares annually are used in this collection process, my reporting found.

To think that horses are still being killed for the manufacturing of this drug is abhorrent.

Luckily, today, there are alternatives, and I’m sure that when I bring this to my doctor’s attention, she will prescribe me a plant-based Estrogen HRT, or at least one that isn’t made as Premarin is made.

My doctor today was somewhat prophetic when she said that we were opening up a “Pandora’s Box” when we talked of menopause and HRT, and that we would have many other discussions before we were done.

Choosing not to take Premarin is but one we will have.

Until next time.

Keep the faith.

AY