No it hadn't. It had given me no trouble at all during those three days, and the uncovered skin now revealed had suffered no irritation. The skin was unblemished.
It seemed therefore that Estraderm was the way to go, at least while it remained available. I'm now wearing another Estraderm patch, which will stay in place until next Saturday. Like the Estradot I used for ten years without any reactions whatever, I have to change the Estraderm patch twice a week. The FemSeven patch lasted a whole week, which at first I thought was a gain in convenience. But I've changed my mind. It's clearly easier on the skin to change a patch more frequently.
This is what Estraderm looks like.
There are eight sachets inside each pack, each containing a patch. Having snipped open the sachet, you find this large square patch with rounded corners:
You peel away the backing strip on the right-hand edge, press this onto wherever the patch is to go, and then peel away the rest of the backing, making sure that the patch doesn't crinkle as it progressively comes into contact with the skin. Then you press your palm over the patch, and hold it there for half a minute to ensure that the patch sticks properly. (I count to eighty, then release my palm)
The first patch went on my left-hand bum cheek, but the second one couldn't yet go on the right-hand cheek because even after three days that was still red and irritated from where the FemSeven patch had been. The skin is taking a long time to recover.
I had to place the second Estraderm patch on the right-hand front side of my lower tummy, below my belly button. Not my preferred spot, but at least it was very accessible!
So far it's only had a three-day trial, and I can't of course be certain that Estraderm will prove suitable for the long term. After all, FemSeven gave me no problems at first. So I'll give it a bit more time. The initial signs are good though.
