Progesterone Worries

[Feisty Fidget]

Hi all, new to PAL and like most of you in here worrying over everything but trying not to stress

We suffered a MMC in October 2010 at almost 10 weeks (baba stopped growing between 5 and 6 weeks) it was a clomid baby and because it was our first loss no tests were offered to determine the cause.

For some reason I have it in my head that progesterone could have been the cause. My body temperature is always somewhat lower then other people but I have pretty regular periods although cycles without clomid usually have spotting at 11-13dpo before full flow.

I am trying to eat the right foods to naturally increase progesterone and insuring stress levels are kept to a minimum but was just wondering if there is anything else I could be doing?

I have my first appointment with GP this Thursday but am very conscious that even if he agrees to a test the results will be back when I almost 7 weeks which by then would be too late to do anything if my progesterone is in fact low.

I have had my CD21 bloods taken on clomid about 6 months ago, does anyone know if progesterone levels are also checked in this test?

Sorry for the long waffly post

 

[croydongirl]

I am not sure if progesterone deficiency is a test they always do but my doctor told me that even if it is an issue it might not show up if you do the cd21 test when you are not pregnant. My doctor put me on daily suppositories to start take 3dpo because they cannot hurt if you do get pregnant but they can help if you are. Also taking low dose aspirin seems to be another can't hurt might help solution to start a few days after ovulation, or once you get a positive. Maybe mention both of those to your doctor as potential options. You could start taking the low dose aspirin now.

From what I know you have to start taking the progesterone before you would get the bfp to make a difference if you do have an issue, even though they had me stay on until the end of my first trimester I think it was just to be safe.

I also know that many first pregnancies end in m/c and then women cn go on to have normal healthy pregnancies without any issues.

I am so sorry for your loss, it is so hard to stay calm after you have experienced something that but I hope you can relax and enjoy this pregnancy and that you can see a happy healthy bean at your next scan xx

 

[LolaAnn]

Hi sweetie - I was dx with low prog although my dr wasn't going to do anything about it so I started taking natural prog after Ov. It made my last cycle nice and short, sometimes my LF would drag on for ages. I really think it's a real contributing factor as to how I got my BFP. I'm going to take it everyday until 12-13w.

 

[Feisty Fidget]

Thank you both for your input

Have had a run in with my FS and GP about taking aspirin - I want to but they have said that as I haven't had the clotting tests and only had one miscarriage they believe it isn't needed! They don't seem to be interested in preventing another miscarriage, instead it seems they want to wait and see if I have a few more before trying to treat

I have self prescribed as I figure it is better to take something that has no known adverse effects and can only be beneficial.

 

[Justkeeptryin]

Hi, I think you've made a wise decision to start taking lwo dose aspirin as it will do no harm but a world of good. My first miscarriage was at 5 weeks, I then self prescribed a low dose aspirin which got me to 8.5 weeks with a heartbeat. Sadly it then stopped.
Anyway Luckily I got referred for tests after the 2 miscarriages and sure enough they came back positive for clotting. The aspirin wasnt enough for me but it is for most people so dont worry. I need clexane injections aswell this time around and also pushed for progesterone pessaries which I got aswell.
Good luck, chances are your first MC was just bad luck but you've now boosted your chances by taking the aspirin aswell x

 

[tuckie27]

Hey, CD 21 is the day they test for progesterone levels...If your Dr. didn't feel it was necessary, maybe your levels were ok? You should ask for your lab results. My Dr. said mine were okay from my CD21 test, but she put me on 100mg nightly as a precaution anyways. Good luck.

 

[Feisty Fidget]

Well I brought this up with GP on Friday and at first he didn't understand about the importance of progesterone in pregnancy! After I then explained he had the cheek to say not to worry as only evidence there was a problem with progesterone would be if I had another miscarriage

They don't seem to care that we have been ttc for almost 25 months and it has taken almost 18 months since our last loss with no breaks and constantly trying every cycle. There attitude is to not waste money testing for things when nature will take care of it if there is an issue.

If I could afford it I would definitely be going private!

 

[Justkeeptryin]

It really is shocking when it comes to being tested for progesterone levels. I asked several times and was basially told its an expensive test for them to run and they need an expert to interpret the results. I was angry and thought how expensive are we talking!! I googled and a private place near me does the test for £20!!

 

[ch0616]

Chiming in here...I've had 3mc - the first was a mmc and second two were closer to chemical pregnancies. I went through ALL the usual tests and everything came back fine. But I'd heard so many women say that they had been put on progesterone after suffering miscarriages.

