Help, I live in Portugal and cannot source Nature Throid anywhere here or on line.
I seem to be close to tears most of the time and cannot understand myself. I am also on Bio-idential HRT but again because I cannot get back to the UK I will shortly be out of these drugs too! I am falling apart. Help.
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db16
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Do you have a prescription for your Naturethroid? As for the HRT, natural progesterone cream is available without a prescription. It can help to sensitize your cells to the estrogen your body is always making, just not in quantities perhaps that will trigger a period.
Also.. forgot that RLC Labs, the makers of Naturethroid, shut down their plants a while back to upgrade the facilities. They are now back to full production but they have acknowledged that it make take a few months for supplies to be plentiful again. So, that may be why you are having problems with sourcing now. Maybe change NDT brands?
Thanks for that help Pheonix. RLC Labs inform me that they do not ship outside the USA (I iive in Spain). I do not have a prescription and even if I did, it couldn't be applied here. I guess I will have to resort back to my standby Thyroxine for now. I'll try sourcing the Progestrone cream though, thanks. I am 66 yrs old and maybe I should just give up on HRT altogether! Thanks all the same though.
A good book and something that will give you guidance and confidence in self-treating with natural progesterone cream is 'What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopause' by Dr. John Lee. I think it is available on Amazon. When I started using natural progesterone cream, I was so impressed (especially with my insomnia relief (never suffered with that before) that I used to hand out copies of the book and tubes of the cream to my female relatives and close friends of 'a certain age'. Dr. Lee was the pioneer of natural progesterone supplementation and his book(s) have stood the test of time. I have used the cream for almost 20 yrs now. One thing time and experience have taught users is that instead of the 20 mg Dr. Lee suggested, 10 mgs seems to suit most of us better. As always, do your due diligence and research, my friend.
db16... yes... I am in the states so HRT over the counter is pretty available here (for now... who knows how long that will last?) but that is not the case in the UK it seems. Here is a brand that has been around for a long time with an excellent reputation.
It is only for the progesterone cream but many find that that is all they need since the natural progesterone cream resensitizes their cells to their other hormones.. and, of course, it buffers their natural production of estrogen. By the way, some find that they experience estrogen dominance for a few weeks or months after they start using the progesterone cream because of this resensitizing effect. It does pass and things do settle down. Not all women will experience this so take heart. Neither I nor my sis or my nieces experienced this and you very likely will not experience it either but just a heads up not to be alarmed if this happens to you.
ps. sleep relief may be the first symptom that you will find relieved by the progesterone cream. If memory serves, I experienced that relief within a few weeks of using the cream. If you are NOT in menopause, count the first day of your period as day one. Count 10 - 12 days then start applying the natural progesterone cream, about 10 mgs (1/2 dose for most applications) at bedtime for 10 - 14 days, alternating application sites in order to avoid saturating any one site, then stop. Your period should start within a few days. If you are in full blown menopause (no periods) just pick out any two week period (I apply from the first to the fifteenth of the month) and apply. Some in menopause, apply the cream for a full 3 weeks each month, abstaining for a week out of the month in order to maintain sensitivity to the progesterone cream. Any questions, just holler.
This makes me wonder if there is a difference between progesterone cream and pills...? I have been on Utrogestan 200 mg 10 days per month for the past six years but, since the first signs of (peri-)menopause appeared about four months ago, I have not found it very effective at preventing hot flushes and night sweats...which is why I have been considering switching to a natural progesterone cream which also has the advantage of being available without a prescription. I'd really like something to help me with insomnia and restless sleep (nowadays, I wake up more exhausted than when I went to bed...).
anna... there is a difference but some do just fine on the pills. The main problem with the pills is they have to be prescribed in very large doses in order to survive their trip thru the liver and the gut. They say only 10% or so of the progesterone in the pills survive the 'trip'.
If you decide to try the cream, here is a well known, reputable brand to try. Use it the way you use the pills (ie: 10 days out of the month). Be sure to alternate application sites on the body in order to avoid saturating any one spot. 10 mgs (usually 1/2 of the dosage on the progesterone cream applicators) should be enough for you. I like to apply at nite since, once it really takes effect, it makes me sleepy (deliciously wonderful...lol).
Hello Phoenix23002, just to update you, I have ordered the progesterone cream from the website you mentioned, as I have now completely run out of Bio ID HRT> I still can't obtain Natural Throid from anywhere. I had an appointment with an endo doctor here and she was no help other than the normal thyroxine prescription which she will monitor. It's like a third world wilderness here now that I moved to Portugal. They don't seem to have any system for the menopause. I don't like self medicating as I really don't understand it but I'm going to crash and burn if I don't get a grip!! This forum shows me that I really don't understand my body and it puts me to shame. I will let you know how I get on. Thanks for your help.
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