I've been continuing to research possible causes of my symptoms and decided to try this next. Apparently low progesterone can cause hypothyroid symptoms, depression, heavy periods, and various other symptoms I've encountered. I read something Sunflower said here about how many mercury-toxic women are estrogen dominant. I've got a natural progesterone cream on order but it's going to take a while to come, so I was able to get some wild yam cream (7%) from Holland and Barratt to tide me over -- thought I'd see if it helped at all.

I used some yesterday afternoon and felt very slightly drunk for a little while, no other apparent effects. Used some more at about 7 p.m. last night and it intensified my evening drowsiness -- I couldn't keep awake. Had some mild heart pounding. Woke up at 1:30 a.m. and woke up off and on the rest of the night, definite sleep problems. I'm OK this morning though. Maybe I need to go easy on the cream; and if I use it at night, make sure it's immediately before bed.

I've read stories from some women who tried progesterone and felt awful. Some of them were taking a synthetic version from their doctor I think; maybe others didn't actually need it in the first place. Others have sung its praises. As far as I'm concerned, I've always been on my own with this and experimentation is the name of the game, so why not try. I asked at my GP's for my female hormones to be tested a couple of years ago and was told they don't do it unless they suspect cancer. (???) I ordered a saliva test kit from a mail-order Uk company but it's been a week and there's no sign of the kit. Doesn't exactly inspire me with confidence to actually pay them to carry out the tests. Then there's Dr. Peatfield, who I've been waiting weeks to see, and will probably only be able to have a one-off consultation with. It's frustrating to just have to figure most of it out for myself -- it shouldn't have to be that way.

Anyway, back to the subject. If anyone would like to share their experiences with progesterone cream I'd be interested to hear.

I put some cream on this morning and . . . whack. LOL I'm going to have to limit the use of this stuff to just before bed. Apparently this is a common effect. Great if you have insomnia, not so great if you're already too tired!

Hi Linda Lou,
I've been using the "Naturone"natural progesterone since last year (may 07)
I remember the first while Iwas tranquillised by it too! And thought it was too heavy and nearly gave up on it but it just took a few months to settle into things.
Ifind it just great now,I actually take some with me and use it is I'm feeling stressed anxious,it works very quickly.
The neck is a great spot for this kind of use, and I find it so soothing.I also put a little bit on my face,or inside my wrists.
I don't have it with me right now but I'll post up the ingredients of the cream.
I use it from day 13 till day 28 of my cycle,starting with 2ml &
increasing to 4 ml by end of cycle...

I think it's great stuff.

Linda, did you have your DHEA and other Hormone levels checked? Hormone imbalance can cause depression.

DHEA is often low in mercury toxic people. It is a precursor of sex hormones.

You can raise DHEA by restoring magnesium levels, detoxing mercury or supplementation...

Quackwatch hates it. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

http://www.quackwatch.com/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/dhea.html

pregnenolone is the mother hormone , dhea is then made from this and branches out to about 150 other hormones which include cortisol, progesternone ,estrogen and testoterone , pregnenolone is made from cholesterol , cutler recommends supplimentation of either dhea or pregnenolone ,

also dhea levels drop after the age of 25 ,and by the time most people reach the age of 60 the dhea levels are almost undetectable in the blood

the secret is to only suppliment what you are missing ,many online adds say to use 50-150 mg daily , that is way too much , your body only makes 17-20 mg of dhea daily when you are 25 , so most people only need to suppliment that much daily ,anymore than that can cause health problems

How do you supplement pregnenolone? I've read a lot about progesterone and I know that this also is used to produce cortisol. It sounded like a good idea. And the symptoms I have could be indicative of low levels.

The last blood test I had simply says, "gender hormones within reference ranges." That was a year ago. It doesn't say what was tested or what the figures were, and it was just a one-off blood sample.

I haven't officially had my hormones tested. For a long time I had no idea how to look into what my problem could be, no doctor to help, and very little money. It's ony now that I feel better able to try to sort this out.

