Progest-E supplementation & menstrual cycle.

lindsay

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I'm new to the Ray Peat forum, although I've been reading his work now for the past 4 months and am a regular follower on Peatarian.com. Anyhow, I stumbled upon Peat's work just after having surgery to have a large ovarian tumor removed. My left ovary was also removed and my right ovary showed signs of scar tissue and inflammation. So, I started changing my diet (being a former vegetarian, low-carber and occasional vegan) and started supplementing Progest-e.

I experience nothing when I apply progest-e. No anesthetic feeling or well-being, anxiety, etc. I am assuming I am very estrogen dominant, based on my former diet and ovarian issues, so I've been supplementing daily, but usually just once per day in one semi-large dose.

The problem I'm having is that I haven't had a period since March (had two periods following the surgery and then nothing). I've gained back about 10 or 15 lbs. that I lost pre-surgery while experiencing digestive troubles from the tumor, and I've tried to add a lot of dairy, eggs, gelatin, protein, etc., but I'm not getting periods and it started just after I started supplementation with Progest-e. I've taken 4 pregnancy tests recently to double check and all were negative. I've had irregular periods in the past, but this seems strange to me considering I'm eating well, have gained a good amount of muscle and my temperatures are back in the 98 degree range.

Any suggestions for supplementing better? I'm also taking Cytomel - one tablet per day now. I'm nervous about my periods that I'm getting another cyst/tumor and want to stay on top of it.
 

Rayser

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Sorry for the Short answer, I am writing from an iPad and the corrections into weird German words are unbearable. Sorry for the capital letters where none are required.

You cannot get your period if you use progesterone every Day. Menstruation is triggered by a sudden drop in progesterone.
Its Not a problem so far - I would have recommended to use a Lot of progest e without interuptions for a while. If you wish to Return to your normal cycle, stop using the progest e. Wait for your Menstruation and Start again on Day 14 until Day 28. Then stop and you will have your period. If you still feel any Pain or negative symptoms from surgery, use a large amount of progesterone until you feel really well before you Return to your cycle. You haven't done anything wrong! Dont worry.
Yes, Estrogen causes cysts and you were Most likely very estrogen dominant. So i would continue supplementing progest e.
That was really Smart and I suppose you will never have any Problems with cysts (or Cancers for that matter) again.
For more details read Katharina Dalton "Once A Month" and Ray Peat "From PMS to Menopause".
 

Dan W

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Hi Lindsay, welcome to the forum. Rayser has good advice as usual; progesterone is often intentionally used to stop menstruation.

On an unrelated note, are you spreading the cytomel tablet throughout the day?
 
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lindsay

lindsay

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Thank you both for your answers/input! I feel much better knowing that this is normal when supplementing progesterone - the nutritionist I worked with said she didn't think it was normal, so I got a bit concerned. And thank you Rayser for the suggestions!

Dan - I am taking the cytomel in the morning and evening (1/2 tablet after each meal). Should I be breaking it up further? I've thought about adding cynoplus into the mix, but don't want to overdue it for now.

Thanks again!
 

Kelly

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Rayser said:
Sorry for the Short answer, I am writing from an iPad and the corrections into weird German words are unbearable. Sorry for the capital letters where none are required.

You cannot get your period if you use progesterone every Day. Menstruation is triggered by a sudden drop in progesterone.
Its Not a problem so far - I would have recommended to use a Lot of progest e without interuptions for a while. If you wish to Return to your normal cycle, stop using the progest e. Wait for your Menstruation and Start again on Day 14 until Day 28. Then stop and you will have your period. If you still feel any Pain or negative symptoms from surgery, use a large amount of progesterone until you feel really well before you Return to your cycle. You haven't done anything wrong! Dont worry.
Yes, Estrogen causes cysts and you were Most likely very estrogen dominant. So i would continue supplementing progest e.
That was really Smart and I suppose you will never have any Problems with cysts (or Cancers for that matter) again.
For more details read Katharina Dalton "Once A Month" and Ray Peat "From PMS to Menopause".

Rayser - I use large amounts of progest-e daily. I'm guessing 200-400 mg. I have for 3 months now. 3 months before that I was using much smaller doses and not for the first half of my cycle. I am still regular with my cycle. What do you make of that? It shocks me.
 

Rayser

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I don't think that's shocking, Kelly. I have a friend who told me the same thing. She was using one bottle of progest-e a week for a year. For the first half year her cycle didn't change though she was using progesterone every day and the amount was approximately the same every day. I think it has to do with the amount of protein you eat and how your thyroid gland works. If you don't get enough protein and don't have a fairly well working thyroid gland the progesterone cannot be used appropriately.It should be easy to find the dosage you would need to counter estrogen. When you get your menstruation, increase the dosage of progest-e until you stop bleeding.
I think it can be therapeutically necessary and healing to use a huge amount of progest-e every day and suppress the cycle for a while. But in the long run I think it's smart to use a moderate dosage every day. It will increase your own progesterone production and your hormonal cycle will not be disturbed.
 

Rayser

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lindsay said:
Thank you both for your answers/input! I feel much better knowing that this is normal when supplementing progesterone - the nutritionist I worked with said she didn't think it was normal, so I got a bit concerned. And thank you Rayser for the suggestions!

I am curious - what did your nutritionist suggest you do about this considered "abnormal" situation?

lindsay said:
Dan - I am taking the cytomel in the morning and evening (1/2 tablet after each meal). Should I be breaking it up further? I've thought about adding cynoplus into the mix, but don't want to overdue it for now.

