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Help, severe hair loss after starting progesterone

by Amy

I am a 38 year old who began all natural progesterone cream approximately 6 weeks ago and almost immediately startded losing my hair. It has helped with decreasing spotting before my periods but that has been all.

I have read that it takes time and I increased the progesterone as well as added a B-12 and zinc supplement. I have read on one website that progesterone cream is highly fat soluble and within weeks or months can saturate the fat tissue with hormones and it will stop working or symptoms will worsen... one doctor recommended applying the cream to the mucous epithelial membranes that line the vagina. This apparantly has the hormone enter the same pelvic plexus of veins that your ovaries normally empty into. This same doctor also suggests (because progesterone is normally cyclical) to change the concentration....applying 14 days before expected mensus and stopping a day or two before mensus (starting on day 12 and stopping on day 26).

I am so confused and anxious about the hairloss I don't know how long I can continue with the progesterone. I would love to hear some advice.

Comments for Help, severe hair loss after starting progesterone

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Apr 09, 2011
 Help, severe hair loss after starting progesterone
by: Wray

Hi Amy I'm having to do some guessing here, but it appears the amount of progesterone you are using is too low. The hair loss is caused by excess testosterone. Briefly, when first using progesterone, or when increasing the amount, it stimulates the production of oestrogen. But oestrogen has to first be converted from testosterone within the ovaries. So testosterone rises initially, hence the hair loss. We do have info on our Oestrogen Dominance page. With sufficient progesterone the two hormones are suppressed. Progesterone itself does help hair growth, so does vitamin D, which is essential for the anagen phase of hair growth. I recommend 100-200mg/day, I've found anything less merely keeps stimulating oestrogen production. There is this 'myth' as I call it, circulating about the fatty layer becoming saturated. In the 15 years I've been using it and advising about it I've not found this the case. The fatty layer is in fact essential to the transport of progesterone, which is lipophilic, see here. I often advise using it in the vagina, it's excellent for dryness and inflammation. Plus it's effective against Candida whereas oestrogen exacerbates it. Progesterone should always be used as and when needed, a minimum of twice a day, and not as a fixed daily amount. For instance stress drops levels, so more is needed to prevent the return of symptoms. If a cycle exists, it should be used from ovulation for the duration of the luteal phase, for more info please see our page on How to use progesterone. All women, irrespective of their cycle length, ovulate 12-14 days before bleeding. So if a woman has a 26 day cycle, then the progesterone should be used from day 12. But if the cycle is longer or shorter this will not be the case. Please increase the amount of progesterone you are using. You might consider taking 5000iu's/day vitamin D, 2000mg/day N-acetyl cysteine, 2000mg/day inositol, 2-3mg/day biotin and 100mg thiamine (B1). All these assist hair growth. Take care Wray
Aug 26, 2011
 also suffering severe hair loss via the use of progesterone cream
by: Christine

Hi Wray ~ I was hoping to get a progress update on Amy if possible.

I too have experienced an enormous amount of hair loss while using progesterone. I am 36 years old and I began using the cream [paraben-free Progest by Emerita] in early November 2010 to help with symptoms of estrogen dominance, mid-cycle spotting [likely due to fibroids] & intense PMS symptoms. I was using a dime-size each day from day 12 - 26 & following instructions. I felt physically & emotionally fantastic, but within weeks my incredibly thick / long head of wavy dark hair began to change. at first I lost a bunch of hair around the front hairline & then it started to fall out underneath and directly from the root. I stopped using the in February because the hair-loss freaked me out. Shortly after stopping, the fallout subsided, but my other symptoms returned [mid-cycle spotting, mood-swings mainly]. I resumed using the cream again in June and now my hairloss is worse than ever. I've lost nearly 50% of my hair. The long, thick strands are falling out at the root from all over my scalp & I'm left with a fine, limp texture. I'm at the point where I'm near tears in the shower where the long hair literally rinses down my body.

To Amy you recommended increasing the cream. I'm open to trying that, but do you think I should get my levels of progesterone & testosterone tested first? I think my fear is the more I use, the more it will fall out. [2] I noticed there were a few other women who wrote to you besides Amy [Kiya + someone else] who have also experienced severe hair-loss while using progesterone cream. Do you have updates from them?

Many thanks in advance for your time & for your site,
Christine
Feb 08, 2012
 Mother Concern
by: Veronika

I would like also to point out and add that Contraceptive pills work best for a lot of women even though it is not a hundred percent effective. The menstrual cycle of a woman is dictated by the hormones progesterone and estrogen. The levels of both these hormones rise in order to prepare the uterus for any fertilized egg. If conception doesn’t occur, the levels of estrogen and progesterone drops shedding the thickened uterine lining which then leads to menstruation.