I raised this with my doctor and he very thoughtfully explained that there is no scientific evidence that low progesterone levels lead to miscarriages, nor is there an accurate way to test for it because progesterone is released in waves, meaning they don't know when they test if they are getting the measurement at the peak or trough of the wave.

BUT, he also said that taking progesterone supplements will not hurt and if it helped my peace of mind, then he was happy to prescribe for me. I did, in fact, start taking them and just got BFP today!!

It might be worth checking with your doctor to see if he/she will prescribe the progesterone for you, even if they won't do the test you want.

 

[korink26]

I know this is a bit older, but this is exactly what I'm going through right now!
I was on clomid and my Day21 prog. level was 24.86. For some reason I've got it in my head that my last mc was because of low progesterone. I worry that because I needed clomid to get PG, I'll need progesterone to stay PG.
I've asked my Dr. to test me again now that I'm PG, and she won't because she said my levels were good on CD21. I don't get it though, because just because they were good then, that doesn't mean they'll stay good, right?
Idk, I'm confused and now today at exactly 4 weeks I've got some brown discharge (very little, not dark and only occasionally when I wipe). I want to call my Dr. back and yell "THIS IS WHY I WANT MY PROGESTERONE TESTED"!!!!!!

 

[Mrs Miggins]

Hi, I'm so glad I've found this thread, I feel like I'm banging my head against a brick wall. Some of you know me already, I got my bfp on Saturday after ttc since January 11, having had 2 losses in that time, one in April, one in October. I also have been blessed with a 2 year old daughter and I'm almost 39. I went to my GP a couple of months ago to see if they could run some tests as it seemed to be taking a while to conceive and to my surprise she agreed. The first month she ran full hormonal blood tests, thyroid etc. these were the day 21 tests (although she said you should have them done 7 days before your period, however I found out on here they are supposed to be taken 7dpo.) They all came back ok except progesterone which came back low. She tried to brush this off and said that one low result on its own was not conclusive as it could have been done on the wrong day etc etc. I mulled this over and decided not to accept it, so I asked if she would repeat the tests. She agreed to do another 3 months worth. Month 2 came back low again, and month 3 I haven't got the results back from yet.
I asked her after the first set of results if low progesterone could have caused my 2 losses and she said she did not subscribe to that theory.
When I got my bfp this time I rang to speak to a different doctor to ask him if I could be prescribed progesterone, given my circumstances. He said he had never heard of any such thing but agreed I should be on consultant led care. I thought great, and he told me when I rang the midwife to book in I should mention it to them and they would refer me. No such luck. The woman I spoke to mentioned at the end of our conversation she wasn't even a midwife. They said if I needed consultant led care I would be assessed and referred after my booking appointment and scan, at 12 weeks 6 days. Well it could all be too frigging late by then! So i rang him back today and he said he is going to write me a referral saying I want progesterone therapy. I am not holding my breath. They seem to NOT want to give me progesterone, or any extra care whatsoever
Now I am sorry for the long waffly post. .

 

[korink26]

Aww, I totally get it Mrsmiggins! My Dr. doesn't believe really in any testing. She wouldn't test my progesterone unless I was on Clomid, and my first month of clomid at 50mg my progesterone was really low so then she upped it after that. So I know without Clomid my progesterone was low, so why wouldn't she want to look at it now? If nothing else I said in case I miscarry again, I'd like to be armed with some facts for my next pregnancy. For cripes sake, it took us a year to conceive after our loss, it's not like we get PG easy!
It's just so frustrating, especially when we're on here and see how proactive everybody else's doctors are....
I have read that other Dr's as well though don't think that progesterone alone can cause somebody to miscarry (seems contradictory to other stuff I read) and also that they don't look into the test very much because progesterone comes in waves and if it's low one day it could just be because it was inbetween waves.
Have you ever been on Clomid? I can't understand if your levels came back low why you wouldn't have at least been prescribed that?
P.S--we both had the same exact cycle! Happy 4 weeks....lets just pray our Dr's know what they're talking about.

 

[Mrs Miggins]

Hi, no no clomid. I don't know if she might have prescribed it after the 4 months worth of tests had they all come back low but I got a bfp in month 3 out of 4. I need to ring today to see if this months results are back yet as I had them taken last Thursday. It's so frustrating when like you say you read of people who have been prescribed it no problem.

