From Pill to Injection…experiences?

[Kylie]

I’ve been on Estradiol pills for 3 years and as of recently my Endocrinologist convinced me to switch in injection to decrease risks.
 

Has anyone switched and what has your experience been? I took my first injection Wednesday and do labs at  weekly intervals for a month.  

[ValerieRun]

I have not switched as I started with injections for the sake of mono-therapy, but from my experience there are a lot more advantages: reduced frequency, less worry to keep it with you on short travels, more stable delivery (dependent on what you take of course) and easier to maintain levels.

[Lexi C]

hey Like Valerie 

I being on injection for 3 yrs. All i now is my late Doc said it was safe since i do drink a bit. I heard the bills have more of risk.

Good luck

[Kylie]

That is why I was switching from pills to the injection was due to risk. I’ve just had some effects I guess from switching such as nausea and fatigue. She started me on a low dose so maybe I just need some adjustments. 

[ValerieRun]

My suspicion would be on the components of the injectable solution. Is it possible you are allergic to something? I have read about several cases where the solution had to be re-compounded with different ingredients because of the allergic response. That will only be possible if you are taking EV and have a compound pharmacy capable of doing that.

[Kylie]

I’ve had this happen before when we attempted patches for a few weeks and it was simply my levels were low. I just did not know what to expect as far as if more people take injections weekly or bi-weekly like this. Thankfully it isn’t an allergic reaction because I definitely would not continue with that. Mine is compounded in the normal oils the EV is produced in. 

[ValerieRun]

It seems the injection schedule is all over the place, and very heavily dependent on your doc's views. EV has a fairly short half-life so going longer than a week I would expect to give you highs and lows. I found EC to be more stable for myself, and have no problems with a week and even if circumstances make me late by a day or even 2. 

 

[Kylie]

She started me on every 14 days. So hopefully I can stick to that!

[Rorelai]

I switched to injectable estrogen about two and a half months ago after having taken the pill form for just about two years. I talked with my doctor before making the switch, and we decided to go with a weekly injection precisely because of the potential for side effects caused by the highs and lows of a biweekly schedule. I'd say overall the results I've seen are consistent with what I saw from taking the pills. I have seen some increased breast development in the last few weeks, but I'm not sure how much the different form of estrogen has impacted that. Financially speaking injectable estrogen (estradiol valerate at least) is more expensive than the pills, but I don't have to refill my Rx as often so it still comes out to be about the same price in the end. I do my own injections too and that has been a learning curve, but after the first couple times I'd say I'm pretty confident with my abilities now. 

[Kylie]

So, finally after about 2 months of tweaking the dosing I finally reached goal level for blood levels of E. Still experiencing some ups and downs, so at my next appointment hope to discuss switching to weekly injections instead of bi-weekly. 
 

It is nice only taking a shot once every other week versus a pill twice a day. The other up side is with insurance my pills were $10/month- now with injection I only pay $10 every two months for one vial, so the saving a little cash is an upside.  
 

Hope everyone is staying safe and healthy! Looking forward to a little holiday joy!