What a contraceptive pill does is to regulate these hormones and keep it at a regular level. This synthetic form of estrogen and progesterone compressed into one pill prevents the ovary from releasing an egg in every month.

Dr Andrew Kim
http://www.aihr.com.au/
Jan 19, 2013
 Hair Loss and other issues
by: Newcomer

I've experience hair loss after using progesterone cream so read the article regarding this with interest. I am wondering how I will determine the correct amount of progesterone cream to use to correct this problem? Also noticed that although I had some relief in symptoms in the first month by the second month, not so much. I wondered if it was due to product placement and was told by someone to use the cream vaginally. I also read that it shouldn't be placed in the same spot morning and night but should be rotated. I feel like I am self-medicating without clear direction. Could you direct me to some straight forward answers on how to monitor this therapy?
Jan 26, 2013
 Hair thinning
by: Carolyn

Hi I have written before about my hormone levels , my testost (free ) is 2 pmol , progest(serum) 0.5 nmol , serum oestradiol 406pmol, My hair is thinning my skin seems to be aging ( more wrinkles) I'm confused to what I should be using I am using progesterone cream , but not sure if I shoul be using or taking anything for other hormones not sure if they are low or not . Please advise my hair loss is really getting me down thnx
Jan 27, 2013
 Hair Loss and other issues
by: Wray

Hi there There is a great deal of confusion about how progesterone should be used, and when and where. Often women are given no instructions, which seems the case with you. I have done a page on all the Progesterone Misconceptions that abound. You don't say how much you were using, but it appears too low an amount. Possibly 20-40mg/day? I've found amounts of 100-200mg/day are needed, often more. It really depends on the severity of the symptoms. Too low an amount stimulates oestrogen, causing Oestrogen Dominance. Excess testosterone causes Hair Loss, this page is an attempt to explain what happens. It also gives a list of nutrients which help hair growth. Age does play a role too, as our symptoms are generally far worse during Peri-menopause, so it would help to know your age. We also have more info on our page How to use progesterone cream and on our Menopause page if you have reached this. Take care Wray
Jan 27, 2013
 Hair thinning
by: Wray

Hi Carolyn I'm sorry if I didn't reply to your previous query, I see I've missed 3 on this page. We do have a page on Hormone Testing. I'm not sure what age you are, but if in the 41 - 60 yr bracket your testosterone is towards the high end, the range is 0.4 - 2.5 pg/ml. Unless they did the progesterone test at the wrong time, your level appears to be one for a woman in Menopause, i.e. less than <3.18 nmol/L. But your oestrogen is that of a pre-menopausal woman, which lies between 110.13 - 1468.4 pmol/L. Although you could be in Peri-menopause with dropping progesterone levels due to anovulatory cycles. Maybe you could let me know, or maybe my answers explain it. Your P:E2 ratio is extraordinarily low at 1.23:1. We've found from saliva tests we run that it's best if it's 600:1 and over to feel well. It doesn't surprise me you have Hair Loss, or that your skin is getting more wrinkles, progesterone is very helpful, see here. You can't be using very much progesterone if you still have those problems, it sounds like you are using about 20mg/day. I recommend 100-200mg/day, often more if symptoms are severe. Testosterone causes hair loss, the page I gave you also gives a list of nutrients which help. Take care Wray
Jul 08, 2013
 Help, progesterone cream stings when applied to vagina
by: Ariane

Hi, I have tried applying progesterone cream to vagina but it stings badly so much so I have stop using it. Please help, thank you.
Jul 11, 2013
 Help, progesterone cream stings when applied to vagina
by: Wray

Hi Ariane You don't have to use it in the vagina, it can be used anywhere. I'm not sure why you are using it there, although it does help any dryness and inflammation. Yours is obviously inflamed hence the stinging. Or the cream you're using is very acid. Look at the ingredients and compare them to this one here. Take care Wray
Jul 12, 2013
 Using progesterone in the Vagina
by: JL

Hi Ariane

I suppose this would depend on what progesterone cream you are using, there are a few out there that I would not want to insert in my vagina either!

I insert NATPRO progesterone cream in my vagina most nights. One does feel a slight 'tingling' sensation, but this soon disappears. All that this is doing is stimulating the blood vessels in the vagina and nothing more. It is recommended that progesterone cream be inserted in the vagina too, so I suggest that you take a look at the ingredients in the cream that you are using.