 

[Feisty Fidget]

I'm sorry we all seem to have such crap doctors Mine didn't even want to consider me taking 75mg aspirin to prevent miscarriages (as advised by my midwife during our loss) as I had only had one and he would prefer to wait to see if I had a few more first

I did a lot of research and you can either self prescribe some 'natural' creams etc or you could alter your diet to include leafy greens, beans, pulses, nuts and seeds. I had to have my HCG levels checked as pregnancy was measuring a week behind and on Wednesday of this week my progesterone came back at 141!!! Most pregnancies are 20ish at this stage. I explained I was on clomid and she still didn't seem completely satisfied but from what I have read as my HCG is within normal levels the high progesterone doesn't indicate anything is wrong and I guess it could have just been a peak?

 

[Mrs Miggins]

Blimey that's a turnaround! I hope it's a good sign. Are you in the US? I am having no early appointments whatsoever, no bloods no hcg nothing until my booking appointment at 9 weeks. I got as far as my booking appt last time then miscarried a week later so I have a long way to go before I feel safe. I spoke to my doc again yesterday and all she basically said was if I miscarry again it's because something is wrong with the baby (and this months progesterone came back at 24) and said basically if I want any extra care I need to go private.

 

[Feisty Fidget]

MrsMiggins I am in the UK.

We miscarried 18 months ago and I had to really fight with my GP to get referred to a FS even though I don't seem to ovulate naturally (or if I do I have never fallen pregnant from it so possibly weak). I launched a formal complaint as my GP over-prescribed clomid and then told me there was nothing further he could do to help, I wasn't eligible for FS or further medication to induce clomid and so would have to wait another year and a half until I could see a specialist.

After my complaint we had a big meeting where he promised that when I fell pregnant I would be scanned early again. This was witnessed by a friend and the surgery took minutes of the meeting where it was clearly mentioned. When I tried to get my early scan he refused, back-tracked and said it wasn't needed.

I took the minutes along to an appointment with him and was going to state that ethics declare you can't go back on a decision if the patient wishes to proceed but before I got to mentioning that he asked about abdominal discomfort and I told him about pulsating pain in left side (I knew it was a cyst and wasn't bothered). Then he started saying it may not be a cyst and could be ectopic so needed to be scanned ASAP to rule this out. I was given an appointment the next day and felt terrible for getting an early scan under false pretences. My cousin who attended the appointment felt that he was just playing the system to get me an appointment as he examined my abdomen and declared there was no inflammation so he was almost positive there was no ectopic but just wanted to be 'safe'.

Unfortunately the scan revealed I was measuring at only just 5 weeks and I knew my dates (confirmed ovulation) so I should have been closer to 6. This is when my levels were taken to check that I hadn't had another missed miscarriage and I have to attend another scan early Monday morning to check there has been some progress.

I can't help but feel that this is Karma biting me in the backside for getting a scan I wasn't supposed to really have. I genuinely didn't want to have a scan this way, I would have been much happier waiting until 8 weeks and then either having NHS or at a pinch Private (we had our private clinic picked out). But I am seeking reassurance that I am now in the 'system' and they should keep checking me until they can confirm this is a 'viable' pregnancy ie not molar or early missed miscarriage.

Sorry for the long waffly post but couldn't fathom out how to sum it up any quicker

 

[Mrs Miggins]

Bloody hell. You have been through torture. I really hope things have progressed for you. You mustn't think that any of this is karma, you haven't done anything wrong. You have just been the victim of really crap care.

 

[LolaAnn]

Feisty Fidget I'm praying that everything went ok with your scan today. Are you in London? Your care/doctor sounds like an absolute douche (excuse language).. I'm so sorry

 

[Feisty Fidget]

Hi Lola, I am in the southwest on the coast. I only got an early scan as GP queried symptoms at my appointment and I told him I had a mild pulsating ache on left ovary on and off and I got referred for early scan for ectopic but I wish I had never been as it has caused nothing but more stress!

Monday's scan showed progress with sac and foetal pole measuring 1.6mm - I asked the sonographer how far I was and she said 5 weeks (almost two weeks behind ovulation date) I almost burst into tears as I knew this was a bad sign. Midwife told me we had a 50/50 chance as so far behind but nothing could be done to prevent miscarriage.

Spent a whole 2 days convinced baby wasn't devloping properly Luckily one of my buddies on here pointed out the foetal pole doesn't start developing until 6 weeks and further research revealed I am actually only a few days out not almost 2 weeks! I was so annoyed! I have a further scan in just under 2 weeks

 

[Mrs Miggins]

Good luck with your next scan. These doctors really are next to bloody useless when it comes to these matters.