I wish I knew what was behind the imbalance as well. Mercury is the only culprit I can see, but I would have thought I'd be seeing some improvements there by now, it's been 8 months and I only had my amalgams for 3 years.

The Chinese doctor I saw could probably have helped me, he said he was working to balance my hormones, but I've chosen to take the supplement route instead. Cheaper, if nothing else, and I'm hoping Dr. Peatfield can help.

Sunflower, can I ask you a few questions? Did you end up taking the progesterone at night before bed, to deal with the drowsiness? I've been feeling sleepy all day. Also, did you start with high levels and work your way down to the amount you are taking? It's quite a small amount. What benefits have you seen in your symptom profile since you've been taking it?

Linda

I got my GP to test my hormone levels as part of the various blood tests i asked him for to prepare for chelation.

Like I said in the OP, when I asked a few years ago, they told me they don't test hormones like estrogen unless cancer is suspected. Maybe they'd tell me something else now, I'm not sure. Has anyone else had their NHS GP test their sex hormones?

I'm also not sure now whether I should be taking pregnenolone or progesterone. And/or DHEA.

Lindalou, there is some good info on this in the book, "Adrenal Fatigue, the 21st Century". But I really suggest you find someone to help you with these things instead of purchasing and trying them out on your self. The saliva test includes measuring your cortisol, DHEA, thyroid, testosterone and others and will help the ND or MD that you have determine if and what you need. If you "Google" DHEA, Pregnenolone and Progesterone, you will see that there are side effects and one must be careful when taking them, sometimes only for a short amount and that they work in tandem with thyroid. I would be asking Dr. Peatfield his thoughts when you see him and if he can't help you, ask him who can.

Right now I am in the process of doing what you are talking about and mercury has a role to play in it and its not as easy as people want you to think when we've got other things going on.

Here's the link to the center I'm going to and they have lots of good info on there about hormones, thyroid, adrenal etc.

www.hormoneandlongevitycenter.com

Hi Glancina, I've actually got the book you mentioned, though I haven't yet read it page-to-page. I tried some of the tests it mentions, e.g. pupil dilation when shining a light to the side of the eye, and scraping across the stomach. Negative. But I've responded to liquorice extract and a glandular supplement, and I know the symptoms of adrenal problems well enough to know that they do arise. Unfortunately they've really only been problematic since I came off the antidepressant 2 years ago. That damn med caused me a lot of trouble.

I attempted to get hormones tested via a saliva test, hoping the results would be in for my appointment with Dr. Peatfield, but the lab haven't even sent me the kit yet and I don't think I'll be using them. He'll probably know better than me which tests to order and from where so I'll find out what he says. I think he works along similar lines to the clinic you linked me to, those are the sorts of things he specialises in as well.

I've just been feeling so awful that I wanted to try to do something while I've been waiting. It won't all magically get better after I see the doctor -- I will probably have to arrange tests, wait for results, etc. I thought my symptoms chimed well enough with low progesterone that it would be worth a try. If it means I may not have to endure another very heavy period while trying to be at work, and other symptoms possibly improving, then it's worth it to me. I've been Googling pregnenolone and DHEA all evening and while I'm open to what the doctor says, and to tests, I think for now I may as well stick with this wild yam stuff. I think I may benefit from specifically boosting progesterone.

I wish I'd known to have all these things tested a long time ago. You guys seem to be savvier than me with the whole mercury business. Not having much money, I had no idea which tests to get and I couldn't afford lots of different ones. Well, live and learn I guess.