I know you didn't ask me but when it comes to T3 Ray Peat's suggestion makes all the difference in the world. I used to use cytomel 3 to 4 times a day and had very little to no effect. Then I found many quotes by Ray Peat saying that he always suggests using T3 constantly in small amounts. I now use very little T3 every hour and monitor my pulse and temp constantly (I am afraid this is close to compulsive behavior really) and notice that the tiny amounts raise my temperature and my pulse when the really large amounts of the very same substance did nothing for me. I suggest you try it. Sit down and relax for few minutes before you measure your temp under the tongue and the pulse (not under the tongue obviously), use a tiny part of the cytomel (can't say anything about the quality of the one you're using of course) and wait for about 10 minutes before you measure again. I notice the effect after 2 minutes now!
 

Dan W

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Lindsay, sorry I missed your question. Fortunately Rayser has such a good answer that I'll just claim it's exactly what I would've said.
 
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lindsay

lindsay

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[tab=30][highlight=#ff8000]"I am curious - what did your nutritionist suggest you do about this considered "abnormal" situation?"[/highlight]

Rayser - She hasn't made any recommendation yet, but she's how I discovered Ray Peat, and she agreed that taking Progest-E might be beneficial..... Do you suggest I continue to take Progest-e? I get nervous not having had a period because I don't want any more ovarian tumors. Then again, my gynecologist said my remaining ovary was very inflamed and had scar tissue, so perhaps my system needs the extra boost in hormones to keep me in check? I stopped taking it earlier this week so that I might get a period, but I've noticed the difference in my emotional stability. Little things started to get to me and make me upset as soon as I stopped my supplement. I've not been using much actually - still on my first bottle after 3 months times, but I do notice a huge difference, along with dietary changes like adding more dairy and eggs (which the nutritionist said would be good ways to boost progesterone production). I'm not sure what course I should now take and I don't want to go to my gynecologist and have him freak out when he finds out I've been "self" treating myself with hormones ;)

Also, thank you for the thyroid recommendation. I'm going to give it a whirl!
 

Rayser

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Lindsay, I know of several women who have been using large amounts of progest-e-complex every day for years. Most of them got the recommendation from Ray Peat himself (like me). It cured them of several conditions. PMS, PCOS, infertility, endometriosis, myoma, cysts, osteoporosis, depression, migraines, heavy bleeding, no bleeding, scar tissue after surgery or other tissue trauma ... There are no negative effects from using progesterone. Ray Peat says there is the possibility of overdosing which would make you euphoric or tired. 19 women I know very well are using progest-e-complex, many of them on occasion a bottle in one to three days and not one of them ever felt tired or euphoric. You do feel mentally stable, not teary or insecure or helpless. If you feel like that when you use less, it's a sign you should use more. After I while you find out for yourself how much you need to be comfortable and that's usually a sign that you have the right dosage to repair inner damage as well.
I know it can be scary to "use hormones". The name alone has a bad reputation because of estrogen's and insulin's terrible effects. But as far as I can tell after four years of using progest-e-complex and recommending it to others: There are no negative effects. I doubt I would say that about any other supplement or drug. If you have any questions, you can always ask.
 

ilovethesea

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Rayser said:
I don't think that's shocking, Kelly. I have a friend who told me the same thing. She was using one bottle of progest-e a week for a year. For the first half year her cycle didn't change though she was using progesterone every day and the amount was approximately the same every day. I think it has to do with the amount of protein you eat and how your thyroid gland works. If you don't get enough protein and don't have a fairly well working thyroid gland the progesterone cannot be used appropriately.It should be easy to find the dosage you would need to counter estrogen. When you get your menstruation, increase the dosage of progest-e until you stop bleeding.
I think it can be therapeutically necessary and healing to use a huge amount of progest-e every day and suppress the cycle for a while. But in the long run I think it's smart to use a moderate dosage every day. It will increase your own progesterone production and your hormonal cycle will not be disturbed.

Thanks, this is very interesting and leads me to believe I'm definitely not taking enough. I have had ovarian cysts before (doctors said they didn't need to be treated) and also cysts on my thyroid. I've been taking Progest-E since Feb or March but still menstruating. If anything I think it shortened my cycle by a day... usually I am 28 days like clockwork but the past few times it's been 27. I have no idea how many drops I take - I basically just draw a line across my bottom lip before I go to bed, and rub it into my lips and bit on my tongue. Probably I should double it and see if I get my period.

I am coming out of years of hypothyroidism and still struggle to get enough protein so those are other factors. I started 30 mg daily of pregnenolone but maybe that's not enough either.
 
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lindsay

lindsay

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I e-mailed Dr. Peat yesterday and he gave me some suggestions to get my cycle going while supplementing Progest-E and also asked if I ate shellfish regularly because the selenium is necessary for full thyroid function. Anyhow, he also asked if I had had my FSH, LH and TSH measured recently - I haven't, but I just made a physicians appt. for next week and am going to attempt to get my doctor to order the hormone tests to see where I am at. Any others I should request? I've maxed my insurance deductible for the year, so I'm hoping they will approve the blood work and my doctor will not get angry at me for trying to treat myself ;)
 

Dan W

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lindsay said:
Any others I should request? I've maxed my insurance deductible for the year, so I'm hoping they will approve the blood work and my doctor will not get angry at me for trying to treat myself ;)

It'd be hard for a doctor to turn down a blood-chemistry/CBC if you haven't done that yet. And it never hurts to know your vitamin D. Maybe even prolactin and whole blood serotonin if you want to get greedy :lol:
 

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