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WakefieldWendy
08-15-2007, 09:51 AM
Hi,

After my last unsuccessful attempt to get pregnant, I didn't bleed. Fertility doctor found out about 6 months later and was worried about cancer and gave me a progesterone prescription for once per month. First month - enormous bleed, after that normal.

Normal cycle, you produce progesterone after or immediately around ovulation. Raises body temp and makes a nice incubator for potential child. If implantation occurs, progesterone continues. Without implantation, no continued signal for progesterone so it drops, and a few days after that, you bleed. Key thing there is that there is a drop in progesterone before bleeding (because body is designed not to shed uterine lining until it is sure you aren't pregnant).

This last cycle, I said to Wendy Ann before I began that I felt like I had progesterone in my system (sore breasts etc.) Took progesterone pills anyway. Yesterday was last day. This morning, before I would even have taken the next dose if I were taking it, I bled.

I think this confirms that I have progesterone naturally in my system. I think this is good as it may mean that my cycles will return as I keep losing weight. Not sure because weight surely isn't only cause of being anovulatory. Highly doubt, at this point, that I'm having ovulatory cycles, but simply having any progesterone at all is a good thing, I think.

We have an appointment with fertility doctor this Friday anyway, so will address.

Any thoughts?

Dharmalisa
08-30-2007, 02:13 PM
Hi Wendy.

I'm in a different 'stage' right now, but wondered how things are going?

I use progesterone cream now for 3 out of 4 weeks per month. Probably is what keeps me having TOM (I'm 49, almost 50). Over a year ago I went on a low calorie, low carb diet and lost 20 lbs in 3 months. Doesn't sound THAT bad but I was eating 900 calories a day, and at one point my fat got really low. It threw my hormones completely out of whack.

I had symptoms of low progesterone - hot flashes, night sweats, anxiety, irregular periods (1st time in my life), morbid thoughts, and Burning Mouth Syndrome with Olfactory hallucinations (I smelled smoke all the time). The progesterone cream was the only thing that helped. I gained BACK 15 of the 20 lbs, but my hormones didn't ever completely recover, since without the cream I still have some symptoms. I want to lose 10 lbs but now I'm terrified of losing too fast, hence I'm not losing at all.....but maintaining is good too I guess.

So that's my experience with progesterone. Thank god I can buy the cream OTC. Works like a charm.

WakefieldWendy
08-31-2007, 12:16 PM
Thanks for your info.

We went to the fertility doc. She suggested that I take a month off of the progesterone to see if I bled normally. If I don't, I'll take the progesterone again. She said that it is fine to bleed every two months, so if I don't bleed this time, I'll wait a while until I've lost some more weight, and then try it again.

I definitely feel like there is some progesterone in my system, but I think I could have increasing levels of it without having become ovulatory again.

Dharmalisa
09-04-2007, 02:39 PM
Good luck Wendy!

I stopped ovulating regularly but still had regular periods for quite a while. Now I doubt I ever ovulate (maybe once every 6 months). I'm ready for my periods to stop but still haven't skipped any yet!!