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TJ

by TJ
(Kentucky)

I've been to my gyno to have my hormones tested and she put me on estrogel which did nothing. When I went back in for a follow-up and I told her there were no changes, she told me my hormones were normal and that i was in need of a Psychiatric evaluation since i had been experiencing episodes of extreme irritbility during the last two weeks of the month. I refused to let her put me on an antidepressant since I do not think that is the issue here.
She said various other unprofessional things to me too and I have since terminated my 15 yr. relationship with her.

I'm sure that I have estrogen dominence (I took your test and scored a 38) and would like to saliva test, but I don't know when I'm ovulating due to a partial hysterectomy in 2003. I do not have a cervix or uterus, but still have my ovaries. Please advise.

Comments for TJ

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Sep 19, 2012
 TJ
by: Wray

Hi TJ I'm continually amazed by the stories I hear. To suggest you need psychiatric help, when it's all too obvious your symptoms are due to imbalanced hormones. The cyclic nature shouts out it's nothing more. You don't give your age, but it could be you are now in Peri-menopause, when ovulation begins to slow down. Although this does start well before from about age 35, when there are some months no ovulation takes place. These skipped months increase in frequency through P-M, until Menopause, when we stop ovulating. Oestrogen peaks during the mid-luteal phase, progesterone should too if ovulation takes place. But if it doesn't, this leaves oestrogen dominant, hence your symptoms. The best time for a test is ±7 days before bleeding. As you don't bleed, but you do know your extreme irritability increases during the last two weeks, try to time the test in the middle of these weeks. Although the test is not vital, it will pick up the ratio between P:E2. You might like to see the results of Saliva Tests we run. This lab does look at the ratio, whereas most don't. ZRT Labs also look at the ratios. If you should consider progesterone please look through this page on How to use progesterone cream. Please make sure you use sufficient, as too little will cause Oestrogen Dominance, not something you need! Take care Wray
Sep 19, 2012
 Response: Thank-you wray
by: TJ

Thanks Wray that is very helpfull. My age is 46 and both of my sister's have entered perimenopause at around the age of 38. My older sister has not had a period for 8 years and when they blood test her hormones she is continually told that she is not in menopause and that she is in the normal range. How can this be if she is not having a period and there is nothing medically wrong with her? This is the reson I do not agree with blood testing for hormones. I will check out the pages you reccomended and plan to do a saliva test. I know the doseage for progesterone is 100-200mg, but How do I measure that???
Can a lack of progesterone cause dry skin and a lot of hair loss? (My skin has become extremely dry and i am loosing a lot of hair. So much that i had to put traps to catch it in the showers because the drains were getting clogged.)
Sep 20, 2012
 Response: Thank-you wray
by: Wray

Hi TJ Having your age does help, it means you are now in P-M. It seems highly unusual for your sister's tests to say she's not in menopause! Particularly as she hasn't had a period in 8 years. I wonder which hormone they test for. The best guide is the FSH and LH tests, as these are both high in menopause. Progesterone is low at less than 1ng/ml, and oestradiol varies between 0-30pg/ml, that's a serum test. We do have a page on Hormone Testing you could look through. I do recommend 100-200mg/day, but it is only a guideline, many women do well with this, but many need far more initially. It is trial and error. A 5ml teaspoon is best, these can be found in health shops, or kitchen shops have accurate measuring spoons in ml or tsp. Please don't use a tsp used for stirring tea! These vary from 3ml to 6ml. We do have a chart at the bottom of our page on How to use progesterone cream. And yes, a lack of progesterone does lead to dry skin, wrinkles too, see here. Whereas oestrogen does nothing for the skin, see here and here. Hair Loss is often caused by excess testosterone. Please read through this page as there are other factors too, a lack of vitamin D being but one. It also gives a list of nutrients which help. Please be aware this could get worse if insufficient progesterone is used. It stimulates oestrogen, leading to Oestrogen Dominance. Where does the testosterone fit in, well not something many of us are aware of, but we make more testosterone each month than oestrogen. But most of it is converted to oestrogen by the enzyme aromatase. So before oestrogen rises, testosterone has to. Take care Wray
Sep 24, 2012
 Vit. D
by: TJ

Wray,
I was not aware that a lack of vitmain D could cause hair loss. Last year I was put on Prescription Vitamin D for 3 mos. due to a low level found on a blood test. After finishing the script I never had it re-tested. I will make an appointment with my GP to have it re-tested. I also experience cystic acne very badly and was put on Aldactone for it by my Gyno. She told me that it could be testosterone doing that to me but never tested it. I have been on the aldactone for about 5 years. (cystic acne started at age 40) I had never had any kind of acne problems before this. I am going to try some progesterone cream, but do i use it all month or just the two weeks that I ovulate? I've had a partial hysterectomy so It's kind hard to tell when that's happening. Thanks.
Sep 25, 2012
 Vit. D
by: Wray

Hi TJ Yes, vitamin D is vital for the anagen phase of hair growth. In fact it's vital for all cells to function normally. A low level also reduces the benefits of progesterone. I was so fascinated by the synergy between Progesterone and Vitamin D that I did this page on them. If you had a low level of vitamin D, then it was a very low level. As all labs use the FDA 'adequate' of 30ng/ml. The specialists are saying it should be a minimum of 50ng/ml, although many suggest it should be between 75-100ng/ml. Please check your last test results, and have another done soon. The minimum daily dose should be 5000iu's per day, although recent research indicates it should be 10,000iu's per day, see here. We do have a page on Acne you could look through. This is also caused by excess testosterone. Ironically spironolactone does have androgenic properties, although it's touted as an 'anti-androgen', see here, here, and here. Continued below.
Sep 25, 2012
 Vit. D Part 2
by: Wray

Hi TJ Interesting the acne started at age 40. It could well be due to dropping progesterone levels during peri-menopause. This would allow testosterone to increase, as progesterone does suppress it. If bound to SHBG (sex hormone binding globulin) testosterone becomes inactive, progesterone raises levels of SHBG, see here, so preventing the rise of free testosterone. SHBG drops if sugars are eaten, even those found in all grains, legumes, dairy and sweet starchy fruits and vegetables. Fructose, sucrose and glucose, reduce SHBG by 80, 50 and 40% respectively, see here. Thereby allowing testosterone to rise. It's best to avoid all the foods and sugars mentioned. As you don't have a cycle anymore, it's best to use the progesterone daily, easier too. But please use enough. Take care Wray

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