For all who have tried progesterone creams...

[muffinmom]

what symptoms did it help you with, or did it make you feel bad? Feel free to PM me if this is too personal to post.

 

And did a doctor prescribe or did you do it on your own?

 

Thanks, hive mind.

[Greta]

I tried it after tracking my cycles (as described in Garden of Fertility) and learning that my problem was that my progesterone levels were too low. Lots of women use it when their actual problem is that their estrogen levels are too high, which is really an entirely different problem. I would NOT recommend it for the latter, because the cause of the excess estrogen is what really needs to be addressed. But that wasn't my problem. So anyway, it did help tremendously with my symptoms. Tremendously! But I also started gaining some weight, and thought that might be the cause, so I stopped using it. Of course, the fact that my diet wasn't so good at the time probably had more to do with it! I'm losing the weight now, and when I get back down to my ideal weight, I might try the cream again (watching my diet carefully) and see what happens. This was the only bad side-effect that I (maybe) had from it, and it did help with the problems that made me start using it in the first place. But again, just be sure that low progesterone and not high estrogen is your probem, IMO.

[Reya]

what symptoms did it help you with, or did it make you feel bad? Feel free to PM me if this is too personal to post.

 

And did a doctor prescribe or did you do it on your own?

 

Thanks, hive mind.

 

I used it to keep me pregnant. It worked. :-) I have hormonal issues, though. (LPD)

[snickelfritz]

a natural, compounded cream. I had slightly irregular cycles (25-35 days). They were very heavy and long. I also had extreme moodiness and trouble sleeping. She prescribed it, but blood tests later confirmed that I had a slight deficiency.

 

Yes, it helped. I didn't realize how much, until I got lazy this past month. We were on vacation, etc...

[Kimber]

I've used the over the counter and had it prescribed with 4 pregnancies. 15 is supposed to be the lowest level and still within range for progesterone levels. Mine has consistently come in at around 7.

 

At 39, I'm sure that my levels are still pretty low. I am having some major swings in cycle length. I have take progesterone but I think that I need so much that the over the counter doesn't help me as much as I'd like it too, but I still use it.

 

I do find that B-complex 50 also helps a lot! I take it daily and it helps to keep me evened out.

 

Good Luck!

 

When I took the lozenges for my pregnancies, I would become dizzy and extremely sleepy. It was weird.

[Suzanne in ABQ]

I use it. It helps prevent the feeling that my blood is suddenly boiling, severe, agitation, snarling at my kids, general bad moodiness, sore br@asts, cramping, and insomnia. I do it on my own, after reading Dr. John Lee's books, What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Premenopause, and WYDMNTYA Menopause.

[Reya]

I use it. It helps prevent the feeling that my blood is suddenly boiling, severe, agitation, snarling at my kids, general bad moodiness, sore br@asts, cramping, and insomnia.

 

It helped that way for me, too, though I was doing luteal phase support. I don't think I'm ever going to do cream-free cycles again, honestly! It was too nice. Insomia, too--it prevented that.

[Mom2legomaniacs]

I use it. It helps prevent the feeling that my blood is suddenly boiling, severe, agitation, snarling at my kids, general bad moodiness, sore br@asts, cramping, and insomnia. I do it on my own, after reading Dr. John Lee's books, What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Premenopause, and WYDMNTYA Menopause.

 

Very much the same symptoms here. Sometimes I have a month long PMS. Cycles are getting shorter. Fuzzy headed with memory and concentration. I have Dr. Lee's book and another, Before the Change, Taking Charge of Your Perimenopause by Ann Louise Gittleman. I just started a cream I got at GNC about a week and a half ago. So far, mood better and much improved in the brain (sharper thinking).

[Peela]

I use it. It helps prevent the feeling that my blood is suddenly boiling, severe, agitation, snarling at my kids, general bad moodiness, sore br@asts, cramping, and insomnia. I do it on my own, after reading Dr. John Lee's books, What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Premenopause, and WYDMNTYA Menopause.

 

Similar here too. Basically I use it for severe PMS symptoms, although I dont tend to get cramping much.

Side benefits- helps me sleep better, helped me lose weight, and generally calms me. Also, regulates my normally irregular cycle.

Negative side effects- actually makes me sleepy if I use too much.

Here in Australia it is only available on prescription and not many doctors know about it, and only a couple of pharmacies in my 1 million pop. city sell it, as far as I know. But I knew where to go, so I went and just asked the right doctor for it.

[muffinmom]

I hope to go to a doctor soon who is more versed in all this stuff. Maybe I will get good advice. I think my problem may be more excess estrogen. We'll see.

 

Thanks so much for being willing to share your experiences with me! Where else could I go for so much female wisdom and support?:)

[Liz CA]

what symptoms did it help you with, or did it make you feel bad? Feel free to PM me if this is too personal to post.

 

And did a doctor prescribe or did you do it on your own?

 

Thanks, hive mind.

 

sleeping. I would fall asleep but could not stay asleep during the night. I do feel better all around but that may also be due to some good quality vitamins. I am taking slightly less than my naturopath prescribed, just enough to have no sleep interruptions.

[Liz CA]

I hope to go to a doctor soon who is more versed in all this stuff. Maybe I will get good advice. I think my problem may be more excess estrogen. We'll see.

 

Thanks so much for being willing to share your experiences with me! Where else could I go for so much female wisdom and support?:)

 

http://www.apothecaryoptions.com

 

Lots of info regarding symptoms of estrogen and progesterone excess or deficiency.

[Kimber]

I remember this feeling well. Sort of like a car that has the pedal and the brakes pushed at the same time. But even though I'm not using the cream regularly, it's sort of passed. I have been taking other stuff to help my body heal in general. (I'm self-medicating to cure my morton's nueroma. I think I have it because I have a systemic inflammation problem.)

 

Anyway, to help that I'm taking high doses of Vitalzym for inflammation. It's supposed to actually eat away internal scar tissue. I also take Co Q 10. For me, Co Q 10 is like having a cup of coffee, it's fabulous. I get such a positive sense of well being. It's recommended for people 40 and over. I turn 40 this year. And I'm taking Alpha Lipoic Acid for my joints. Also, concentrated fish oil every night.

 

My skin is clearing up, the swelling in my hands and feet is starting to go down, and my bp is dropping.

 

Also I take liquid collagen at night. I sleep like a dead woman.

 

Anyway, even without the cream now, I don't feel agitated and revved up. I think it's from the fish oil and the Co Q 10.

 

Anyway, good luck to the op. Progesterone can be really wonderful. I just need soooo much that the over counter for me didn't do it alone.

[Cindy in AR]

I am on my 3rd or 4th month of taking a prescribed progesterone cream due to a blood test showing lower levels. My dr. suggested it after I complained of extreme moodiness and other PMS problems. I find that the one week I am not taking it that I become depressed and end up crying about everything. It has also helped with a few other things. I'm still trying to decide if it's really going to work or if I might need something stronger for the moodiness.