I just started Pro-gest cream, so far 2 night doses and 2 morning doses. I have had VERY bad anxiety today. Hypoglycemia last eve and this morning. I had been doing SOOO much better lately, been doing acupuncture for insomina and anxiety. I was feeling pretty close to normal again. Yeah! Then I decided to try the Pro-gest to balance my hormones. I have not had a good experience so far. Feeling really anxious and yucky today. Sleep has been weird the past couple of nights, I am really sleepy, but sleep doesn't come easily and feel restless. Felt kind of hung over this am. Granted I have had a little extra stress with my gradma in the hospital and having a christmas party at my house tonight. I had been feeling so GOOD, but now having a crappy day. Could it be the Pro-gest crea? I'm thinking I'll just STOP taking it. Another $30 down the drain! Anyone have any feedback for me. As always, thanks for replies. You guys are lifesavers!

It sounds to me like you are over-dosing on it. It comes in a pre-measured pump. I would only use one pump per day. I have used it on occasion but normally use the prescribed compounded progesterone so maybe I'm wrong on this but it does sound like 4 a day is way too much.

Sorry, I wasn't clear I have had 4 doses TOTAL. One the night before last and last night. One yesterday morning and this morning.

What are the symptoms you're hoping will be helped by the Progest cream?

I think progesterone might need to be eased into slowly to avoid side effects ... maybe start with smaller doses at first and work your way up.

Sometimes small doses of Progest have helped me with anxiety, but other times (I'm peri, still having periods) it's like I already have enough P on board and taking even a little bit more makes me crabby and depressed, and at a "normal" dose I get diarrhea and cramps!

and then it's possible that it's another hormone you're lacking; it could take a little longer to test it out.

When I was still in peri (I'm post now), I was on BC pills and started taking pro-gest. I'm not sure why I started taking it but the combination of BC pills and the progest had me climbing out of my skin. Whenever I would be out, I couldn't get home fast enough.. it was kind of crazy since once I got home, I was able to relax or if I were at work, I was ok but the thought of having to stop and run errands was enough to put me on edge. I had to do a lot of self talk to get the errands done. It's been several years now but I still remember how horrible that was.

I stopped the BC pills and the pro-gest and went on BHRT so .. although I believe it was due to the combination of BC & Progest, it could have been the progest only.

If you aren't feeling good though, I'd stop it. Maybe try every other night... As JasmineTea has already asked.. what symptoms are your trying to help?

I've had palpitations, although not right now, insomnia, irregular periods and anxiety. Although acupuncture has seemed to help with all of these, to the point I had been feeling almost "normal", I've been reading books by Henry Lee that had conviced me that almost all who suffer any peri or even pms symptoms could greatly benefit from natural otc progesterone cream. Those in my age group (41) are probably beginning to suffer from reduced levels of progesterone and the cream could really help balance. However, today I felt such horrible anxiety, the worst I've felt in a LONG time that I think progesterone may NOT be for me. Again, all of your comments are welcome and appreciated!!!

I'm not really a fan of Dr. Lee's. I've read some of his books but I don't think each of us or even most of us benefit from supplementing with progesterone. I think I was losing estrogen first and it was when I supplemented my estrogen that I began to feel better. Your anxiety could be from progesterone. Unless you have a hormone profile it's going to be hard to know. Too much progesterone can mimic the same symptoms as too little, same with estrogen so trying to guess leads you around and around in a circle.

I believe they suggest having a hormone profile 5 days after your cycle... but you may want to ask your doctor to be sure.

Mainemom,

That's exactly what happened to me with the Progest. It made all my symptoms worse. I even tried Prometrium (pill form) and with the same results. I've heard that your body and change it into more estrogen which makes the progesterone imbalance worse. I would get the worst anxiety, insomnia, palpitations, racing heart if I took even a minimal amount.

I used Progest with great results when I first started experiencing perimenopausal symptoms but later on when I started having more problems, it had exactly the reverse reaction. It was very strange.

DianaJJ

Dianna, thank you for that response. I have read SO much about how great this stuff was supposed to be and how it can help so many things, so safe with no side effects, etc etc. I have to say I wasn't even anxious about trying it at all because I was so convinced that it was going to be a miracle! After having a day of the worst anxiety that I have hade in many months, I really think it's not for me. Maybe I'm giving up too easy, but I don't want any more days like that!

My insomnia and chest pressure/pounding pulse problems were helped by estradiol, not progesterone. Dr. Lee seems awfully invested in progesterone being the answer for everyone ... it's just not.

I have dealt with these same issues when starting progesterone cream that can last for one to two weeks. Progesterone wakes up some of the receptors and can compete for some of the same receptors that estrogen occupies. This can cause an adjustment period, but once you get past it, you will notice the benefits. For me, I start low, using it only at night and only 1/2 dose. Some women, however, just can't tolerate P at all as they experience a paradoxical response.

I experienced similiar symptoms with progesterone cream, but after a little while it got better...3-4 days I think... Apparently, I also needed an adjustment period and after that I was okay...

TJ

I think it's working well for me. I've been on it about 1 1/2 months now. But, I suppose everyone is different and has different needs. That's why it's good to work with an informed healthcare practitioner. I started with the smallest amount (1/4 tsp twice a day). Now my doctor wants me to increase it to 1/2 tsp. We'll see if anything changes.

I don't know that I would be so quick to say it's NOT working, because at this time of our lives our hormones can really be on a roller coaster ride. And, as we know, lot's of things effect our hormones including stress, our diets and even environmental factors like pollution, etc.

If you read things on the internet, which I try so hard not to do, it can really confuse the begeezus out of you.

