Running on HRT

Word art menopause HRT
Katie Holmes runner over fifty running a cross country race

Not looking too hot and bothered at cross country October 2017

Arriving late for my first race of the cross country season in 2017, I was already feeling hot and bothered by the time I’d dumped my bag, got my trail shoes on and made my way to the start.  It was unseasonably warm weather for mid-October, warm enough for an ice cream afterwards. As we ran up the first hill I had a hot flush. It was the first time I’d had one during  a race.

After that race I had to acknowledge that my menopausal symptoms were affecting my running. Was it time I did something about it?

A year before I had written a blog post for World Menopause Day (18th October) called “Running toward the menopause“. At that time I regarded my symptoms as manageable but things had got worse since then. I wasn’t sleeping well and was waking up in the night feeling hot. I felt I could cope with that but then I started getting hot flushes during the day. Not lots of them but they occurred frequently enough to make me feel fed up. Hot flushes are weird, you can feel hot and cold at the same time and you just don’t feel yourself. It’s a bit like having a very short bout of the ‘flu.

The other symptom which was starting to affect my enjoyment of running (and cycling) was vaginal dryness. Since taking up running in 2011, I hadn’t had a problem with chafing. Now my vaginal and vulval tissues were dry and the vulval tissues became sore after running or cycling. I didn’t know what I could do to relieve this. In October 2016 I went to a talk by Dr Louise Newson, a menopause specialist, and found out about the potential benefits of vaginal moisturisers. As women go through menopause their oestrogen levels dip and this can cause vaginal dryness and affect the urinary tract. After finding out about vaginal moisturisers I started using one, but although it had helped it had not completely prevented the chafing and soreness.

Before I went to Dr Newson’s talk, I might not have contemplated trying HRT (Hormone Replacement Therapy). I had come away a lot better informed about the benefits and risks of HRT. One thing that she said had stuck in my mind. It was something along the lines of “You don’t have to feel bad, you don’t have to put up with it, you could feel a lot better on HRT.”

Within two weeks of that cross country race I had made an appointment to see my GP to ask for HRT.

What does HRT do?

The menopause occurs when there is a change in the balance of a woman’s sex hormones. The ovaries stop producing as much oestrogen and ovulation stops. The decline in oestrogen can lead to a number of menopausal symptoms, such as hot flushes, night sweats, difficulty sleeping and vaginal dryness. Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) relieves these symptoms by replacing oestrogen. It also helps to prevent osteoporosis (weakening of the bones) which is more common after the menopause.

Starting HRT

HRT tablets used by over 50 runner Katie Holmes

My first pack of HRT tablets

My GP prescribed Elleste Duet 1mg. I felt weird for the first 24 hours but the hot flushes just disappeared and I started sleeping much better. My vagina started to feel much more “normal”, no longer dry, but I was still struggling with chafing and soreness, and getting a vaginal infection at the end of each 4-week cycle of HRT. It’s taken me a year but I hope this is finally sorted out. I was prescribed a high dose of pencillin for something else and I think this may have killed off whatever was causing the vaginal infection as well.

Has HRT improved my running performance?

Yes, because the quality of my sleep is much better. Getting more and better sleep makes a huge difference to how I feel during the day, what I feel able to do, and my mental readiness to race. My sleep is not perfect. I still find myself feeling hot at night and often wake early, but I sometimes sleep very well.

Final thoughts

I’ve been planning this article since I started taking HRT in November 2017, but have held back partly by a reluctance to share something so intimate, and also by the fear of breaking a social taboo – we don’t talk about vulvas and vaginas. Why are they the source of so much embarrassment, when they are so important to how we feel about ourselves and to our relationships with our partners? I have been encouraged to write and publish this by the knowledge that there are people who want to know more about the menopause and running. My previous article about the menopause is one of the top five most-read articles on this site in the past year, even though I have done very little to promote it.

If you’ve found this article useful or would like to share your own experience of running during the perimenopause and menopause please add a comment below or contact me.

…………………………………………………………………………..

 

Dr Louise Newson’s website: My Menopause Doctor

NICE (National Institute of Clinical Excellence) Guidance on Diagnosis and Management of the Menopause.