Hope this helps.
Aug 09, 2013
 daily progesterone amounts
by: lina

Hi Wray,I see that you suggest using 100-200 mg per day of progesterone but I am sort of dubious of this amount. I have read many medical sites and I see that they all suggest no more than 40-50 mgs per day, is your advice medical advice? I mean, are you a medical doctor?
Aug 11, 2013
 daily progesterone amounts
by: Wray

Hi Lina No I'm not a doctor, but having used progesterone and helped thousands to do so, I've realised the amount generally recommended is far too low. Plus having read thousands of studies in which low amounts failed to help, whereas higher amounts have. I was also lucky enough to meet several times Dr Dalton, the foremost proponent of progesterone until her death a few years ago. She advocated very high amounts, ranging from 200mg/day, up to 2400mg/day for her patients with post natal psychosis. I learnt from her and the studies I've read that if there is a severe problem, far more progesterone is needed to help. Most of the women coming to this site have all tried the low amounts and have had nothing but trouble from it. You might like to read this page here. They used amounts up to 5000mg/day to good affect. And these comments from women who had to use the high amounts, see here, here, here and here. Take care Wray
Aug 12, 2013
 Progesterone cream stings when applied to vagina
by: Ariane

Thank you Wray & JL for your answer and comment. I am in menopause and using Happy PMS progesterone cream. I read that using cream on skin will saturate the fat tissue with hormones and the most efficient way is to apply cream to mucous epithelial membranes that line the uterus and vagina. Thus, I applied cream to vagina. Well, now that wray had cleared the misconception, I have started using the cream again. Once again, thank you Wray.
Aug 13, 2013
 Progesterone cream stings when applied to vagina
by: Wray

Hi Ariane The problem could be the other ingredients, or your vagina is inflamed as I said. I can't agree about using it only in the vagina, as it could aggravate it. As JL says she uses it there, so do I, but at night only and less than half of the nightly amount. Using it in the vagina it tends to go to the uterus, and not to other areas, see here. That's fine if there are uterine problems, or a woman is pregnant, but it's so beneficial to other areas including the skin, see here. I've found it the best thing for burns, people have had their piles go when using it on them, it's good for minor wounds, leg ulcers etc. We do have a page on Progesterone Misconceptions you could look through. I've had a look at the list of ingredients in the cream you're using and it's one of the best I've come across, I'd not heard of it before. There are no nasties in it. Although it contains citric acid which is quite acid, the cream is also buffered with sodium hydroxide making it the correct pH. So I can only imagine your vagina might be slightly inflamed. I suggest you continue using it there, but very small amounts to help with this. Let me know if the stinging goes. Take care Wray
Aug 22, 2013
 Switching to Natpro & swimming!
by: Jean

I'm perimenopausal, losing lots of hair, and gaining weight rapidly on 80mg/d so I'm switching to Natpro 200mg. Is that 1.2 teaspoons a day!? I feel like I'm swimming in this stuff! How does one use so much twice daily???
Aug 22, 2013
 Switching to Natpro & swimming!
by: Jean

I'm perimenopausal, losing lots of hair, and gaining weight rapidly on 80mg/d so I'm switching to Natpro 200mg. Is that 1.2 teaspoons a day!? I feel like I'm swimming in this stuff! How does one use so much twice daily???
Aug 22, 2013
 Switching to Natpro & swimming!
by: Wray

Hi there Peri-menopause is the pits, the worst time of my life. Until I discovered progesterone, that saved my sanity! So many of the cream are very weak, which means you do have to use large amounts, and end up swimming in it! If you want to use 200mg/day progesterone via Natpro you'll need 6ml of cream. Which is as you say about 1.2tsp. We also have a chart at the bottom of our page on How to use progesterone cream. If divided between am and pm it's not to much to apply. It should be used at least twice daily anyway. I use it on my face, neck and breasts twice a day, then rub the rest of the cream wherever I feel needs it. Usually an ache or pain, or dry patch. Let me know how you get on. Take care Wray
Apr 26, 2016
 Hair loss myself and my baby after Natpro please help us
by: Nicole


