Questions to ask your doctor about HRT and menopause treatment

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This is not medical advice — it is general information based on what you searched for that may help.

General information based on published sources and the symptoms you searched for. This isn't medical or legal advice, a diagnosis or a treatment plan. Please consult a doctor about your own symptoms. If your symptoms are severe or sudden, seek urgent care.

Appointments are short. Choose the topics that matter most to you and the builder turns them into a printable list of questions, covering how the benefit-risk balance of hormone therapy depends on your age and time since menopause, what the 2025–2026 FDA boxed-warning changes mean, and what monitoring non-hormonal options such as fezolinetant need. It never recommends a medicine or a dose.

Choose the topics that matter most for your next appointment, and add any notes of your own. Everything is saved in this browser on this device as you go, and never sent anywhere.

1. What do you want to discuss at your appointment?
2. Do you have any symptoms that should be mentioned first?

For example: current medications, date of last period, or family history you want to ask about. Stored only in your browser.

Your printable appointment sheet

Tick at least one topic above or add your own notes to generate your appointment sheet.

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Your saved question sheets

Keep a dated copy to compare over time or bring to an appointment. Saved copies stay in this browser on this device until you delete them. They are never sent anywhere.

Fill in the tool above first, then save a copy here.

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How to use the question builder

  1. Tick the topics you want to cover, such as starting HRT, the FDA label change, non-hormonal options, vaginal dryness or bladder symptoms, and cost and follow-up.
  2. Tick any symptom that should be raised first. Bleeding after a year without periods, palpitations with chest pain or thoughts of self-harm bring up advice to get help now, before anything else.
  3. Add your own notes, such as current medicines or family history.
  4. Print the sheet, or save it with your appointment date. Saved sheets stay in this browser on this device, so you can prepare for a follow-up and compare what you asked last time.

What the questions cover, and why

  • Starting hormone therapy: The Menopause Society says the benefit-risk balance is most favorable for people under 60 or within 10 years of menopause who have no contraindications, so the questions ask how that applies to you, and about routes (patch, gel, spray or tablet) and protecting the womb lining if you still have one. Our guides to whether HRT is right for you and patches versus pills cover the background.
  • The FDA label change: the FDA asked for cardiovascular, breast cancer and dementia statements to come out of the boxed warning in November 2025 and approved the first six updated labels in February 2026. Read what the boxed-warning change means.
  • Non-hormonal options: questions about the Level I options in The Menopause Society's 2023 statement, and about the liver tests fezolinetant needs before and during treatment. See non-hormonal treatments for hot flashes.
  • Vaginal and bladder symptoms: first-line moisturisers and lubricants, low-dose vaginal estrogen, and supervised pelvic floor training for leaks.
  • Cost and follow-up: generic coverage, and when to review whether the plan is working.

How to pair this sheet with your symptom log

  1. Bring two numbers: the date of your last period (or how much your cycle length has shifted) and how often your most disruptive symptom happens per day or week. You can record both in our private symptom tracker.
  2. State your goal in the first minute: for example, "Night sweats are waking me three times a night and I want to compare transdermal hormone therapy with non-hormonal options."
  3. Check the evidence before you go: look up any option you've read about in the menopause treatment evidence checker, and see our guides on evidence-graded options for hot flashes and questions to ask about perimenopause.

When to get help now

Your question sheets stay on this device

Your choices, notes and any dated sheets you save are kept in this browser on this device, with no account. You can reopen, update or delete each sheet, and nothing is sent to us, to analytics or to advertisers. Clearing your browser data or using a private window removes them, so export a copy if you want a backup.

Where are you right now?

Still tracking

Not sure if your symptoms fit? Start tracking your daily patterns.

Log and spot your patterns with the symptom checklist →

Ready to talk to a doctor

Have an upcoming appointment? Bring structured questions and your history.

Prepare your 10-minute doctor appointment questions →

Already on treatment

Evaluating your response or wondering what to adjust next?

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Questions people ask

What questions should I ask my doctor before starting HRT?

Useful starting points are how the benefits and risks look for your age and time since your last period, which type and route (patch, gel, spray or tablet) suits your health history, whether you need a progestogen to protect the womb lining, what side effects or bleeding to expect, and when you'll review how it's working. Tick the topics above and the builder lists the questions for you.

What should I bring to a menopause or HRT appointment?

Bring the date of your last period or how your cycle has changed, how often your most bothersome symptom happens, a list of every medicine and supplement you take, any personal or family history of blood clots, stroke, heart disease or cancer, and the one thing you most want to leave with.

What changed with the FDA boxed warning on HRT?

In November 2025 the FDA asked makers to remove cardiovascular disease, breast cancer and probable dementia statements from the boxed warning on menopausal hormone therapy, and in February 2026 it approved the first six updated labels. Risk information remains in the warnings section, so it's still worth asking how it applies to you.

Does this tool recommend which hormone therapy or medication I should take?

No. It lists neutral, evidence-based questions so you and your clinician can weigh benefits, risks, delivery routes and non-hormonal options together. It never suggests a drug, a dose or whether you are a candidate.

Are my notes sent to a server?

No. Your choices and anything you type stay in this browser on this device. You can save dated question sheets for different appointments, print or export them, and delete them at any time.

Related pages

References

  1. The 2022 Hormone Therapy Position Statement Advisory Panel. The 2022 hormone therapy position statement of The North American Menopause Society. Menopause (The North American Menopause Society, now The Menopause Society), 2022. Funding: Funded by donations to the NAMS Education & Research Fund; the statement reports no commercial support. Individual panel disclosures not yet reviewed..
  2. FDA Requests Labeling Changes Related to Safety Information to Clarify the Benefit/Risk Considerations for Menopausal Hormone Therapies. U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 2025.
  3. VEOZAH (fezolinetant) tablets, prescribing information. Astellas Pharma US, 2026. Funding: Manufacturer-issued label (FDA-approved text).
  4. FDA Approves Labeling Changes to Menopausal Hormone Therapy Products. U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 2026.
  5. Shufelt CL, Brown V, Carpenter JS et al.. The 2023 nonhormone therapy position statement of The North American Menopause Society. Menopause (The North American Menopause Society, now The Menopause Society), 2023.
  6. The 2020 genitourinary syndrome of menopause position statement of The North American Menopause Society. Menopause: The Journal of The Menopause Society, 2020.
  7. Urinary incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse in women: management (NG123). National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, 2019.
  8. Postmenopausal bleeding. NHS (nhs.uk), 2026.
  9. Heart palpitations. NHS (nhs.uk), 2026.
  10. 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. 988 Lifeline, 2026.
  11. Contact Samaritans. Samaritans, 2026.
  12. Menopause: identification and management (NG23), Recommendations. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (UK), 2026.
Change log
  • : Published interactive treatment conversation builder
  • : Retitled around the question readers ask, added how to use the builder, what each topic covers, what to bring, saved question sheets and new FAQs