butterbaby
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Well I searched WTT and there hasn't been much convo on this in a few years so I'm starting it up. Anyone been diagnosed or suspected they have a progesterone deficiency? What were/are your symptoms? Do you know what caused it? Did you treat it?
I saw my naturopathic doctor as I felt like something was not right (my MD offered no ideas regarding possible hormonal issues) and he suggested this may be due to progesterone deficiency. He didn't want to test as its costly, takes lots of time (through ND anyways), and it doesn't hurt to treat it and see if things improve. He didn't say what caused it but from what I've read taking OCP and stress seem to be the main risk factors. The weird thing is that I started developing symptoms of this while I was still on birth control so I stopped it to let my body even out. I feel frustrated knowing that taking OCP may have caused this and feel like others should know.
For me it started with my periods going from 4-5 days of mod-light flow to 2 days of light flow and a day of spotting. I had mild cramping throughout the month, increased headaches, bloating, weight gain of about 5 lbs (specifically in lower abdominal area) despite no change in diet or exercise, and acne. Once off OCP I noticed I was ovulating late in my cycle (CD20 in 28 day cycle - based on CM), fluctuating weight gain of another 5-10 lbs, and in past few months feeling dull/depressed, anxious, more fatigued, and heart palpitations.
Now that I look up the symptoms it all makes sense. The other thing that kept popping up in symptom lists was 'repeated miscarriages' and 'infertility'. I'm so glad I'm identifying this now so I can hopefully prevent heartache that likely would happen if I didn't treat this. For those that don't know, progesterone is what sustains a pregnancy early on and without adequate production of progesterone one would likely have a chemical pregnancy. On top of that, having progesterone out of balance affects all your hormones and can possibly even lead to disease if left untreated for a long time.
I've started taking a chasteberry complex AKA vitex, an herb that helps even out your hormones. What I've read says that it basically helps stimulate and regulate your hormone production so it helps with many hormonal issues, including PMS. For some it may be safe to take in the first trimester and possibly help sustain progesterone levels before the placenta does. I'm hoping this does the trick as it would be nice to let my body fix itself as opposed to having to supplement with progesterone.
Sorry for the long post but I found it fascinating that this is a fairly common issue and many don't discover it until they are actively TTC. I just figured it's best you hear about it now rather than when you get to your TTC date.
I saw my naturopathic doctor as I felt like something was not right (my MD offered no ideas regarding possible hormonal issues) and he suggested this may be due to progesterone deficiency. He didn't want to test as its costly, takes lots of time (through ND anyways), and it doesn't hurt to treat it and see if things improve. He didn't say what caused it but from what I've read taking OCP and stress seem to be the main risk factors. The weird thing is that I started developing symptoms of this while I was still on birth control so I stopped it to let my body even out. I feel frustrated knowing that taking OCP may have caused this and feel like others should know.
For me it started with my periods going from 4-5 days of mod-light flow to 2 days of light flow and a day of spotting. I had mild cramping throughout the month, increased headaches, bloating, weight gain of about 5 lbs (specifically in lower abdominal area) despite no change in diet or exercise, and acne. Once off OCP I noticed I was ovulating late in my cycle (CD20 in 28 day cycle - based on CM), fluctuating weight gain of another 5-10 lbs, and in past few months feeling dull/depressed, anxious, more fatigued, and heart palpitations.
Now that I look up the symptoms it all makes sense. The other thing that kept popping up in symptom lists was 'repeated miscarriages' and 'infertility'. I'm so glad I'm identifying this now so I can hopefully prevent heartache that likely would happen if I didn't treat this. For those that don't know, progesterone is what sustains a pregnancy early on and without adequate production of progesterone one would likely have a chemical pregnancy. On top of that, having progesterone out of balance affects all your hormones and can possibly even lead to disease if left untreated for a long time.
I've started taking a chasteberry complex AKA vitex, an herb that helps even out your hormones. What I've read says that it basically helps stimulate and regulate your hormone production so it helps with many hormonal issues, including PMS. For some it may be safe to take in the first trimester and possibly help sustain progesterone levels before the placenta does. I'm hoping this does the trick as it would be nice to let my body fix itself as opposed to having to supplement with progesterone.
Sorry for the long post but I found it fascinating that this is a fairly common issue and many don't discover it until they are actively TTC. I just figured it's best you hear about it now rather than when you get to your TTC date.