Let me begin by saying I really value Wray Whyte. She has helped countless women and she does it with a pure and selfless heart. I took on board everything she had to say in these forums, she is so wise and helpful, I truly believe in her. However my experience has brought me to the brink of suicide. I increased my dosage of progesterone just as she recommends. Every time, I think 'oh I need more'. 3,4,5,600mg etc it's not enough, I need more. Since high doses of progesterone over a year I have now lost half my hair from underneath. I am bald from the middle of my skull to the neck, plus a receding hairline all around the face of two inches that makes me look like an egg. If I didn't have my toddler I would be wanting to die because I have so many other embarrassing problems for a 30 year old - severe tinnitus, severe dry thin wrinkled skin, and apkh - strange kinky course hairs - from Accutane use 7 years ago, blood that pools in my hands and feet leaving them red, skin that no longer tans and is a strange unhealthy shade of very white everywhere, intense red flushing when warm or embarrassed and the extreme pain in joints and legs. The hair loss has tipped me over the edge. I wish I were dead now, I'm so humiliated. I could probably increase the cream and wish for the best again but I know I will get more hair loss so why bother at this point, just to prove to myself. I have used up all my money so can't afford higher doses anyhow. I am selling my belongings every month just to take the amount I'm on now (600mg) I have high/sufficient vitamin D, plus I buy and take all the normal/high doses of B vitamins she recommends and other supplements like nac etc and I get tons of balanced protein. I am not anemic, thyroid okay. I am even now on the Ray Peat and Danny Roddy diet. I am too scared to come off the cream now in case the rest falls out, and too scared to increase in case more falls out as I will never leave the house again, so I'm stuck on the same amount not knowing if I am perpetually stimulating estrogen receptors (some people like Ray peat don't even believe in the receptors I don't understand?) I tried one pregnenolone capsule had bad reaction so that's a no go for me, the tinnitus increase was incredible. I have tried mint tea to block androgens, aspirin, caffeine magnesium, zinc, the list is endless. I am at a loss. I used to be on pain replied but after using serrapeotase I managed to get off it but that seemed to make hormones worse, rebound effect or something. I just want my hair back I am doubtful it will ever grow back now???? So now I've given myself one more problem I can't live with and I just can't cope anymore. I couldn't afford a wig if I wanted to. I can't die, and I can't stay indoors with a toddler who needs to be outside. I keep my stress down and try to ignore things as I know stress makes everything worse. I take lysine and sometimes theanine. But the truth is whenever I look at the back of my head in the mirror I wonder what the hell have I done to myself and when will it end. If I lose any more I think I won't be able stay calm anymore, and I will want to die. My gp's are all zero help. I refuse anti depressants. I wish I had never started progesterone therapy. I didn't have a great life before true, but now I have even less. I can't believe I gave myself alopecia on top of the many other problems I have. I'm pretty sure I won't get a response but I just wanted to put this out there anyway. I'm not against progesterone, I know it helps many women. I believe in Wray White, she is a good and kind woman, she truly is and I believe what she says. But I'm clearly screwed up its only destroyed my health, looks, and life and now I am hanging on by a thread. I wish to god I could go back a year and have my hair back. I just don't know what to do for the best anymore. I'm stuck on this cream not knowing what to do and I'm pretty sure that soon I will be completely and on top of my many other embarrassing skin problems that's just a no go for me. I feel so ugly. I am so angry at myself for using this stuff. Nobody can help me. I'm not sure who I'm talking to here. Oh and to make matters worse I took the advice of using a pin head amount on my baby when she was extremely upset and couldn't sleep, maybe less than twice a month, and she has recently lost hair in the same places as me the neck and her receding temples, her curls at the back are disappearing and everyone keeps commenting. What the hell did this do to my 16 month old?? I am terrified of telling a doctor I did this in case they take her off me!!! I followed the advice of the Internet and put hormones in my baby and her hair fell out...they would surely investigate that??? I have ruined our lives. I don't know what the next step is now.
Jul 28, 2016
 Nicole and her baby
by: Tracy

Wow. I just ordered Natpro and am waiting for it to arrive. However, I will not be using it, or re-ordering, until I see a response to Nicole's post above. I am hoping it will help my peri-menopausal symptoms, my energy levels, and my fibroid woes (while hoping a happy side effect might be improving my hair condition). Having read her comments about her hair loss, and seeing no answers to her cry for help, I will be chucking my order in the garbage unless I read some update.
Jul 31, 2016
 Nicole and her baby
by: Joy

Hi Tracy

Nicole was in fact contacted via email a few months ago by myself with Wray’s guidance regarding her hair loss etc. She most certainly has not been ignored. If you are concerned, please read this thread and the links provided on hair loss etc. You might also like to read the Fibroids page.
Jul 31, 2016
 Nicole and her baby
by: Alyce

