Diabetes and the Menopause

[anitajane68]

Hi. Completely new to all this so pls bear with. My reason for joining is I need some help and my diabetes nurses have be unable to help - not for want of trying so I thought I may get some insight here. I’ve been type 3c since losing most of my pancreas because of severe accute pancreatitis 14 years ago. Because of menopausal symptoms I have been taking HRT for about 2 years. All was fine at first but I because of supply problems I was switched from patches to pills last year. Since then I have really struggled to control my blood sugars and my HBA1C jumped to 63. Has anyone else experienced anything similar? Does anyone have any useful tips? TIA Anita

 

[trophywench]

I don't know if you or anyone else has considered this - your body changes, your (and everyone else's) diabetes changes, and every hormone enzyme and all else within the human body changes - as time goes on. The fact that you've changed from patches to tablets is most likely coincidental rather than necessarily being the actual cause of anything much. I never had hot flushes or any of the normal menopausal symptoms following my total hysterectomy and bilateral oophorectomy until I changed from hormone implants to female hormone only (rather than with testosterone too) tablets - and that little fact definitely affected my libido adversely (which might well be considered by some reading this as TMI!) but no idea of course what your symptoms of summat not being right, might be! Hence, no idea whether my typing this paragraph is of any help or use to you, whatever.

 

[SB2015]

Welcome to the forum @anitajane68 . I was beyond the menopause when I was diagnosed. I did take HRT for other symptoms more recently and it did impact my levels and required a change in basal rates and bolus ratios. As @trophywench has said things will need changing for many reasons, including the weather.

I will tag @eggyg who is our resident expert on 3c, in case she can shed any light on your specific questions.

 

[rebrascora]

Hi and welcome.

It would be helpful to know what treatment you use for your diabetes management as I believe some Type 3cs can manage without insulin for quite a long time before eventually needing it. What I am wondering is if you have come to a point where you need insulin if you haven't yet been using it or if you might need to increase your basal.
As regards HRT, I managed to get the patches but I really had to shop around with my prescription to find some and I just use half a patch every few days to eke them out with no problems and still controls my symptoms brilliantly but I managed to get my last prescription fulfilled very easily so the shortage may be over. You could therefore perhaps try going back to patches, but my gut feeling is that your insulin needs/ability to produce your own has changed and you need to inject some or more but 63 is not a desperately shabby HbA1c. It has room to improve of course. What have your previous ones been like?

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Welcome to the forum @anitajane68

Sorry to hear you are struggling to find helpful information.

Though T1, not T3c, Annie Cooper has done some work over the years trying to open up the conversation around diabetes and the menopause.

There are a few articles linked on T1resources which may help, including this one:

Diabetes and the menopause - Evidently Cochrane

Guest blog by Annie Cooper which talks about the silence surrounding the 'Big M' and the lack of information for menopausal women managing long term conditions like diabetes

www.t1resources.uk