Progesterone cause me to have anxiety also, which I had never had before. It also made my bp spike and I've never previously had bp problems.

Estradiol is what helped me get over the P effects. I used to read all Dr. Lee's books and also believed P to be the answer for me, but after 3 good tries I gave up and since then my research and listening to other's experiences has led me to conclude that P can be problematic for many women.

Do you mean that you took 2 doses in the morning and 2 doses at night or that you used it for 2 days?

I used it for 2 days

I started with progesterone cream last night. I took a full dose and tonight have only done a 1/4 tsp (half dose). This evening I began to have hot flushes on my face, not sure if that has to do with the P or not. Those of you that have done P in any form, when did you see a difference. My problems at the moment are pretty much just the heart palps and nervous/giddy/shakey all over fealing.

I had non stop bleeding with Pro-gest cream( 7 straght weeks )and when I quit it my bleeding completeley stopped within 2 days,its not for everyone

Some of the Progesterone creams, over the counter, have more progesterone than the "normal" dosage...from what I've read...which is why I started off with just a little bit to ease my body into it. That said, if your symptoms are due to a decrease in estrogen levels, then adding more progesterone will make things worse...

TJ

This is my first week on Pro-Gest. I have been taking 1/8 teaspoon every night. My anxiety seems to be worse at time but in between anxiety spells, I feel pretty calm. However I do feel like I am only about half awake all day. How long until it will balance out? I know if it is going to help, I probably need to up the dosage but don't want to when I am already half asleep.

I mentioned in my post above that P increases or causes anxiety for many women. It is also known to cause or worsen depression and has a sedating effect. How do you know you are deficient? Are you sure your estrogen levels are normal and not low, which could also explain your symptoms.

I took bioidentical progesterone cream for one cycle a few months back and had major side effects. My well-meaning OB/GYN advised me that progesterone cream was the best thing for women my age (32) who were having hormone problems and prescribed it without ever doing any blood work. It turns out that my progesterone is fine, in fact I am one of the few who are progesterone dominant and my estrogen is low. My alternative doc diagnosed this, by the way. Even the small amount of additional progesterone caused severe anxiety, muscle twitches and drawing, dizziness, panic attacks, and gave me that floaty feeling I have read some women describing. I noticed all this within a couple of days, but my GYN doc told me she had never had anyone with those side effects from the cream and that it probably was unrelated! So, I finished two week cycle and by the end felt so bad I decided I would be happy to just get back to the bad I felt before I started the stuff! I don't really know how accurate hormone testing is, but I find it very scary that doctors are giving women very powerful hormones just on a "try it and see" basis. Why is there not a better way to test a woman's chemistry and find out what she really needs????????

I can't seem to get any of my doctors to test anything for me. They just tell me I have anxiety and to take more of my antidepressant ( I am currently taking 10 mg. Lexapro). I'm too young to be in perimenopause (36), I need to learn stress management, you are perfectly healthy, yada, yada, yada. I've done everything they have suggested, eat right, exercise, counseling, AD, and I still don't feel right. I thought I would try the progesterone on my own to see if it would help. I figured it couldn't be any worse than taking more of the AD, I tried that a few months back and it turned me into a complete zombie. I am running out of places to turn to and cannot face feeling like this much longer.

sunnylou,
I would change docs, or you can order your own lab tests online, which is what I had to do. Then, with the results in hand, (assuming your levels are off) they will have to pay attention.

If your hormone levels are not off, then I would urge you to get your thyroid tested. It was definitely a factor in my anxiety, as was the low estrogen.

Did you still have regular periods with the low estrogen? I was told that as long as I was having regular periods my estrogen was okay. Did you use the saliva testing? I live in rural america so there is not a lot of choices in doctors.

My periods are starting to become irregular, but I was low E even when they were regular. It is simply not true at all that regular periods mean your E is OK. And sometimes it's a matter of too much P in relation to the E.

I do not believe saliva testing is accurate for sex hormones, and that has been proven by a few studies on PubMed. I do think it accurate for cortisol, however.

You need a serum blood test, which can be ordered online. And ideally it should be done both in the follicular and luteal phases, meaning you would have it done twice in one month.

I think because the ranges of "normal" for estradiol and progesterone are so wide, indicating that some women are normally low and some are normally high and the rest are somewhere in between, you just need to experiment and find out what works best for you. I must have been a high P person prior to peri, because I tolerate supplemental progesterone really well and have gotten some really nice effects from it. And I am documented high E, so there's not much question about that.

It's really a shame that women's hormones are not baselined at, say, age 30. Then they would know in advance and be better able to tailor hormone supplementation. I wish I had done it !

question......does progesterone cream work differently in the different phases of peri?I'm asking because when i tried it before in past years,i didn't have good results with it at all and didn't stay on it....but now that i'm skipping periods,could it have a different affect?

just bumping this up hoping for a reply....

anyone????

Now that you are skipping periods means that you are further into peri and your estrogen is getting lower. Adding P to that is a recipe for feeling awful, as many of us can attest to. Of course, as always, everyone is different so you could give it a try and see how you feel.

so if i felt awful using progesterone before,i'd probably feel even worse trying it now?

I can't say with absolute certainty, but that would be my best guess.

I tried it in the distant past and found it had no affect at all.......I hoped it would but it was just wishful thinking on my part. Others may have different experiences. Not sure my reply will help much! Have a nice day..... hugs Antique X

Hi All,

I used Progest when my periods were very heavy and it help very much. It regulated my periods and lessened the flow. Later when I had more anxiety symptoms and I started skipping periods, I tried it again and it only made thing MUCH worse! I guess different things work at different times

DianaJJ