Tracy, please do not go chucking your Natpro in the garbage, chuck it my way rather. It has helped me beyond belief. I could not do without it, my life would become a complete mess again. It did not cause my hair to fall out either.
Aug 19, 2016
 Update
by: Me and my baby

Hi. I contacted Joy myself after searching for some kind of contact page, after receiving no response here. Thankfully she replied. She contacted Wray herself and then gave me some feedback from Wray. Many questions about vitamin A and Thyroid were bandied about. I have had tests and thyroid was find, don't take vitamin a so it is not an excess of that. After discontinuing the progesterone on my baby her hair has begun to grow back but it took a while. Her screaming crying and aggressive moods also calmed down and she is now a happier baby. This leads me to believe it may have stimulated estrogen in her and there is something more going on here. I don't intend to use her as a Guinea pig and shall not be giving her it again. Myself personally I am still struggling the same. My most recent blood test showed levels of estradiol in the 500's and progesterone only 13 nnmol in the luteal phase. After over a year of very high amounts about 600mg. I follow a ray peat diet mostly with lots of protein and nutrients. I have spent so much money on this endeavour that I feel I simply can not quit just like that. I continue my efforts but it is so hard sometimes. I did not want to bother Joy further as I felt like I was being 'rude' when I was merely having a breakdown of epic proportions and needed a hand to hold. I am sorry if my story has troubled people but not everyone is going to suffer like this. Many women have had great success and Wray has provided some amazing information on this site. I really hope I have a success story in the end but if I don't then I will probably just keep trying until the end and keep praying. After talking with Joy I strangely received no reply to my last order email about Natpro being back in stock and now fear I have been blacklisted and they will not sell it to me because I posted my problems on here. I now have to use an alternative. I apologise to Joy and Wray if I caused problems posting my story here and affected their sales of Natpro. I am genuinely very sorry. Everything just seems to go wrong in my life and I just keep trying every day. I'm a good kind person and don't mean to upset anyone or cause trouble and I sincerely apologise if I have. I will refrain from posting anything but positive things if I even post again in the future. Thank you for reading this.
Aug 22, 2016
 Update - Me and my baby
by: Joy

Hi Nicole

Well I wondered why I had not received a reply to my last email, did you receive it? If not, have you checked your Junk Folder? As for not receiving a reply regarding stock. There have been a number of stock outs as you know, it could be they you requested Natpro tubes which were and still are out of stock. Emails only get sent out once stock is available. Again, have you checked your Junk Folder, often emails land up there? You most certainly have not been ‘blacklisted’ that is not the way Wray or Organic Products conduct business. We are all here to help as much as we possibly can. We offer suggestions, we never say that one ‘must’ do certain things, that choice would be entirely up to the individual. There are many posts which go unanswered as the volume of work is huge. We encourage people to make use of the search bar, so much can be found by using it.

I know that you have been battling which is why I reached out to you. Please do not apologise for being rude, you were never rude at all, you were desperate and understandably so. Your story, like everyone else’s is of great value to us all. We can only do our best to help. Some people battle, most do not. I know that you have tried hard with progesterone therapy and I thank you for that and for listening.

I wish you well and hope that the sun will shine for you again soon. Take care.
Aug 30, 2016
 help, sever loss after starting progesterone
by: Anonymous

I don't know if Nicole still reads this site, but I felt I had to respond to her desperate email. I am so very sorry you have gone through this. When you mentioned that you had had your thyroid tested and they said it was fine, I very much doubt that was an accurate account of your thyroid. I say that because more often than not thyroid tests fail to be accurate. Check you basal temperature first thing in the morning. If using a digital thermometer, place it under the arm pit for 10 minutes or so BEFORE turning it on. Or, place it under the arm and when it beeps, wait approx. 3 more minutes without moving to see what the temperature is . According to Dr. Broda Barnes, the thyroid specialist who promoted desiccated natural thyroid, your temperature should be between 97.8 to 98.2. Anything below that may indicate low thyroid. Basal temperature testing is more accurate than TSH testing! Iodine is crucial for thyroid! Please read Dr. David Brownstein's books regarding the importance of iodine. Iodoral is the tablet form he recommends. Lugol's iodine is the liquid form of iodoral. I strongly feel this is the missing link.
Also, managing stress is important. I personally practice daily meditation. Dr. Deepak Chopra offers guided meditations on his site. Please don't give up. Thyroid problems are at epidemic levels and often go misdiagnosed! That is a fact. I hope you will read Dr. Brownstein's books. They are not too complicated and easy to read. I wish you all the best on your journey. It is a ongoing journey. It is not the end !

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