Hot Flush was set up by two women who found it difficult to find the information they wanted about the menopause. They say they want their website to be “like a glossy magazine that women will want to revisit, primarily for menopause advice but also for fashion, style, culture and mid-life stuff.”

There are many articles about menopause on Henpicked.net, a UK website for women over 40.

Photo of me courtesy of John Oldfield.

12 Comments

  1. modflowers

    I also chose to take HRT, as my menopausal symptoms were so bad that I was existing on hardly any sleep, consequently feeling tearful and out of control for much of the time.
    Just be aware that not all menopausal symptoms are alleviated by HRT. It made no difference to my menopausal-onset joint pain, “fuzzy-headedness”, lack of energy, etc. Also, problems can last for much longer than the recommended length of time you should safely take HRT for.
    My symptoms have now subsided a little, but are still very much with me after 10 years. I stopped taking HRT a few years ago and the symptoms then came back with a vengeance, having been only suppressed by HRT, not cured.
    I don’t run any more, as I overheat too badly, too quickly now. I choose lower-intensity exercise, also to help protect my ageing joints.

    Reply
    • Katie Holmes

      Hello modflowers, thank you for commenting and sharing your experience. From what I have read, each woman’s experience of menopause is unique to her. I haven’t decided yet when I will stop HRT. The NHS Choices advice says menopausal symptoms last around 4 years (but can be much longer), but that’s not particularly helpful. I think mine started when I was 50 so if I went by that they should have stopped by now (I’m 55), not be getting worse! As you say HRT is not a cure, but can alleviate the symptoms which may eventually subside or stop. It’s good you’ve found ways of staying active that suit you. Katie

      Reply
  2. Joyce B

    Really a thank you for writing about the menopause. Great to see articles from women who love running and want to maintain fitness in general. I am in early stages of menopause wondering what will happen in the near future and hoping to run through the XC season this year. Thank you

    Reply
    • Katie Holmes

      Thank you Joyce. I hope you enjoy the cross country this autumn and winter. My aim is to run as many cross country races as I can this year, so I’ve entered some extra ones with my club. Katie

      Reply
  3. Zip-pi-dee-doo-dah

    Thank you for writing this article. I’ve just left my GP surgery, with reassurances that what I have been experiencing is the perimenopause. I completed a 10k race last weekend (not my first) and felt AWFUL. I can list all the above symptoms, for months.
    I’m hoping HRT is going to work for me x

    Reply
    • Katie Holmes

      Thank you for commenting. I am glad you’ve found the article useful. I hope you feel some improvement in your symptoms soon. Katie

      Reply
  4. Dina

    I know I’m writing a few years later than this text but I wanted to thank you. I’ve have been running for almost 30 years and have hit menopause. This definitely has an impact on running. I want to continue running for as long as I can but menopause made me question this. Thank you for talking about this. There is so little information about menopause and sports.

    Reply
    • Katie Holmes

      Thank you Dina. It is good to know the article is helpful. Katie

      Reply
  5. Pam

    I started with the menopause when after running a few marathons and my first Ultra so went on HRT (as I needed a good nights sleep and still working full time), best thing ever. After 10 years on it and still running I retired from work so came off it, it wasn’t pleasant but got through the it. Running another ultra this year (age 62) so it did me no harm and I felt good for the last 10 years on it that I could compete in competitions with lots of energy. 5 years ago I was diagnosed with under active thyroid -got the medication and carried on with running. Never give up, there’s so much that running & the outdoors can boost your health and mind.

    Reply
    • Katie Holmes

      Thank you for sharing your story Pam. I’ve been on HRT 4 years now and do wonder what it will be like when I stop taking it. Good luck with your ultra! Katie

      Reply
  6. Ronnie R Haydon

    Evening Katie
    Aged 58, I am just about to pick up a prescription for combined HRT from pharmacy. Never thought I would do this, but a combination of factors, and HRT-believer friends, have persuaded me. My main worry sounds ridiculous, but I really cannot handle any growth I the tummy/tit area, because I dread the matronly look (I come from a line of apple-shaped forebears)
    Wish me luck.
    Ronnie (aka Marathon Gran)

    Reply
    • Katie Holmes

      Hi Ronnie, I hope you find the HRT helps. I’ve been taking it for four years now. Katie

      Reply
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