Many women will undergo some form of hormone therapy throughout their life. This therapy involves female sex hormones that can help replenish those lost during certain life events, like menopause. Having balanced hormones is integral in the proper functioning of the female body. The most common female sex hormones are estrogen and progesterone. These sex hormones are essential in regulating the menstrual cycle, metabolism, and bone growth, and rejuvenation. 

If the hormone balance is off, then women can experience many unpleasant symptoms. An imbalance can occur at any age of life but is more common during menopause when estrogen production comes to a half. Estrogen is produced mostly in the ovaries, and when it stops, women’s menstrual cycles come to an end, and pregnancy is no longer possible. The severity of menopausal symptoms differs from woman to woman. Some common symptoms include: 

Introducing hormones to the body can come with a risk of blood clots. Birth control drugs, as well as hormone therapy, can include estrogen and progestin (synthetic progesterone). Contrary to popular belief, neither of these medications causes blood clots, but they can increase your risk of developing a clot. 

When taking hormone therapy, the risk of blood clots occurs in 1 in 300 women a year. Of course, your risk for clots is increased significantly if you already have a blood-clotting disorder. Your doctor may recommend an alternative treatment method if you have a blood-clotting disorder or are taking blood-thinning medication. 

Blood clots can occur because estrogen increases the plasma concentration of clotting factors. This increases the chance of blood clots and the development of deep vein thrombosis. When left untreated, clots can be dangerous and travel to the lungs and heart. If you are taking hormones, watch out for: 

If you are using hormone replacement therapy to combat menopausal symptoms, vaginal bleeding may occur. This may be confusing for some women because menstrual cycles are supposed to cease during menopause. This bleeding is not related to a menstrual cycle and may occur for several reasons.

Hormone therapy often results in light bleeding or bleeding that appears as heavy as a normal period. If you are taking cyclic hormone therapy containing estrogen and progestin, you may experience bleeding regularly. If your bleeding comes out of nowhere while taking HRT, you may want to consult your doctor. Abnormal vaginal bleeding may be occurring due to: 

A stroke occurs when blood is not flowing properly to the brain. This can result in brain damage and loss of motor skills. Strokes can occur for several reasons, and hormone replacement therapy may be one of many factors. The exact correlation between HRT and stroke risk is still unknown and is still being heavily researched. 

In one study, researchers studied 88,914 women and the effect of HRT. Within five years of beginning menopause, those who began HRT appeared to have the same risk of a stroke as women who never began HRT. They found that women who began hormone replacement therapy over five years after menopause increased their risk of ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke. 

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