pregnenalone can be supplmented in the form of capsules ,the one that I have found was 30 mg capsules ,but the progesterone cream may be your best bet for now ,often is all it takes to balance the hormones to feel better , my wife used 1/4 teaspoon in the morning rubbed behind her neck , a word of caution with dhea or pregnenalone : women with any history of breast or cervical cancer in there family should be very carefull as they will convert to estrogen and testosterone very easily

hi linda, i started using serenity progesterone cream a while back, im on my third month. i am going slowly because at first it made me even more moody and irritable so i really only put on a tiny amount to build up. im on the normal dose now and this month havnt felt moody and my boobs werent quite so sore so its working. I havnt got that fearful feeling much now so im pretty sure my hormones are way out and that is my problem. my periods are only 1 day, every 21 days, so im sure im going through the menopause, last year my period was every 28 days for 6 days and very heavy. i use my cream on the 10th day of my cycle until my period, even young girls can use it. it doesnt make me sleep, i wish it did. i think its well worth a go. i had all the symptoms of estrogen dominance so i didnt bother to get tested, in the end i spent the money on the cream and very glad i did so. I have read lots of books on the subject just lately and they all recommend progesterone cream.

Lindlou:

Hormones are tricky stuff...just as Dawn said, going slowly helps, it also helps alot to get tested to see where you are. Maybe you are just a wee tad adrenal fatigued from detoxing which can definitely happen. This is why I posted on James' thread "Re: Crucial Relief for Candida, Detox Symptoms and other Disease" that it is SO important to detox SLOWLY. Do one thing at a time, you have a much better chance of recovering based on watching everyone for over a year now on this and Andy's forum. You can really mess yourself up if you over do things and mess with your system. Everything is connected together, they work TOGETHER, you have to remember that when you are treating yourself.

Wow, thanks everyone. I'm pretty sure that the chelation is indeed straining my adrenals. Last time I took a break from it I felt a lot better. The problem there is that I become non-functional in the evenings because I get so sleepy. It isn't as bad when I'm chelating. I'm a teacher and sometimes I have to take my work home; it's very hard when I can't do it after my daughter is in bed. Still, maybe I ought to try taking a break anyway, before I strain something to breaking point.

Glad to hear the cream is helping Dawn. I read that symptoms can get worse for a start because the progesterone causes the estrogen receptors to wake up. I'm keeping fingers crossed. Already, sleep last night was better than the night before, so I'm hoping my body will adjust.

I've been talking elsewhere with people who "don't know" about alt med (i.e. whether they want to "trust" it), or who say that they don't think they could do what I'm doing, e.g. not eat junk food. Isn't it sad? It seems like most people have to get really, really ill before they discover what we know and find the discipline to put it into practice. I can't imagine living any other way now.

Hi Linda
I started using progesterone cream a while back and stopped because i did not see improvement. That was when I was so sick. Recently I tried it again because I believe I am right at menopause and this time has really helped me. Ihave also been doing the temp chart and read so much about it I decided to give it a try again. It seems like it has helped with my temp also. I also started taking Dong Quai and ashwaganda so they could have helped also. Anyways I started out slow on the cream and I have stayed with that same amount and seems to make me feel better.
Rachel

This is the cream that I use
www.naturone.com

Linda Lou,
I was just reading over this thread & this is the first time I noticed these questions for me.
I started off with about 1 ml a day and worked up from there.
I took half dosage first thing in the morning and half just before bed.
4mls in total, now,it's recommended to use 1 tub per month.
The drowsiness,heavy feeling only lasted the first few days for me,but was intense,I almost did not continue with the cream but I'm now glad that I did!
The first few days I felt so relaxed ,like I was stoned,I don't like that kind of feeling,like you said,great for bedtime,but not so much when you're trying to get things done.

Now, it does not effect me in that way,and yet it does relax me in a pleasant way,it's especially nice after a bath,before
getting into bed.
with a cup of hot camomile tea.Lovely.

As for symptoms, my PMS which was way out of hand has been diminished to a couple of hours of irritability,exactly one week before my period arrives.
Before using the cream I experienced week long episodes of PMT with anger,bloating,irritability,excessive hunger,etc.
Some women use it to regulate their cycles but my cycle was always 28 days and now it seems to be 29 or 30 days??
anyhow that's regular enough for me!So Glad that the pmt much better.
So I find the cream has helped a huge amount, but like I mentioned before I nearly gave up but then I noticed a huge
positive change.