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Three questions

by Kelli
(New Bedford)

Hi Wray, I was wondering if progesterone cream is helpful for a 50-year-old male who had a brain trauma five years ago or is it only helpful right after the injury? If so, how much is helpful? (I'm asking for my husband.)

I'm noticing lose bowels on your cream and wanted to find out if this is ok or what to do.

Also, I also wanted to know your thoughts on this. I want to keep using the amount you suggest but can't find that recommendation on any other website. I'm trying to get to the truth.

http://www.bhrt-resource.com
No Known Side effects of Natural Progesterone
Under normal conditions, when using natural progesterone in physiological amounts (20 - 30 mg a day for women and 6-10 mg a day for men) there aren't any progesterone side effects.

It's important for progesterone prescriptions to be individualized. For example, it is common for natural progesterone prescriptions to be 100 mg a day or even as high as 200mg a day.

Natural progesterone is safe, but as with most substances, too much can cause problems.

Too much progesterone is actually counterproductive, as chronically high progesterone doses over the course of many months eventually causes progesterone receptors to turn off, reducing its effectiveness and may lead to toxic progesterone side effects.

But keep in mind, not all women suffer from these progesterone side effects when they use excessive doses of progesterone.

Side effects of too much progesterone include...

* An anesthetic effect
An anesthetic and intoxicating effect such as slight sleepiness.

Excess progesterone down-regulates estrogen receptors, and the brain's response to estrogen is needed for serotonin production.

To solve this, simply reduce the dose until the sleepiness goes away.

* Symptoms of Estrogen Dominance
For a week or two after first starting progesterone, some women report paradoxical estrogen dominance symptoms.

In the initial application, it is common for those who have been deficient in progesterone for years to experience some headaches, water retention, and swollen breasts.

These symptoms of estrogen dominance are common because the estrogen receptors are being re-sensitized by the progesterone. This "coming alive" of progesterone is exhibited in the initial stages of progesterone application.

These symptoms usually go away by themselves and isn't a sign of toxicity.

* Lowered libido
Excess progesterone block the conversion of testosterone to DHT causing a lowered sex drive. This primarily happens to men.

* Candida
Excess progesterone can inhibit anti-Candida white blood cells, which can lead to bloating and gas.

Excess progesterone slows gastrointestinal (GI) transport, and with the wrong kind of gastrointestinal flora, such as candida, this can lead to bloating and gas.

Candida is bacterium present in a yeast infection. Excess progesterone can inhibit anti-Candida neutrophils (white blood cells).
Systemic candidiasis can be treated with a grain-free diet for 2 weeks, followed by 40 mg of progesterone (using 3% progesterone cream) a day applied vaginally and to the breast.

More is applied gradually elsewhere to areas such as the neck, face, brow, and inner aspects of the arms.

If side effects worsen, reduce progesterone dosage.

* Mild Depression
Depression is caused by the excess progesterone down-regulating estrogen receptors and the brain response to estrogens is needed for seratonin production.

* Edema (water retention)
Water retention is likely caused by excess conversion to deoxycortisone, a mineralcorticoid made in the adrenal glands which causes water retention.

High doses can lead to an increase in androgen production. Excessive progesterone can also lead to the increase in androgen production and ultimately increase in estrogen production within the adrenal hormonal synthesis pathway as the body shunts the excessive progesterone to these other hormones.

Applying progesterone cream to the wrong areas can lead to excessive progesterone levels.

Excessive progesterone is more commonly a problem for people who are self-administering topical progesterone cream in the wrong areas of the body.

Progesterone cream should be applied to areas that have good circulation but aren't high in fat.

These areas include the back of the neck, wrist, and under part of the upper arm.

Areas such as the abdomen, buttock and breast are high in fat and will retain progesterone faster than other parts of the body.

Comments for Three questions

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Sep 08, 2011
 Three questions
by: Wray

Hi Kelli Looking at all the points on the pasted info, there are many more than 3 questions! I'll try to answer them all. But firstly, from the studies done on TBI it does appear to be essential to give the progesterone within in the first 24 hrs or sooner if possible. The study found it's not so much the injury which causes the damage, but the oedema and inflammation that occurs after the injury. Progesterone is such an excellent diuretic and anti-inflammatory that it reduced the oedema and inflammation to barely perceptible levels, see here and here. Further studies found adding vitamin D to the protocol increased the effect of progesterone, see here, here and here. The body has a remarkable ability to heal, given the nutrients it needs to do so. To my mind it's worth your husband trying both these. But please ask him to have a vitamin D test done, for more info see the Vitamin D Council, GrassrootsHealth and Birmingham Hospital websites. The level in the blood should be 70-100ng/ml, and not the 30ng/ml the labs and doctors use as a cut off point for adequate. Progesterone can have a laxative effect, but usually only initially. It's the diuretic action it has, it blocks the aldosterone receptor sites, see here. Oestrogen causes water retention, it does this by drawing water from the intestines, causing constipation. I hope this answers the 'edema' question further down your query, but this article might help further, see here. Scroll to page 8. As for my recommended amounts, these come from my own use of progesterone, helping hundreds of women, men too, and reading the studies. For instance those on TBI used amounts in excess of 1200mg/day. Dr Dalton, who's advise I sought when she was alive, used 800mg/day for her patients, going up to 2400mg/day if they had post natal psychosis. The problem with the physiological amounts that are recommended, is that's precisely what they are. In other words they are the amounts we normally make when all is normal, so why use it! I've run out of space so will start again below. Take care Wray
Sep 08, 2011
 Three questions
by: Wray

Hi Kelli If symptoms are severe, far more is needed, 20-40mg/day will only exacerbate the problem, due to the oestrogen dominance effect. Oestrogen is a mitogen, it's also an inflammatory, excitatory hormone, which makes matters far worse. As for turning off progesterone receptors, I've not found this the case, I've used ±170mg/day for 15 years now, but occasionally top myself up by using 330mg/day. Each time I do I get bad oestrogen dominance symptoms, if my receptors were dulled, this would not occur. The problem I've found is women, men too, are always given a 'dose', a regular amount to use every day, this is not how to use progesterone. It should be used as and when needed, hourly if symptoms are bad. Stress drops levels, use more, dark, cloudy days, winter in particular drops levels, use more, large meals drop levels, use more, phytoestrogens in food drop levels, use more, post natal depression drops levels, use more. I could go on! Symptoms are always the best guide, one women used 1000mg/day initially to help hers, but dropped it once she had been helped, see here. As for lowered libido, the jury is still out on whether it's testosterone which raises it, it seems more likely to be progesterone, see here. We have many men using it to raise theirs, successfully too, see here, here and here. As for the bit on Candida, progesterone actually helps prevent the fungus taking hold, whereas oestrogen encourages it. Take care Wray

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