I think alot of my problems came from P cream converting into too much cortisol. I have had high cortisol in the past and know the feelings well having intense anxiety, panic, horrible sickening thoughts, night terrors, blurry vision, ravenous with hunger and excessive thirst, bloating in the belly with overall weight gain...it's horrific. I am wondering if the side effects weren't so much P cream but the conversion to cortisol.

Has anyone else been able to identify when their cortisol levels are too high with what kind of symptoms? The mental is the worst for me but when I've used measures to decrease cortisol i.e. relora, phosphatdyl serine (sp) I will get trouble breathing, very achy, in alot of pain even though the mental stress dies down some physically I also feel ill in a different way.

Does cortisol fluctuate daily too possibly causing these panic/anxiety issues and is there a way to address the adrenals to keep cortisol balanced without necessarily reducing or increasing it, just balancing it somehow if it's fluctuating? Ativan is my only life saver at this point but I'd like to even it out other measures that really will address it.

I was wondering something sorta in the same category. In 2007 doctor prescribe me a medium dose of prempro a hrt. I was getting periods and still am they might be irregular at times but still put me on these hormones .Well let me tell you why i went and seen gyno i was having depression and anxiety,so he automacticallys puts me on these stupids hormones and after a month i literally thought i was gonna lose my mind i stuck to them thinking it was just peri kicking in but let me tell youi had crazy thoughts, intense anxiety depression you name it. I gradually weaned myself off of them after 8 month and went on a Ad. Now i am feeling almost my old self. So i am wondering was it the progestrone in the hrt making me feel crazy? Could of been . thats a good question. I hope you find the answers your looking for i bet it could of been the progesterone cream. Hugs Terry

Hi there, Something similiar happened to me. When I started progesterone(too high a dose) it actually helped my anxiety but caused blurry vision, bloating, irregular bleeding and when I started lowering it my insulin or cortisol(not sure which) went crazy, I eventually went off and had such fibromyalgia pain that it was difficult to turn a page in a book, much less walk. It also caused dizziness, nausea at time, palpitations, and eating --especially any simple sugars---would throw me in to a panic attack. It took me a good three months to get back to some normalcy. I believe it also threw off my thyroid. I'm not dizzy anymore and my periods are going back to normal every three or so weeks. OH, I forgot, it caused insomnia soooo bad. I'm wondering if in taking the progesterone it screws up the natural flow of our own estrogen. It's all been very confusing.

Hi Shar14
I just read your post and it mirrors how I have been feeling with regards to progesterone converting to cortisol. I have had many horrible symptoms including heart palps, adrenaline rush, panic attacks, ocd- persistent unwanted thoughts, nightmares, among others. I would really like to chat with you but I couldn't find a way to contact you directly. Maybe we could find a way to communicate and share information.
Elaine

Shar,

Have you had an Adrenal Stress Index to find out what your cortisol levels are doing? I took porogesterine cream to increase my cortisol levels because mine were very low.... Have you had your thyroid checked? Perimenopause can throw all the other hormnes out of balance -

Do you ever listen to Vliet? I listen to her blog talk radio (she's really good) - She has one about adrenal problems which you might find interesting....just google 'her place' and the link should come up in your search. Try not to despair-- This can be a hard and long road.... but you'll get through it...


(((many hugs))) I know you've been having a hard time...