Bioidentical progesterone cream ??

[gophers]

Have been working on low progesterone levels for a few years now and don't seem to be making much of a difference at least in regards to lab tests. Began with the Dr. Lee over the counter cream, then my dr. prescribed the compounding pharmacy higher dose. Was taking like 50mg -100mg a day on days 10-20 of my cycle. Has improved pms symptoms and much better cycles..a lot less bleeding. But tests still show quite low levels of progesterone. Dr. said to experiment and find out how much is right for me. But I read in some places not to take that much. Do some people need much higher doses becuz they don't absorb it as well or something? Any thoughts?

[phoenix23002]

Natural progesterone production pretty much ceases for most women in their late forties to mid-fifties. So it is good to supplement and the otc cream makes it convenient. Most of us benefit from supplementing low dose natural progesterone. The improvement you have experienced with taking progesterone shows that it is having an effect on you. It amazes me how doctors seem to think that if a little progesterone is good then a whole bunch is better. We are only trying to duplicate our natural cycle which would be using the cream on days 10 thru 12 - 14 at a dose of 10 - 20 mgs per day. Larger doses can be beneficial on a short term basis when used to address specific conditions such as to control flooding, for instance.

Even in small doses, natural progesterone can strengthen our bones (per Dr. John Lee), sensitize our cell receptors to all our other hormones such as melatonin which restores/improves our sleep etc. Some women even report an improvement in allergy symptoms and migraine headache relief. So..I wouldn't be so hung up on your levels of progesterone. Just continue to use the natural progesterone cream in small doses and note your symptom relief. Maybe keep a simple log of dosing and how you feel each day? Also, supposedly, saliva testing for progesterone is more accurate than blood testing, per Dr. Lee. Maybe try testing saliva?

[Serendipitious in reply to phoenix23002]

Is it safe for a lady in her late 60s to supplement with bioidentical hormones such as progesterone if she didn't take them during menopause?

My mum feels her skin has aged more quicker than it should have done. She's also had polyps which have to be removed every couple of years. Thanks.

[phoenix23002 in reply to Serendipitious]

Hi, Serendipitious.... I am not a medical professional so I can't address the safety or not of someone using natural progesterone cream supplement. I can tell you this. Your mother's age has little or nothing to do with the safety of using progesterone.

I can only share my experience. I have been using approx. 10 mgs of natural progesterone cream for 10 days to two weeks each month since the mid-nineties. I began to have horrible moodiness and insomnia, things I had never experienced in my life back then. After a few month on progesterone cream, everything resolved and I have used it ever since and I will be 75 yrs young in June.

The only prescription medication that I take is thyroid (WP). I do have the occasional aches and pains but have very little arthritis and can do most anything I want to do. My skin is 75 yr old skin..lol.. I will never be 40 again and that's okay. I appreciate my relative healthiness. It sure beats the alternative.

You will end up probably knowing more than your OB/GYN or any other doctor if you read the book "What Yor Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopause" by Dr. John Lee. He was the pioneer doctor who first started prescribing natural progesterone and observing how beneficial it seemed to be to most women. There is a very small percentage of women who don't seem to get on with progesterone for some reason but thankfully, they are few and far between. Do observe your mother's reaction to the progesterone and stick with the 10 mgs for 10 - 14 days of the month. The nice thing about being past menopause is that your mother can pick out any two week period of each month and apply the cream. Then stop using it for two weeks. I now always choose to apply the cream from the 1st to the 15th each month.

The book should be available on Amazon and I encourage every woman to read it. I used to buy the book and a tube of the ceam in quantity and hand them out to female friends, family and co-workers.

I am in the US but here is a link to a well known, trusted brand of natural progesterone cream. I would stick with the 'unflavored' product. This is supposed to be in the UK or available to the UK market. Others may be able to help you with other good UK brands of natural progesterone cream if you aren't comfortable with this brand. Do get the book... knowledge is power.

nhmpersonal-imports.net/aca...

[Serendipitious in reply to phoenix23002]

I have already read one of Dr Lowe's other books, Hormones Balance Made Simple and I plan to read the other two for my personal knowledge at some point.

I'm currently undergoing some basic blood tests myself for progesterone, FSH, oestrogen and testosterone next week. My functional doctor suspects I have oestrogen dominance. It's fairly obvious and I probably don't have enough progesterone. I'm possibly low on testosterone. I had DHEA tested via saliva and blood and both were low. I've been looking at lots of different progesterone creams.

phoenix23002 thank you very much for sharing your experience. I really appreciate it. Wishing you good health.

[gophers in reply to phoenix23002]

Gr8..thx so much...very helpful. God bless!

[milkwoman]

Some of us need more progesterone than others. I was on 50mg compounded cream daily and that seemed to work but only just okay - and stopped working when I was in full menopause. Turns out I needed way more than the cream was providing and oral is the only way to insure that I get it. With cream there is no way to know how much your body is actually using. It's only a small percentage of the dosage in the cream.

I now take 200mg/day oral progesterone and 20mg/day cream (with added testosterone) - along with estrogen in a twice weekly patch form. I seem to metabolize progesterone very quickly and need enough daily to balance out all the other hormones.

I started off taking the 200mg oral only for only the first 12 days of the month, but I would have bleed through incidents that I did not want. That since has stopped with the daily progesterone dosage. Occasionally I may get spotting and when I do, I simply take 400mg progesterone that day and it nips it right in the bud. It's all about balance.

How's your sleep? My sleep pattern has never been better while on daily oral progesterone. I'm also hypothyroid, and having my sex hormones properly balanced has helped the efficacy of my levothyroxine intake for sure.

[gophers in reply to milkwoman]

Sleep is usually ok. Having some changes right now as I have started on low dose naltrexone and slowly working up to right dose for me. Assuming that will level out when I get there.

Appreciate the insight. Thank you!

[samaja]

Absorption can certainly be a problem and for me the cream stopped working properly after a couple of months so now I am on lozenges (compunded with Biest) and they work much better. Being menopausal I take them every day together with testosterone. It all seems to be very individual and I think experimenting is the way to go for you too.

[gophers in reply to samaja]

Thank you so much!