Having a doctorate, naturally I did my own research when I first experienced menopause symptoms. I was managing 2 businesses, & raising a daughter with a learning disability. I had to perform at optimum capacity, & could not do that effectively when I was losing sleep & waking up drenched in sweat. I did not like the idea of taking a pharmaceutical drug with side effects. I began taking bio identical compounded hormones in my early fifties. I am now 68 & have had absolutely no side effects in over 15 years. I continue to take them for my bone strength, as I am a thin woman with a predisposition to osteo issues. Thank God for compounding pharmacists who can offer an alternative to pregnant mare urine derivatives!